Station Profile: Ngakawau - Coal from the Clouds

DXC's 5333 and 5391 lead an empty coal service to Ngakawau with the Papahaua Range and Denniston Plateau in the background. 18 September 2026.

Ngakawau is located along the rugged northern part of West Coast. In te reo, Ngakawau translates as ‘the shags’ after the sea bird that is found in this area. Coal was discovered in the Buller region by Charles Heaphy and William Brunner in 1846 and commercial mining started at Ngakawau in 1872. Because of the lack of natural harbours or rivers large enough for ships to enter along the northern West Coast, a railway line was built between Westport and Seddonville. Construction of the 48 kilometer Seddonville Branch began in 1874 and reached its terminus just north of Seddonville at the Mokihinui Mine in February 1895. The branch was built almost exclusively for transporting coal to the river port at Westport. Mixed trains did run on the branch, but these ceased in October 1946.

Ngakawau Railway Station 1919. Unknown photographer. National Library.

Located 30 kilometers from Westport, Ngakawau started life as a terminus station on the line as it was under construction but soon became a through station as the line crossed the Ngakawau River on a substantial timber truss bridge.

Ww 573 crosses the Ngakawau River as it heads north on the Seddonville Branch. Photo courtesy of the Buller History Facebook page. 

Ngakawau was an important station on the line with two major sources of tonnage. The Charming Creek Tramway was a nine kilometre long bush tramway that brought logs from the Charming Creek area to Watsons Mill, with the cut timber then going to the station at Ngakawau for onward transport. Later on the tramway also carried coal from the Charming Creek Coal Mine to coal bins near Ngakawau. The tramway closed in 1958.

A coal train led by a converted tractor making its way to Ngakawau on the Charming Creek Tramway sometime in the 1940's. Photo courtesy of the Buller History Facebook Page.

The station also received coal from the then private Westport - Stockton Coal Company Stockton Mine. The Mine opened in 1906 and by 1908, regular production from the mine had begun. Coal was transported from the mine to Ngakawau using New Zealand’s first electric railway. The line was 10.5km long with 2.4km of that in two long tunnels. The electric railway was in use between 1908 and 1953.

Alf Harris driving an electric locomotive on the Stockton Mine railway. Photo courtesy of the West Coast New Zealand History page.

In 1944, the Westport - Stockton Coal Company was purchased by the Mines Department. To increase production, the Mines Department replaced the electric railway with a 7.7km long heavy bi-cable aerial cableway in 1953. The cableway uses a stationary heavy steel cable which the buckets roll along. A second moving cable called a haul rope pulls the buckets along the stationary cable. The system works largely off gravity with the heavy buckets of coal going downhill helping to pull the empty buckets uphill for refilling.

Dave Reid checking the pulleys on one of the 368 buckets used on the 7.7km long cableway sometime in the 1990's. Photo courtesy of the West Coast New Zealand History page.

In 2001 the cableway was shortened from its original 7.7km long length to its current length of 2.2km with the upper section replaced by a heavy haulage road. Large dump trucks now bring the coal from the mine to a processing plant where it is then transported by the cableway down the steep decent from the Denniston Plateau to the large loadout facility at Ngakawau.

Ngakawau in January 1959.Whites Aviation photo. National Library.

The closure of the mine at Mokihinui, decreased domestic demand for coal, the decline of coastal shipping and increasing maintenance costs led to the closure of the line beyond Ngakawau on the 3^rd of May 1981. 

The coal extracted from the Stockton Mine on the Denniston Plateau is high quality bituminous hard coking coal. It burns very hot and produces very little ash. The coal also contains high concentrations of Vitrinite which acts as a binding agent. It's these characteristics that made it excellent for use by steel makers who blend it with lower quality coal. The international demand for West Coast coal climbed significantly in the 1980's driven largely by Japanese steel makers. Instead of transporting coal to the ports at Westport and Greymouth for use in the domestic market, the New Zealand Railways started to run trains from Ngakawau, across the Southern Alps to the port of Lyttleton for export. 

DJ 3568 with an empty coal train heads towards Ngakawau. Photo by George White. 

