Source: New Zealand Transport Agency
The rail crossing on State Highway 1B Telephone Road, east of Hamilton, is set to reopen to traffic next week, more than 3 years after it was closed.
The signals and barriers at the crossing are in the final stages of KiwiRail’s testing and commissioning process. Pending final approval, the crossing is expected to open Wednesday afternoon, 30 July.
“This is a big milestone for the Puketaha community who have been living with the lengthy detour,” says Andrew Corkill, Director of Regional Relationships for Waikato/Bay of Plenty at NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA).
“It’s been a long process to reopen this rail crossing and we’d like to thank the community, Waikato District Council and KiwiRail who have all worked constructively with NZTA to get us to this point.”
Since early 2025, work has been ongoing at the crossing to address the 2 main safety concerns which led to the rail crossing being closed in April 2022.
The first was the height of the rail tracks above the road on either side of the crossing, which led to low vehicles hitting and dislodging sections of the rail track; the second was the short distance from the crossing to the intersection with Holland Road.
To mitigate these, the road height has been raised by up to 410mm for a distance of 90 metres either side of the rail crossing and escape lanes have been built on Holland Road to ensure that vehicles can clear the rail crossing while the train is approaching.
Siva Sivapakkiam, KiwiRail’s Acting Chief Infrastructure Officer says; “We are pleased to see the SH1B Telephone Road rail crossing open again, and safer than before with newly installed active safety protection. This is a good outcome for the community, and we thank everyone for their patience. This has not been a straightforward project, but strong collaboration with NZTA and others has led to this good result.”
New signals and barriers have been installed at the rail crossing and additional warning signs for approaching trains have been installed on SH1B Telephone Road and at the Holland Road intersection.
Background
The rail crossing on SH1B Telephone Road was previously considered one of the most dangerous in New Zealand.
As a result of an incident in April 2022 KiwiRail and NZTA decided to immediately close the rail crossing until it could safely reopen.
Following the closure, NZTA commissioned a detailed report on the future options for the crossing from consultants WSP. The report explored a range of options from low-cost interventions such as barrier arms, limited access to light vehicles and judder bars, to more complex options that involved significant engineering work to reconfigure the rail crossing and adjacent intersection.
NZTA remained committed to investigating practical and affordable solutions to allow the SH1B Telephone Road rail crossing to reopen and continued to work with KiwiRail. This led to the new design which met KiwiRail requirements to allow the rail crossing to reopen.
Another important factor in the new design meeting safety requirements is the reduction in traffic volumes, particularly the lower number of trucks, using SH1B following the completion of the Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway.
