Melling

Melling Branch

The three kilometre Melling Branch was originally part of the main line to the Wairarapa. On 1 March 1954 it became a branch line when Upper Hutt and Wairarapa trains were diverted to the Hutt Valley deviation (via Taita). Also on this day the 1500V DC electrification was extended from Lower Hutt to Melling.

In 1954 the line had an extensive EMU service but by 1986 there were peak hour EMUs only. In 2004 off-peak weekday services were re-introduced.

On this page I compare the 1949 steam timetable with later electric timetables. Photographs show the line as it is today.

Notice at Melling Station. ( 19/8/2004).

Home > Melling

Diagram Stations 1949-2001 Saturday Shuttle August 2004 October 2004 More... Notes

Note that the purpose of this page is to document the Melling line and timetable history. If you are looking for the current timetables you may find the Tranz Metro site more useful.

Update

On 30th August 2004 off-peak services ran on the Melling line for the first time since 1986. In October 2004 there were minor changes to the timetable.

In September 2008 the off-peak times were changed so that the Up Mellings did not pointlessly run a few minutes behind the Upper Hutt services.

Diagram

Lower Hutt Station viewed from the road. The buildings on either side of the path are on the site of the Lower Hutt Yard.

End of the line at 2.999km. Beyond is SH2 and the Melling intersection. A major road interchange is planned here. A light rail system has been suggested from here to Waterloo.

Station Names

Melling Station. As far as I am aware the station at this location has always been known as Melling. Quail (1985 edition) does not show any other names for this site.

Lower Hutt Station. From about 1989 Lower Hutt Station has been known as Western Hutt to avoid confusion with WATERLOO INTERCHANGE (Hutt Central Stn) on the Hutt Valley Line. The name Western Hutt has been used consistantly in public timetables since then.

Waterloo Station This station is not on the Melling Branch. It is Waterloo - renamed Hutt Central about 1989. Timetables from 1989 to 1995 (2000 reprint) all use variations of WATERLOO INTERCHANGE (Hutt Central Stn) to describe the station. In the 2001 timetable common sense prevails and it is simply referred to as Waterloo.

Melling - Wellington Trains: Departure Time From Melling

Note: All times are from public timetables unless otherwise noted.
Each time in the following tables is the departure time of a Melling - Wellington train.

Monday - Friday

In 1949 most trains originated from Upper Hutt. In the 1947 Working Timetable there are two return Wellington - Melling trains - departing Melling at 07:55 and 17:43.

The peak hours only timetable appears to have been introduced about 1986. In February 1985 there was an hourly off-peak service. By October 1986 the service was peak hours only. See also Cityline letter.

1949	1954	1971	1980	1985	2001
Steam	Electric	Electric	Electric	Electric	Electric
07:01	07:05	06:58	06:58	06:55	06:47
					07:12
07:22	07:26	07:28	07:35	07:25	07:38
07:54	07:50	07:54	07:55	07:57	08:03
08:28	08:15	08:15	08:20	08:25	08:27
	08:45	08:45	08:45	08:55	08:52
09:16	09:15				09:17
	09:45	09:45	09:45	09:55
10:21	10:15
	10:45	10:47	10:47	10:55
	11:15
	11:57	11:57	11:57	11:55
	12:15
	12:45	12:45	12:45	12:55
13:24	13:18
	13:45	13:45	13:45	13:55
	14:15
	14:45	14:45	14:45	14:55
	15:15
15:55	15:47	15:47	15:57	15:55	15:51
16:28	16:15	16:15	16:15	16:25	16:15
16:55	16:40	16:44	16:44	16:55	16:44
	17:02	17:02	17:02	17:14	17:06
	17:30	17:32	17:32	17:32	17:33
17:43	17:55	17:52		17:55	17:55
	18:20	18:20	18:24	18:27	18:27
19:02	18:58	18:55	18:55	18:58
	19:17	19:18	19:18	19:27
	19:45	19:45	19:45
	20:15			20:25
	20:45	20:45	20:45
	21:15	21:45	21:45
	21:45
22:31	22:15
	22:45
	23:15
	23:45

Saturday

No Saturday service since the 1980s. In 1980 a Saturdays only shuttle was run between Petone and Melling. The shuttle probably ran for only a few months.