Although the amount of tonnage had increased significantly, the means of transporting the coal from Ngawakau had changed little from the steam era with four wheel wagons still in use. The combination of low powered DJ locomotives and small capacity LC four wheel wagons severely restricted the amount of coal the New Zealand Railways were able to transport. Aging infrastructure to load wagons also played a part in this.

Ngakawau loadout facility in 1983. Photo courtesy of the Buller History Facebook page.

With the existing wooden coal bins and screens no longer able to cope with the massive quantities of coal being produced for export, the State Coal Mines built a brand new coal loadout facility in 1980 which remains in use today.

Alongside the new load out facility, new CB bogie high capacity coal wagons were introduced, DC locomotives, transferred to the South Island following the electrification of the North Island Main Trunk, entered service and track and signalling upgrades were completed to increase the capacity of the the lines between Ngakawau and Lyttleton.  

DC 4640 helps load CB coal wagons at Ngakawau in the early 1990s. Photo from the Nicholas Family Collection, Ghost Railways of Westland Facebook page.

The Stockton Mine is now operated by Bathurst Resources and produces between 900,000 and 1,200,000 tonnes of high quality coking and thermal coal per year. Ngakawau remains the terminus of the Stillwater – Ngakawau Line and continues to load multiple trains of high capacity bogie hopper wagons of high quality West Coast coal every day.

Ngakawau is the end of the line and the end of Track Warrant Control that is used to control trains on the Stillwater - Ngakawau Line. A station warning board is located on the line just to the north of Granity to warn locomotive engineers they are approaching the terminus.

The Track Warrant Control station warning board for Ngakawau.

The current yard at Ngakawau is very simple for the large amount of traffic that it generates. It consists of the main, a loop and a short dead end siding. 

The mainline points to the loop looking south.

The mainline points leading to the loop looking north towards the loadout facility.

The Ngakawau yard showing the short dead end siding with a solitary CB wagon.

From here the yard curves to the east towards the rail loadout facility.

The Ngakawau yard looking south. The original yard and line to Seddonville continued straight along the tree line.

Ngakawau Railway Station in 1983 showing the sidings on the left leading to the loadout facility. Photo courtesy of the Buller History Facebook Page.

The loadout facility is fed by a steady stream of buckets on the aerial ropeway. On reaching the loadout facility, each bucket enters the receiving building where they follow a mechanical track loop. The buckets hit a tipping mechanism that automatically flips them over, dumping the cargo of 1.5 tonnes of coal into a large receiving bunker. Conveyors then carry the coal to the stockpile area.

The Ngakawau rail loadout facility.

Coal buckets on the aerial cableway.

Underneath the stockpile area is an underground tunnel with automatic feed valves. When the valves are opened, coal falls from the base of the pile onto the underground conveyor which moves the coal up to loading hoppers called surge bins. As the train passes under the loading tower at a steady speed of one to two kilometres per hour, an overhead chute opens up filling each hopper wagon. The entire system is automated with electronic sensors used to measure the precise volume and weight of the coal being loaded. The bottom of the chute also acts as a blade that levels off the coal to prevent it from spilling from the wagons as they cross the Southern Alps on their way to Lyttleton. The entire filling process takes between an hour and a half to two hours to load approximately 1,460 tonnes of coal across 30 hopper wagons.
Both the main and the loop pass under the loadout hoppers and there are the remnants of a siding under a third hopper but this has been disconnected. 

The Ngakawau rail loading hoppers.

The north side of the rail loadout hoppers.

At the northern end of the loadout facilities, the mainline and loop curve to the east and cross Tyler Street before ending in a backshunt on the former Charming Creek tramway right of way.

The Tyler Street level crossing.

The main to loop points looking back towards the loadout facility.

The backshunt on the former Charming Creek tramway right of way used by locomotives to run round their trains.

Ngakawau remains a vital part of KiwiRail's freight business and almost single handedly keeps the Stillwater to Ngakawau Line and the Midland Line open for business.

