Boston Road railway station: Difference between revisions
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== History == |
== History == |
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The line played an important part in the history of St Peter's College. From the time the school opened in 1939 many students came from the western suburbs of Auckland using the train service (known at that time at St Peter's College as the "North train") to attend the school. Until 1964 the nearest station was [[Mount Eden Train Station|Mt Eden]] station, a ten-minute walk to or from the school. By 1964 about 250 St Peter's boys<ref name="Own_Station_p4">Their Own Station, ''Auckland Star'', Tuesday 15 September 1964, p. 4,</ref> were using the train and walking between Mt Eden station and the school.<ref>[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.akcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2Fheritageimages%2Fkeyword.htm&QF0=ID&QI0=7-A945&MR=1&TN=Heritage&RF=large&RL=0&NP=2&AC=QBE_QUERY Auckland Libraries heritage photos, No 7-A945 (retrieved 6 June 2011) (Photograph taken 25 July 1964 - Unknown photographer) The track used by St Peter's train boys, having walked along Boston Rd from the Mt Eden Station, to cross the railway line before climbing up to the School.]</ref> |
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[[Congregation of Christian Brothers in New Zealand|Brother T. A. Monagle]], who supervised the train boys and who travelled on the train each day for that purpose, approached the [[New Zealand Railways Department|Railways Department]] to request that the train stop at the school. The college had several reasons for asking that the trains should stop there. "The traffic in Mt Eden Road had become very heavy, and was a constant danger to the younger and more thoughtless of our pupils, and another source of considerable danger existed at Mt Eden station where supervision was necessary to prevent accidents when the boys were boarding the train. Again, the train would disgorge its pupils at Mt Eden and then chug merrily past the school almost empty, leaving the boys to walk half a [[mile]], often in heavy rain."<ref>Our Railway Station, ''St Peter's College Magazine 1964'', St Peter's College, Page 39</ref> |
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* '''1964:''' The station was created as a stopping place with only one daily service each way on school days. This stopping place was provided for students who travelled to [[St Peter's College, Auckland|St Peter's College]] and [[Auckland Grammar School]] by train. It was known as the '''St Peter's College Station'''<ref name="millar">''Railway Stations of Auckland's Western Line'' (2004) by Sean Millar</ref> |
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[[File:St Peter's College station opening, Tuesday 15 September 1964.JPG|thumb|left|300px|St Peter's College station opening, Tuesday 15 September 1964]] |
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* '''1993:''' The station became a full station named the Boston Road Railway Station, with all trains stopping here. This occurred because the new ex-Perth trains required new platforms, so unless the station was upgraded it would have to close. The council decided to upgrade the platforms and open the station to all passengers.<ref name="millar"/> |
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* '''2010:''' The station was relocated further east and renamed the [[Grafton Railway Station|Grafton Station]]. |
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Brother Monagle persuaded the Minister of Railways, [[John McAlpine|Mr John McAlpine]], to come and see for himself. In fact the Minister volunteered to walk up to the Mt Eden station from the school. "Well, somebody must have been pulling some strings up above, because on the day of the Minister's visit it rained cats and dogs, and even the odd pink elephant ..."<ref name="Train_Magaine_p25-26">The School Train, ''St Peter's Magazine 1968'', pages 25 and 26.</ref> and Brother Monagle's request was granted.<ref name="Train_Magaine_p25-26"/> The North train stopped at the St Peter's College station for the first time at 8.30am on Tuesday 15 September 1964 for the 250 St Peter's College boys and a dozen from [[Auckland Grammar School|Auckland Grammar]].<ref name="Own_Station_p4"/> |