1949	1954	1971
Steam	Electric	Electric
07:11	07:15	07:15
	08:00	08:00
08:59	09:00
	10:15	10:15
	11:15	11:15
	12:10	12:35
	12:45
13:24
	13:45	13:45
	14:45	14:45
15:55	15:45	15:45
16:30	16:45	16:55
17:41	17:45	17:47
19:02		19:00
		16:45
	21:00
	22:30
	23:15
		23:45

(Above) Cut of 1986 public timetable.

Sunday

No Sunday service since the 1980s. I am not sure of the exact year when Sunday services ceased. Note that by 1971 there were only two return Wellington - Melling Sunday services.

1949	1954	1971
Steam	Electric	Electric
	00:07
	08:12
	09:07
	10:02
	11:02
	12:47
13:31	13:50	13:50
	14:25
	15:20
16:15
	16:30	16:37
17:21
	17:45
	18:45
20:11
	20:25
	21:30
	22:40
	23:30

(Above) Cut of 2001 public timetable.

Saturday Shuttle

In 1954, when electrification was introduced, there were fifteen return Melling services on a Saturday and sixteen on a Sunday. In 1971 there were thirteen rday and just two Sunday return services.

By 1980 a Saturday Petone - Melling shuttle had been introduced and Sunday services had ceased. As far as I can recall this shuttle lasted only a few months. Finally, all Saturday services on the Melling Line were withdrawn. Here is the schedule for the shuttle from the 8 June 1980 public timetable. Operating these shuttles must be a contender for the most boring job on the railway!

Wellington (Dep)	10:04
Petone (Dep)	10:18	11:18	12:30	13:20	14:20	15:20	16:10
Melling (arr)	10:24	11:24	12:36	13:26	14:26	15:26	16:16
Melling (dep)	10:40	11:28	12:39	13:30	14:34	15:34	16:25
Petone (arr)	10:46	11:34	12:45	13:36	14:40	15:40	16:31
Wellington (arr)							16:45

August 2004 Timetable

In August 2004 a new Wellington timetable was introduced. The change was forced by a shortage of drivers and the need, during the afternoon peak, to get the drivers back to Wellington as soon as possible. An incidental change was the introduction of weekday off-peak Melling - Wellington services, the first since about 1986.

Arrive At Melling From Wellington	Depart From Melling For Wellington
06:41	06:47
07:07	07:12
07:34	07:38
07:55	08:03
08:22	08:27
08:47	08:52
09:11	09:17
09:30	09:32
10:30	10:32
11:30	11:32
12:30	12:32
13:30	13:32
14:30	14:32
15:30	15:32
16:10	16:12
16:49	16:52
17:10	17:12
17:30	17:32
17:49	17:52
18:10	18:12
18:30	18:32

October 2004 Timetable

In October 2004 minor changes were made to Melling - Wellington services. The changes were advertised in posters displayed at stations.

Arrive At Melling From Wellington	Depart From Melling For Wellington
06:41	06:47
07:07	07:12
07:34	07:38
07:55	08:03
08:22	08:27
08:47	08:52
09:11	09:14
09:26	09:29
10:26	10:29
11:26	11:29
12:26	12:29
13:26	13:29
14:26	14:29
15:26	15:29
16:06	16:08
16:45	16:48
17:06	17:08
17:26	17:28
17:45	17:48
18:06	18:08
18:26	18:28

More Information

Click an image for more information....

Photograph Gallery. Photographs taken on the Melling Branch in 2004.

Blue English Electric EMU at Melling in August 2001.

Signalling History of the Hutt Valley Junction, Lower Hutt and Melling.

Notes

Under steam operation the Melling - Wellington journey time was 23 minutes. Today off-peak EMUs take 19 minutes for the journey.
Automatic signalling has been removed from the Branch. A track occupancy light is fitted on the Petone panel. Its status depends on the position of 48 points (the Up Main to Down Main crossover) and the occupation of various track circuits at the junction.
A light rail system has been suggested from Melling, across the Hutt River to the Lower Hutt commercial area. From here it would run to Waterloo. Given the size of the investment required and the fact that the Hutt's population numbers are declining, it is hard to see such a scheme ever proceeding.

Last Updated: Mon May 6 2013