If you're on the West Coast, I would highly recommend following the line from Stillwater to Westport and then to Ngakawau. It is definitely a day trip but the combination of the beautiful rugged scenery and long, heavy coal trains make this a bucket list trip for New Zealand railfans.

And that is about it.

Automatic Signalling on the Midland Line

 

DXC 5039 passes the up arrival and down departure automatic signals at Moana.The locomotive engineer of the coal train can be seen in the background preparing to set the points to the loop so they can depart. 11/09/2026

I've recently taken up a short stint working on the West Coast of the South Island. On my travels I've visited lines and locations I haven't seen before. Like the Main Trunk through the central North Island, the electrified suburban network in Wellington or the Central Otago Branch, the West Coast holds a special place for railfans. This was because the West Coast was one of the last places in New Zealand to regularly run steam locomotives on goods trains, had branch lines like the famous Rewanui and the Conns Creek Branches serving remote coal mines, ran through the stunningly beautiful Buller Gorge and across the road rail bridges on the Hokitika Branch. The West Coast is deeply embedded into New Zealand railfan folklore. 

The railway that crosses the Southern Alps to link the east and west coasts of the South Island is called the Midland Line. This line has always been an important part of the New Zealand rail network, and today it is no different. New Zealand’s premier passenger train, the Tranz Alpine shares the rails with heavy coal trains from Mai Mai, Reefton and Ngakawau, milk wagons from the Hokitika line and a steady stream of logs from Greymouth. This traffic has resulted in the upgrading of track and replacement of numerous bridges, however for all the traffic and upgrades, it continues to operate using a signalling system that is a throwback to a past era.

First introduced to the Midland Line in 1923, Single Line Automatic Signalling remains in use between Rolleston and Arthurs Pass and Otira and Stillwater on the Midland Line. The section between Arthurs Pass and Otira including the Otira Tunnel is controlled by Centralised Traffic Control. 

The Christchurch to Greymouth Express approachs a pair of automatic intermediate signals near Cass in the 1980's. This train later became the world famous Tranz Alpine. Photo by D.L.A Turner.

Single Line Automatic Signalling is a railway signalling system that uses track circuits and axle counters to automatically control trains on a single track.

To simplify it to my level, the single track is broken down into smaller sections called blocks. The track circuits and axle counters detect when a train enters or leaves a block and the automatic signals change colour to green - proceed, yellow - caution prepare to stop or red - stop, depending on the occupancy of the block ahead. This system stops trains from entering a block that is already occupied.

Kokiri - Moana signalling and interlocking diagram.

Between each station their intermediate signals. These signals act as dividers and break up the sections of track between stations into smaller blocks and indicate the occupancy of the blocks ahead.

Intermediate signals between Kokiri and Moana.

Intermediate signals between Jackson and Rotomanu. Axle counters are installed in this location.

Intermediate signals also act as advanced warnings for trains as they approach stations. An intermediate signal showing a yellow caution aspect before a station can indicate that the arrival signal at the station ahead is red because there is a train on the main at the station or the points are aligned for the loop.

The vast majority of crossing loops on the automatic signalling sections of the Midland Line have manually operated points and the pair of arrival and departure signals at each end. I don't envy the locomotive engineers that need to get out of their warm dry cabs in the winter at Cass or the rain at Moana to change the points to enter the loop or depart on the main.

Rotomanu Signalling and Interlocking Diagram.

The crossing stations are interlocked meaning the points are protected by the arrival signals that have 'L' lights - L standing for loop.

The Down Arrival signal at Rotomanu with short range 'L' signal.

The points are electrically connected to the signals so that when the points are set for the loop at either end, both arrival signals go to stop and the short range 'L' is illuminated at the end that the points are set for the loop. Using the 'L' light, trains can enter the loop.

Down Departure Signal, loop points switch lever and releasing switch box at the down end of Kokiri Station.

On the Midland Line, when a freight train is crossing another freight train, the down train (west bound) always takes the loop. Passenger trains including the Tranz Alpine almost always remain on the mainline.

The westbound Tranz Alpine passes a work train in the loop at Moana. 13/09/2026.

