The Canterbury Provincial Railways were an early part of the railways of New Zealand. Built by the Canterbury Provincial government to the broad gauge of 5 feet 3 inches (1600 mm), the railway reached most of the Canterbury region by the time the province was abolished in 1876. // National Rail Network The national rail network (currently owned by a State-Owned Enterprise, the New Zealand Railways Corporation) was constructed largely by government entities from 1863 onwards. ... (For the current top-level subdivision of Canterbury in New Zealand, see Canterbury, New Zealand) The Canterbury Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. ... Great Western Railway broad gauge steam locomotives awaiting scrapping in 1892 after the conversion to standard gauge. ...

History

New Zealand's first public railway was opened at Ferrymead in 1863. In 1867, the line to Ferrymead was made redundant when a tunnel was opened to the port of Lyttelton in 1867. Introduction The Ferrymead Railway is a New Zealand heritage railway built upon the formation of New Zealands first public railway, the line from Ferrymead to Christchurch, which opened in 1863. ... Lyttelton on a sunny day Lyttelton (43. ...

Once this connection was established, linking Christchurch to its harbour, the Canterbury Provincial Railways proceeded to expand into rural regions. Two lines were proposed, the Main South Line down the east coast to Timaru and eventually Dunedin, and the Main North Line up the east coast towards Marlborough. Both lines were initially built to the broad gauge; the furthest extent of the Main South Line's broad gauge was Rakaia, reached in June 1873; the furthest extent of the Main North Line was Amberley 50km north of Christchurch. The Main South Line is half of the South Island Main Trunk Railway in New Zealand and runs south from Lyttelton through Christchurch and down the east coast of the South Island to Invercargill via Dunedin. ... Timaru is a major port city in south Canterbury, New Zealand, located 160 kilometres south of Christchurch and about 200 kilometres north of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. ... Dunedin (ÅŒtepoti in Maori) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, located in coastal Otago. ... The Main North Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is an important railway line in New Zealand that runs north from Christchurch up the east coast of the South Island to Picton. ... Marlborough is one of the regions of New Zealand, located in the northeast of the South Island. ... The town of Rakaia is seated close to the southern banks of the Rakaia River on the Canterbury Plains in New Zealands South Island. ... Amberley is a town located in the Hurunui District of north Canterbury, on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. ...

By the time the provinces were abolished and the Provincial Railways absorbed into the national network, the entire Canterbury network had been converted from broad gauge to 1,067mm (3'6") narrow gauge. Narrow-gauge railways are railroads (railways) with track spaced at less than the standard gauge of 4 ft 8 in (1. ...

Motive power

All motive power of the railway was imported from Melbourne, Victoria in Australia.