Kāpiti Line & Hutt Valley Line Running Saturday Timetable
Monday 20 December to Friday 24 December 2021
The Kāpiti Line and Hutt Valley Line services will be running to a *Saturday timetable from Monday 20 December until last service on Friday 24 December 2021. On Saturday 25 December, we then move to the Christmas timetable.
Unfortunately we cannot populate the Journey Planner with the Saturday timetable for 20-24 December service changes on the Kāpiti and Hutt Valley lines noted above. (updated 23 Dec 2021)
- Buses replacing trains will continue as planned and will be operating to a Saturday timetable.
- After midnight services will only run on Friday
- We’ve added extra capacity to some services
- We have some standby buses out on the network
- Please allow extra time, particularly if you’re making a bus connection
If you’re on the Kāpiti Line:
- All Saturday timetabled services to and from Waikanae will stop at all stations, with these extra services:
- Express, departing Wellington 6:27am, arriving Plimmerton 6:50am
- All stops, departing Plimmerton 7:00am, arriving Wellington 7:30am
- All stops, departing Wellington 4:30pm, arriving Plimmerton 5pm
-
Express, departing Plimmerton 5:05pm, arriving Welington 5:30pm
-
All stops, departing Wellington 6:30pm, arriving Plimmerton 7pm
-
Express, deptarting Plimmerton 7:05pm, arriving Wellington 7:25pm
If you’re on the Hutt Valley Line:
- All Saturday timetabled services to and from Upper Hutt will stop at all stations, with these extra services:
- Express, departing Wellington 6:25am, arriving Taitā 6:55am
- All stops, departing Taitā 6:55am, arriving Wellington 7:22am
- All stops, departing Wellington 4:50pm, arriving Upper Hutt 5:35pm
- Express, departing Upper Hutt 5:40pm, arriving Wellington 6:13pm
-
All stops, departing Wellington 5:50pm, arriving Upper Hutt 6:35pm
-
Express, departing Upper Hutt 6:40pm, arriving Wellington 7:13pm
Melling Line services will be operating as a shuttle bus between Petone and Melling, and will not be running to timetable
What caused this disruption?
Following an assessment of hillside conditions on the Kāpiti Line, KiwiRail has advised the speed restrictions between Plimmerton and Paekākāriki will remain in place. This means the train drivers have been instructed to reduce speed to ensure passenger and train crew safety.
The timetable is directly impacted because the Kāpiti Line is operating slower than usual. It is not possible for us to maintain a full timetable without severe delays and cancellations. Running a Saturday timetable is the best way for us to ensure a consistent service is still delivered to customers and will give our customers the best chance to plan ahead.
Our Matangi trains are used across all lines (except Wairarapa Line), and use Wellington Station as its main hub therefore when services and crews are delayed on one line it has a flow on effect for following services. This is why this disruption also affects the Hutt Valley line.
Why are there different organisations involved?
In the Wellington Region there are three key organisations that help maintain the infrastructure and operate the passenger train services:
- KiwiRail owns and maintains the rail infrastructure and advises of any restrictions to the use
- Metlink designs the passenger train network and owns the train carriages that transport customers
- Transdev operates the passenger network on behalf of Metlink
Mechanical issues, severe weather and emergencies can occur at any time which can cause significant disruption to passenger services. Causes of these issues can take time to identify and resolve. Safety of passengers is our first priority. Any mechanical or safety issues or emergencies will be fully investigated and resolved before passenger services can resume.
Disruptions can have significant flow-on effects - changes and delays to later services or passengers further down the line. Trains and staff may be left in the wrong locations or lines may be blocked. Trains may be full or near full, meaning they cannot collect any more passengers due to load restrictions. We do our best to source alternative or replacement services when possible, and we understand this can be extremely inconvenient to passengers. We want to thank you for your patience and cooperation when there is disruption on the network.
Find out more about the causes of delays & disruptions