A releasing switch is provided near the points lever. If the block ahead of the train is clear, activating the releasing switch will set the departure signal to proceed. Once the proceed signal comes up, the locomotive engineer can set the points allowing the train to depart the loop.

Releasing Switch Box at the down end of Kokiri station.

If a train arrives at a crossing loop and no crossing will take place, the approach and departure signals will be at proceed unless the blocks ahead are occupied.

When trains arrive at stations where crossings have previously occurred, the Locomotive Engineer may get a stop indication at the arrival signal and will need to manually set the points back for the main line. The arrival signal should then return to proceed. If it remains at stop the locomotive engineer can pass the red signal at low speed ensuring that all points are set for the main and there are no obstructions on the line.

Because theres traffic going in both directions - down for west bound trains and up for east bound trains - an operating instruction is issued by the train controller to a locomotive engineer on a form called a Mis.51. This instruction tells the locomotive engineer where they can go to, what crossings they may have with other trains, where the crossing will be, any special instructions, and if automatic signalling is suspended between two locations due to faults. Instructions are also issued to track gangs who need to access the line for maintenance or inspections.

Mis. 51 Form used by locomotive engineers and infrastructure teams.

Locomotive Engineers are also required to make a radio call prior to arriving at crossing station or a station at the boundary of the automatic signalling. This is so other trains or track gangs in the vicinity can hear what train number it is, where it is and the instructions it has from train control.

Crossings in single line automatic signalling terriorty takes time, so KiwiRail has started work to upgrade signals and install point motors at some stations. This work has been completed at Darfield with has started at Jacksons, Rotomanu, Moana and Kokiri. Operation of the points and signals will be controlled by train control so crossing will be significantly more efficient and Locomotive Engineers can remain warm and dry in their cabs.

Masts for new departure signals at the down end of Kokiri station.

For a railway line with a good number of trains, it's surprising that a system like single line automatic signalling remains in use and hasn't been replaced by more common forms of train control like centralised traffic control or track warrant control. KiwiRail have some very good reasons to keep the single line automatic signalling system in use. The existing system has sufficient traffic capacity for the 10 to 14 trains that use the Midland Line every day, geographical and weather challenges makes installing and maintaining fibre networks difficult, its proven reliability, and while there are signalling upgrades taking place at some crossing stations, the cost of installing a new CTC system across the whole Midland Line is prohibitive. 

This post gives a general overview of single line automatic signalling and definitely does not cover all the intricacies of this form of train control. 

If you want to find out more about how the signalling on the Midland Line works you can find KiwiRails Network Operating Instructions for the Midland Line here. A locomotive engineer that drives on the West Coast also often posts cabride videos of his trips on the Midland Line. You can see one of Stand Up West Coasts videos showing the trip between Stillwater and Moana with the automatic signalling here. 

And thats about it.

 

Roaming in Matangi's

 

DFB7282 awaits departure time with the Capital Connection service to Palmerston North. A Matangi train arrives on platform 9.

I've been fortunate to travel to Wellington for work several times this year where I've managed to get down to the impressive Wellington Railway Station in the evenings to watch the evening rush hour. It was good fun watching Metlink move large amounts of commuters so efficently and the new track layout working with many trains arriving and departing; not just the 'Matangi' (Matangi is Te Reo for wind or breeze - a great name for trains in windy Wellingon) but also the DFB hauled Capital Connection to Palmerston North and the Wairarapa Connection passenger trains. 

For my last trip to Wellington, I was able to get to Wellington a day early and managed to get a day off to explore the Wellington suburban rail network. 

I arrived at the station just after the morning rush hour. Matangi units were being shunted into sidings for the afternoon rush hour while staff prepared for the off peak schedule. 

This included the Wairarapa Connection trains that had also arrived. These trains are shunted into the Wellington yard for the day before being shunted back into the platforms for the evening services to Masterton. One of these services was in Platform 8 and I grabbed a quick photo of the two DFB's on the front. These locomotives are not far away from being sent to South Africa so it was good to get a shot of them even though it was a poor photo.