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Another noteworthy event occurred in November 1965, when, for the last time, the North train was pulled by a steam engine. It was the last passenger train in the [[North Island]] to be pulled by a steam locomotive.<ref name="Train_Magaine_p25-26"/> |
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In relation to Brother Monagle, " ... it is generally agreed that he deserved the rank of Railway Employee. Surely no single person has ever held down so many positions at once - [[Station master|stationmaster]], [[Signalman (rail)|signalman]], [[Conductor (transportation)|ticket inspector]] and [[Conductor (transportation)|guard]], not to mention [[Construction engineering|construction engineer]], traffic officer and the occasional shot at [[Railroad engineer|engine-driving]]! During the many years that he was associated with the train, Brother Monagle became friends with most of the railway employees along the line as he made his trip each afternoon as far as [[Mount Albert, New Zealand|Mt Albert]]".<ref name="Train_Magaine_p25-26"/> Initially, only the "school" trains stopped at St Peter's College, once in the morning and once in the afternoon.<ref name="Own_Station_p4"/> |
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The St Peter's College station attained full public station status with all trains stopping there from 1993 and was named the [[Boston Road Train Station|Boston Road Station]]. In 2010 the station was moved 200 metres further east beneath Khyber Pass Rd and renamed [[Grafton Train Station|Grafton Station]]. A station entrance is beside the college and students have direct access without having to cross intervening roads.<ref>Sean Millar, ''Railway Stations of Auckland's Western Line: Boston Road to Waitakere before the 2004 upgrade programme'', 2nd edition, Sean Millar, Huia, 2007, p. 4; Mathew Dearnaley, "Enter the station here, here, here ... or here", New Zealand Herald, 9 April 2010, [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10637196].</ref> Up to a third of the school's enrolment (i.e. 400 students) commute to the college by train and uses the Grafton station.<ref>Mathew Dearnaley, "Safety drive holds shocks for star", ''The New Zealand Herald'', Wednesday, 23 July 2008, p. A3: [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10522980].</ref> |
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== Station move == |
== Station move == |
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Revision as of 21:58, 27 January 2013
Boston Road Train Station | ||||||||||||||||
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 The station in 2007. Above: looking east. Below: looking west. | ||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||
| Location | Auckland City | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 36°51′58″S 174°46′05″E / 36.8661629°S 174.7679543°E | |||||||||||||||
| Owned by | ONTRACK and ARTA | |||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Western Line | |||||||||||||||
| Platforms | Side platforms | |||||||||||||||
| Tracks | Mainline (2) | |||||||||||||||
| Construction | ||||||||||||||||
| Platform levels | 1 | |||||||||||||||
| Parking | No | |||||||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | No | |||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1964 | |||||||||||||||
| Closed | 10 April 2010 | |||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 1993 | |||||||||||||||
| Electrified | No | |||||||||||||||
| Services | ||||||||||||||||
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Boston Road Railway Station was on the Western Line of the Auckland Suburban Railway Network, near St Peter's College[1][2] and Auckland Grammar School. The station was below State Highway 1, one of the busiest motorways in New Zealand. At the southern end of the station is the north western wall of Mt Eden Prison. The station closed on 10 April 2010, the day after the opening of the new Grafton station, and has since been largely demolished.
Until the station itself was double-tracked to Mt Eden in 2005, morning trains ran on the right through the loop and afternoon trains on the left, avoiding the need for St Peter's and Grammar pupils to cross the line.
