Media release

Newmarket Business Association

Tuesday, 19 January 2010

Relief That Auckland's Newest Station Now Up And Running

The Newmarket business community is relieved full train services resumed this morning with KiwiRail now confirming a complex new signalling system at Newmarket Junction has been successfully commissioned.

"This is great news. After yesterday's disruption we were really worried that this could drag on but it seems everything's now largely going to plan," says Cameron Brewer, chief executive of the Newmarket Business Association.

"Despite its first day, Newmarket’s new $35m train station is getting rave reviews from the public. It's a great asset for Newmarket and Auckland public transport generally. It's a real boost.

"We're really grateful for the public's patience and we hope no one has been scared off by the false start. We really appreciate KiwiRail and others getting on top of the issues early and subsequently damage to commuter confidence as been minimised.

"What we don't want to see are any ongoing issues when the schools go back. Let's not forget that about 7,000 secondary students are located on Newmarket's fringes and this station will be critical to so many getting to school on time. However we are confident that any teething issues will be well and truly sorted out by then.

"The message we want to get out now is that it’s business as usual. We hope the public haven't been scared off. We encourage people to come and have a look or even better come and jump on board," says Cameron Brewer.

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