DFB's 7348 and 7049 rest at Platform 8 with a recently arrived Wairarapa Connection passenger train.

After tagging on using my snapper card I caught my first train of the day to Upper Hutt. After leaving Wellington station the Hutt Line passes the Wellington freight yard, electric multiple unit depot and the diesel locomotive depot before skirting along the edge of Wellington Harbour and passing through the Hutt Valley suburbs.

Matangi EMU Trailer car FT4299 at Upper Hutt Station. 

Upper Hutt is the northern terminus on the electrified Hutt Line and sits 32 kilometers from Wellington. Diesel locomotive hauled Wairarapa Connection trains stop here on their way to and from Masterton and the Wairarapa to the north. The station is a massive upgrade from the one I last visited in the late 90's. The old station was replaced with the current building in 2015 and includes a nice waiting room and amentities for Metlink staff. 

After grabbing an excellent flat white from the coffee cart outside I boarded the next southbound service to Wellington.

On the return to Wellington I stopped off at the fantastic railway station at Taita. 

Taita Railway Station.

Opened in 1947 when the railway was constructed as part of the then Governmerns new state housing project in the Hutt Valley it was upgraded in the 1950's for electric passenger trains. Taita is one of my favourite railway stations in New Zealand because its one of the last remaining timber suburban stations. I love the post war design and the part it played in the development of the hutt. After spending a long time taking a lot of photos and admiring the station building I caught another train headed to Wellington.

Powered car FP5125 departs Taita with a Matangi EMU for Upper Hutt.

One of the things I've enjoyed exploring Wellingtons rail network is seeing the 'Ride like your aunty is watching' posters on the trains and at stations. This advertising campaign is to promote good etiquette on public transport. The drawings are by Mary Guo and the campaign was launched in 2023. You can find Marys work here. This is a great initative and hats off to Metlink for running it.

Ride like aunty is watching!

After getting back to Wellington I grabbed some quick shots of Matangi units before boarding my next train to Waikanae.

Matangi Units rest in the short time between services at Wellington Railway Station.

The Kapiti Line runs along the North Island Main Trunk. After departing Wellington and  passing through two tunnels that were built as part of the Tawa Deviation, the line runs through the coastal suburbs along Porirua Harbour and the Kapiti Coast to Waikanae. Riding along this line you get some amazing ocean views but the best would have to be the view to Kapiti Island as you decend down into Paekakariki.

Kapiti Island in the distance.

I had been on the Kapiti Line before but only to the old terminus of Paraparaumu. The extension of the suburban electrification and double tracking to Waikanae was offically opened in Feburary 2011. For a train running in the afternoon on a weekday I was surprised by the number of passengers. It was good to see a large number of people using this form of public transport.

A Matangi Unit at Waikanae

It was not long before I was back on the train and returning to Wellington. By the time I arrived the afternoon and evening rush was starting to begin. Matangi units were leaving the nearby sidings and were soon lining up at the platforms to get commuters back home.

The Capital Connection was already on Platform 8 with DFB 7282 ready to race this passenger train north to Palmerston North. 

DFB 7282 at Platform 7 getting ready to depart with the northbound Capital Connection for Palmerston North.

With the sun starting to set, I watched as Matangi units came and went and the longer distance passenger trains departed for destinations north. Before heading to the hotel I got one last photo of DFB7145 with a northbound service for the Masterton and the Wairarapa.

DFB7145 puts on a light show as it departs Platform 6 with a Wairarapa Connection service to Masterton. 

With my last photos taken, I decided to leave the station to find some food, very happy after a good day of roaming on Matangi's around the Wellington electrified suburban network.

And thats about it.

From Dead-End to Departure: My New Project Levendale

An image taken by Warren Banfield in July 1983 showing a Melbourne bound Harris EMU waiting to depart and T383 in the yard with a suburban goods train at Lilydale. Image courtesy of the Victorian Railways.Net website which can be found here.

Early in 2024, I set out to build a medium-sized HO scale layout based on a busy suburban terminus in outer Melbourne. I made good progress at first. I built the benchwork, laid the track, and worked on the hard bits like the wiring and installing the point motors. After a good period of troubleshooting, I finally had an operating layout.

