Menu
Southbridge Branch Railway
Description
TitleSouthbridge Branch Railway
DescriptionHornby to Southbridge Railway
450 words
The first stage of the Racecourse Junction (now Hornby) to Southbridge branch railway line was opened as far as Ellesmere Station (Christchurch bank of the Selwyn River) on the 26 April 1875.
The second stage (through Ellesmere District) from Ellesmere Station to Southbridge followed 3 months later on 13 July 1875.
This was one the last sections of railway to be constructed by the Canterbury Provincial Government before the abolition of the Provinces in 1876.
In contrast to the initial wide gauge (1600mm) of the South Line, from which it branched, the Southbridge line was the same gauge as all the railways in NZ today (1067mm) so goods and passengers had to switch trains for a time.
The railway meant that the large amounts of grain and animal products produced in Ellesmere could be moved more easily into Christchurch and the port, Lyttelton. Outward freight from stations, such as Doyleston, included chaff, grain and other agricultural products, while inward freight included firewood, timber and general merchandise.
The major stations had a loop and a backshunt with a goods shed and cattle yard. At the turn of the century there were 14 staff on the branch line.
The rail service was slow from the beginning, being restricted initially to 29 kph, with reports of cyclists travelling faster than the train. Later, with heavier rails and new locomotives, the passenger journey was cut from 130 minutes to 82 minutes.
According to the timetable of 1879, two passenger trains which left Christchurch at 7.20am and 3.50pm and two passenger trains left from Southbridge at 7.40 and 4.00pm in the opposite direction. Two goods trains leaving Christchurch and Southbridge at 11.00 am and 11.15 am respectively.
A year later passenger and goods trains were changed to mixed trains. On the eve of the war in 1914, two mixed trains and one goods trains passed along the line.
Coal shortages of 1917 and after reduced the service to one train in each direction three days a week.
After the war the timetable returned to normal.
Around 1900 13,446 passengers per year carried on the branch line. Passenger numbers peaked at 34,000 in 1926, but the change from horses to motors meant a decrease in farm workers and increasing use of the roads.
In April 1951, as a result of coal shortages and industrial disputes, passenger trains were stopped permanently and a single goods train passed through Doyleston 3 or 4 times per week in both directions until the line was closed in 1962.
During 87 years, trains loaded and unloaded a large amount of freight and numerous passengers.
Material from David Foley, Publicity and Advertising Manager, New Zealand Railways, 1983
DescriptionHornby to Southbridge Railway450 words
The first stage of the Racecourse Junction (now Hornby) to Southbridge branch railway line was opened as far as Ellesmere Station (Christchurch bank of the Selwyn River) on the 26 April 1875.
The second stage (through Ellesmere District) from Ellesmere Station to Southbridge followed 3 months later on 13 July 1875.
This was one the last sections of railway to be constructed by the Canterbury Provincial Government before the abolition of the Provinces in 1876.
In contrast to the initial wide gauge (1600mm) of the South Line, from which it branched, the Southbridge line was the same gauge as all the railways in NZ today (1067mm) so goods and passengers had to switch trains for a time.
The railway meant that the large amounts of grain and animal products produced in Ellesmere could be moved more easily into Christchurch and the port, Lyttelton. Outward freight from stations, such as Doyleston, included chaff, grain and other agricultural products, while inward freight included firewood, timber and general merchandise.
The major stations had a loop and a backshunt with a goods shed and cattle yard. At the turn of the century there were 14 staff on the branch line.
The rail service was slow from the beginning, being restricted initially to 29 kph, with reports of cyclists travelling faster than the train. Later, with heavier rails and new locomotives, the passenger journey was cut from 130 minutes to 82 minutes.
According to the timetable of 1879, two passenger trains which left Christchurch at 7.20am and 3.50pm and two passenger trains left from Southbridge at 7.40 and 4.00pm in the opposite direction. Two goods trains leaving Christchurch and Southbridge at 11.00 am and 11.15 am respectively.
A year later passenger and goods trains were changed to mixed trains. On the eve of the war in 1914, two mixed trains and one goods trains passed along the line.
Coal shortages of 1917 and after reduced the service to one train in each direction three days a week.
After the war the timetable returned to normal.
Around 1900 13,446 passengers per year carried on the branch line. Passenger numbers peaked at 34,000 in 1926, but the change from horses to motors meant a decrease in farm workers and increasing use of the roads.
In April 1951, as a result of coal shortages and industrial disputes, passenger trains were stopped permanently and a single goods train passed through Doyleston 3 or 4 times per week in both directions until the line was closed in 1962.
During 87 years, trains loaded and unloaded a large amount of freight and numerous passengers.
Material from David Foley, Publicity and Advertising Manager, New Zealand Railways, 1983
Connections
CollectionThe Movement of People and their Goods
Attribution
Click on the image to add
a tag or press ESC to cancel
a tag or press ESC to cancel
Southbridge Branch Railway. Selwyn Stories, accessed 04/04/2026, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/6026