History
The line played an important part in the history of St Peter's College. From the time the school opened in 1939 many students came from the western suburbs of Auckland using the train service (known at that time at St Peter's College as the "North train") to attend the school. Until 1964 the nearest station was Mt Eden station, a ten-minute walk to or from the school. By 1964 about 250 St Peter's boys[3] were using the train and walking between Mt Eden station and the school.[4]
Brother T. A. Monagle, who supervised the train boys and who travelled on the train each day for that purpose, approached the Railways Department to request that the train stop at the school. The college had several reasons for asking that the trains should stop there. "The traffic in Mt Eden Road had become very heavy, and was a constant danger to the younger and more thoughtless of our pupils, and another source of considerable danger existed at Mt Eden station where supervision was necessary to prevent accidents when the boys were boarding the train. Again, the train would disgorge its pupils at Mt Eden and then chug merrily past the school almost empty, leaving the boys to walk half a mile, often in heavy rain."[5]
Brother Monagle persuaded the Minister of Railways, Mr John McAlpine, to come and see for himself. In fact the Minister volunteered to walk up to the Mt Eden station from the school. "Well, somebody must have been pulling some strings up above, because on the day of the Minister's visit it rained cats and dogs, and even the odd pink elephant ..."[6] and Brother Monagle's request was granted.[6] The North train stopped at the St Peter's College station for the first time at 8.30am on Tuesday 15 September 1964 for the 250 St Peter's College boys and a dozen from Auckland Grammar.[3]
Another noteworthy event occurred in November 1965, when, for the last time, the North train was pulled by a steam engine. It was the last passenger train in the North Island to be pulled by a steam locomotive.[6]
In relation to Brother Monagle, " ... it is generally agreed that he deserved the rank of Railway Employee. Surely no single person has ever held down so many positions at once - stationmaster, signalman, ticket inspector and guard, not to mention construction engineer, traffic officer and the occasional shot at engine-driving! During the many years that he was associated with the train, Brother Monagle became friends with most of the railway employees along the line as he made his trip each afternoon as far as Mt Albert".[6] Initially, only the "school" trains stopped at St Peter's College, once in the morning and once in the afternoon.[3]
The St Peter's College station attained full public station status with all trains stopping there from 1993 and was named the Boston Road Station. In 2010 the station was moved 200 metres further east beneath Khyber Pass Rd and renamed Grafton Station. A station entrance is beside the college and students have direct access without having to cross intervening roads.[7] Up to a third of the school's enrolment (i.e. 400 students) commute to the college by train and uses the Grafton station.[8]
Station move
ONTRACK reconstructed two road bridges just to the east of the station to allow double-tracking in the section towards Newmarket Train Station, and to prepare for electrification. As part of the project, the train station shifted several hundred metres to the northeast, between Park Road and Khyber Pass Road, where a new bus / railway station was built. The station was renamed the Grafton station. This station is able to better serve the Central Connector and sites like the Auckland Hospital and the future development on the Lion Brewery site while still preserving direct access to their school for the hundreds of St Peter's College students who commute daily by train.[9][10]
History of Boston Rd station
For the history of the origins of the Boston Rd station see: St Peter's College, Auckland.
References
- ^ See article on St Peter's College for an account of the origin of the Boston Road Railway Station.
- ^ Rick Maxwell, St Peter's College, Auckland, Simerlocy Press, Auckland, 2008, pp. 7, 8, and 29.
- ^ a b c Their Own Station, Auckland Star, Tuesday 15 September 1964, p. 4,
- ^ Auckland Libraries heritage photos, No 7-A945 (retrieved 6 June 2011) (Photograph taken 25 July 1964 - Unknown photographer) The track used by St Peter's train boys, having walked along Boston Rd from the Mt Eden Station, to cross the railway line before climbing up to the School.
- ^ Our Railway Station, St Peter's College Magazine 1964, St Peter's College, Page 39
- ^ a b c d The School Train, St Peter's Magazine 1968, pages 25 and 26.
- ^ Sean Millar, Railway Stations of Auckland's Western Line: Boston Road to Waitakere before the 2004 upgrade programme, 2nd edition, Sean Millar, Huia, 2007, p. 4; Mathew Dearnaley, "Enter the station here, here, here ... or here", New Zealand Herald, 9 April 2010, [1].
- ^ Mathew Dearnaley, "Safety drive holds shocks for star", The New Zealand Herald, Wednesday, 23 July 2008, p. A3: [2].
- ^ Newmarket's Western Line - Kingdon St to Boston Rd (from the 'ProjectDart.org.nz' website of ONTRACK. Accessed 2008-12-29.)
- ^ Newmarket Western Line Redevelopment (DART 2) Kingdon Street to Boston Road (September 2008 timeline flyer) (from the 'ProjectDart.org.nz' website of ONTRACK. Accessed 2008-12-29.)