Only trains transporting goods use the rail line through to Huapai. Photo: RNZ / Jordan Dunn
More than 1000 people have signed a petition calling for train services to Auckland's North-West.
The city's Western Line stops at Swanson, leaving Kumeū-Huapai commuters without a passenger rail connection.
Since a trial ended in 2010, only trains transporting goods have used the rail line through to Huapai.
Former councillor and chair of Trains to Huapai and the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA), Christine Rose, who lived in the area, said despite plans for a Northwest Rapid Transit Busway, locals were frustrated that it would not be ready for more than a decade.
In the meantime, she said Kumeū-Huapai commuters were facing bottleneck traffic; the only option to get to and from the city was by car or bus on State Highway 16.
"It's shocking at every time of day and night. We just have one lane in and one lane out, and promised solutions for congestion have never been delivered.
"People like tradies need to get to their jobs on time. At the moment, everyone is caught up in that traffic, including the bus services."
She said train services would provide an alternative for commuters, freeing up space on the busy highway.
"It's cost-effective, necessary, and would unlock productive potential for this area. We've got significant destinations like Muriwai Beach and its important economic area with Kumeū Film Studios, a massive employer.
"The fact that people can't get to or from these destinations efficiently is holding back this community."
She said, based on the PTUA's projections, it would cost about $9 million and take about six months to get passenger rail to the area up and running.
She said independent rail organisation Glenbrook Vintage Railway had offered to provide rail cars and a private funder would finance services for five years.
"It's more doable than ever.
"We've seen trains to Pukekohe become electrified, services extended on the Wairarapa line and in the Manawatu, and yet we're bigger, growing faster, and closer to Auckland than any of these other communities."
Trains to Huapai and Public Transport Users Association chair Christine Rose. Photo: Supplied / Brian Moorhead
Census data showed Kumeū-Huapai had grown from 1500 residents in 2013 to 6500 in 2023.
The PTUA recently delivered a petition to the area's local MP, Chris Penk, who they said had previously been receptive to their demands.
"We have had support from Chris Penk, our local MP, in the past.
"But even though we've always had a National MP representing this area and invested in upgrading the North Auckland Line, they have never provided the community with the rail services we desperately need.
"We wonder what makes us so unimportant."
Penk did not deny he had expressed support for trains to Huapai in the past when asked by RNZ, but he affirmed the government's position that the Northwest Busway was the best option.
"As local MP for northwest Auckland since 2017, I've long advocated for better public transport options for our community. I have been open-minded about the transport mode as long as it delivers faster, safer travel for locals to get them to where they live, work, learn, and play.
"For a number of years, the best option available was to invest in the existing Western line train service so that it would reach beyond Swanson to Kumeū-/Huapai and possibly then on to Helensville.
"However, with the recent progress on work to create a dedicated busway between Kumeū-Huapai and Westgate we finally have a positive solution to this problem. It's a great joint initiative between central and local government and I was pleased to attend the official opening with the Transport Minister and Auckland Mayor.
"This new busway will ease congestion on SH16 and mirror the success of the Northern Busway, which moves thousands daily. Crucially, it links to Westgate's retail and hospitality hub and opens up access to the North Shore and Northwestern Motorway."
Kaipara ki Mahurangi MP Chris Penk. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
As of 16 July 2025, roughly 1100 people had signed the PTUA's petition.
Rose said those who had been fighting for a long time were optimistic about their revived campaign to reinstate passenger rail.
"It has been frustrating to face so much obstruction, but we know it's the right thing for this community.
"We feel encouraged by the support from our growing community."
Auckland Transport rail services manager Mark Lambert said an investigation by KiwiRail last year determined that getting train services to Huapai would be costly.
"Previous studies have shown that there is a significant capital infrastructure cost required to upgrade parts of the railway and provide train capacity to accommodate an extension of services.
"At present, no funding has been identified for the infrastructure cost."
He said AT provided three bus services from Huapai, seven days a week, along SH16 to Westgate, and it was working on improving congestion in the meantime until the Northwest Busway was ready.
"Recent improvements to public transport connections to Westgate have been made, which will see a new station open in 2026.
"AT is working with Waka Kotahi to develop plans for the North West Rapid Transit, which would run as far as Brigham Creek. This would allow passengers to experience more reliable journeys along SH16, similar to the Northern Busway."
KiwiRail chief metro and capital programme Officer David Gordon said it had recently considered trialling one passenger service per hour and two during each peak hour.
"The infrastructure upgrades required to support this option are estimated to cost around $50 million. This includes passing loops, upgrades to level crossings, and potentially replacement of old timber bridges.
"A $50 million investment would only allow a basic passenger service, and it does not include the cost of the trains themselves, the costs of running the service, or any upgrades to stations.
"More frequent trains would require substantially more investment in the network. To offer a service closer to what the Auckland metro trains offer would require more track and signal upgrades, electrifying the line to Huapai, and bypassing the Waitakere Tunnel, which would cost hundreds of millions of dollars."
KiwiRail said it was not opposed to a Huapai service, if there was funding available, but that it was not a priority.
"Between now and the opening of City Rail Link, KiwiRail's absolute focus in Auckland must be on the integrity of the existing network, the completion of enabling works and the integration of City Rail Link. We are simply not resourced to open another technical engineering and operational investigation until then."
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