The Northern Explorer crosses Orakei Basin near the end of 420-mile/ 680Km journey from Wellington which takes about 11 hours. The award winning train was built at Hillside works, Dunedin and entered service in 2012.
Trains on 3' 6" (1.067m) track from Whangarei to Bluff with virtually heritage rebuilt EMD and GE locomotives still the mainstay power. The network was privatized in 1990's and operated by Toll until 2008 when state owned KiwiRail was established.