And that’s when the momentum stopped.

Between my hectic work schedule and a major decision we've made to move back to the North Island in a few years' time to be closer to family, the inspiration to work on the layout disappeared. My layout was built to be permanent. Every hour of additional work felt like effort that would eventually be torn up, stored, or binned. I was left with a layout that was too big, a move in the future, and a deep sense of "what’s the point?" It felt defeatist because I knew many modellers would enjoy having that space, but for me, it wasn’t working anymore. The inspiration was gone.

The turning point came in 2025 while I was writing a post about the history of the Kew railway line. Though the real-world branch closed in 1957, the more I researched, the more I realised what a great little layout it would make. It had everything I was looking for: character, a manageable footprint, electric suburban operations, and enough operational potential to keep me entertained for a quick 30 minute operating session at the end of a busy workday.

One night, I began to explore the idea of a Kew-inspired layout, and that’s where Levendale came from. Levendale is a play on my street name, Leven, and "dale" is a homage to one of my favourite railway photographs of a Harris electric multiple unit and a T-class hauled suburban goods train at Lilydale.

While Kew provided the initial spark, photo's from the excellent website, Victorian Railways.Net provided the inspiration I needed to get the project started.

This April 1985 photo of 4CM at Victoria Park by Steve Bucton. Photo courtesy of the Victorian Railways.Net website which can be found here.  

I also found inspiration for the new layout in a few other places; Corey Green’s Victorian East ‘Metclafe Station and Workshops’, Jason Wood’s NSW based ‘The Escarpment’ and Alex Malijevic’s ‘Carlingford’. I also took a lot of inspiration from Phil Overton’s books which provided lots of tips for building a good layout. 

The priority for this new project is to make the layout simple to build and to get trains running quickly without too many hassles. To ensure portability, I have decided to build it across three modules, each measuring 480 mm by 1200 mm. These modules will bolt together and have removable legs, making the entire setup semi-permanent and easy to move. 

Two modules will contain the station, yard, and a street scene with an overbridge to disguise the entry into the three-track staging yard on the third module. To maximize staging and fit the upcoming Auscision four-car Harris electric multiple unit, the first point for the staging yard will be hidden under the overbridge. The yard layout itself is based off the original Kew station yard with a main line, a runaround loop and a dead-end goods siding with a backshunt. A crossover provides access to the loop, which will also feature its own short backshunt for parking a guards van during shunting.

A diagram of the Kew Line from the excellent Victorian Railways.net website which you can find here.

Another similar plan from the Free Track Plans website which you find here. 

For the trackwork, I am sticking with Peco Code 100 with Electrofrog medium radius points. I know Code 83 would look more prototypical, but since this is a semi-permanent layout, I want the track to be bombproof. Electrofrog points are harder to wire than Insulfrogs, but since I use DCC and want to run short-wheelbase shunting locomotives in the future, they're a no-brainer for reliable operation.

The electrical side of the hobby can be frustrating when locomotives stutter or point motors fail to work properly, so my goal is to make the wiring as robust and accessible as possible. I want a tidy installation that doesn't require me working beneath the layout at weird angles to fix wiring issues. The layout will use the NCE Power Cab DCC system I already own; since there will only be a maximum of three trains on the layout at once, it has more than enough power. To control the points, I will use Peco point motors and accessory switches to change the frog polarity. While I have some Tortoise motors on hand, I want to mimic a lever frame on the station platform using Peco lever switches. These switches simulate the movement of a real lever and provide a satisfyingly loud click as the points flick over. To increase playability, the points will only be operable after unlocking a switch or possessing a train staff.

While the scenery is still under consideration, the station area and street scene with the overbridge are already locked in. I imagine a path leading down from the street to the platform and station, complete with a grassy bank, a fence at the top, and some low-relief structures depicting the rear of buildings. The backscene will incorporate city backdrops to create a sense of depth. Finally, a kit of Kew station, which I already have, will take pride of place on the platform. 

This project has truly excited me, and I am looking forward to beginning construction shortly.