Dunedin Railway Station

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Dunedin Railway Station
Dunedin Railway Station 2.jpg
Data
Design Through station
Architectural data
Architectural style Flemish Renaissance
architect George Alexander Troup
location
Place / district Dunedin
region Otago
Country New Zealand
Coordinates 45 ° 52 ′ 31 ″  S , 170 ° 30 ′ 32 ″  E Coordinates: 45 ° 52 ′ 31 ″  S , 170 ° 30 ′ 32 ″  O
Railway lines

South Island Main Trunk Railway , Taieri Gorge Railway

List of train stations in New Zealand
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The station Dunedin (English: Dunedin Railway Station ) is a through station on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand and, with its railway station building, a landmark in the city Dunedin is the platform of the station is 450 meters one of the longest in the country..

Railway stations for Dunedin

Dunedin was opened to rail traffic early with the development of the New Zealand railroad. As early as January 1, 1873, the line of the Dunedin and Port Chalmers Railway was opened as the first line in the 1067 mm gauge, which has been mandatory in New Zealand since 1871. On September 7, 1878, the total 367 km long route of the South Island Main Trunk Railway between Christchurch and Dunedin was opened . Further developments in the country to the south followed a little later.

Because of Dunedin's important port for immigrants from Europe , but also the export of goods to Australia and Europe, a need for appropriate transshipment points quickly developed. As early as 1875, a second station was built near the Queen Victoria statue in Dunedin, right next to the first station, and five years later there was another need to expand the facilities. But it was not until June 3, 1904 that the foundation stone for a new, large and adequately dimensioned station area was laid by the then Minister of Railways , Joseph Ward .

Construction of the largest train station in New Zealand

Based on the designs of the first official architect of the New Zealand railways, George Alexander Troup , who was also responsible for the stations in New Plymouth , Lower Hutt and Bluff , Troup created his masterpiece in Dunedin . Held in the Flemish Renaissance style, the building was made of dark basalt and light, as Ototara designated limestone , the quarries from Oamaru came built. Polished granite slabs characterize the doorways of the front of the building and over 725,760 porcelain tiles are built into mosaic surfaces in the aisles and in the large main hall of the building. They show pictures of railroad vehicles, wheels, signals, locomotives and in large letters the abbreviation NZR for New Zealand Railways .

The most distinctive part of the imposing station building is the rectangular tower on the southwest corner of the building. With a height of over 37 meters, it is visible from afar and has a clock 1.5 meters in diameter on three sides, which is illuminated from the inside at night.

The station building was opened in October 1906 by Joseph Ward , now Prime Minister of New Zealand . The last work on the station facility was not completed until November 1907. The total cost at the time was £ 120,500 (about NZ $ 241,000), an enormous sum at the time.

Loss of meaning

In the first decades of the 20th century tens of thousands of travelers were still counted daily at the station, this number gradually decreased, mostly in connection with the closure of railway lines that led to Dunedin . So z. B. the Dunedin - Alexandra route of the Central Otago Line , which was closed in 1976. In 1982, when suburban traffic with Dunedin was discontinued, around 4,000 passengers could still be counted daily. In 1990, after the New Zealand Rail shut down the Central Otago Line with the section through the Taieri Gorge , the Dunedin station threatened to lose its importance. With the discontinuation of the Southerner in 2002, a passenger train connection between Invercargill , Dunedin and Christchurch , the station lost its last importance for passenger traffic.

New use

Despite the withdrawal of the State Railway New Zealand Rail and the successor of the privatized Tranz Rail and Toll NZ from the passenger of the train station is operating continues to operate, because since 1990 Otago Excursion Train Trust the route Taieri Gorge Railway . It is the largest tourist railway in the country and has its departure and departure point in Dunedin station .

In 1994, Dunedin City Council took over the station building from the government and worked with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust to restore the building over the years. Today the station building houses the salesrooms of the Taieri Gorge Railway , the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame , a gallery, a restaurant and offices of the city administration.

Photo gallery

  • Dunedin Railway Station

  • Part of the platform at Dunedin Railway Station

  • Interior of the entrance hall

  • Mosaic and tiles on the entrance hall floor

literature

  • Dunedin Railway Station - The Story Of New Zealand's Grandest Railway Station . Otago Excursion Train Trust , Dunedin 1998 (English, leaflet).
  • Geoffrey B. Churchman, Tony Hurst : The Railways Of New Zealand - A Journey Through History . 2nd Edition. HarperCollins Publishers , Wellington 2000, ISBN 0-908876-20-3 (English).

Web links

Commons : Dunedin Railway Station  - Album containing pictures, videos and audio files