History of the Midland Line
The Midland Railway, officially from the Rolleston Junction to Stillwater Junction, but usually seen as running from Christchurch to Greymouth
The Midland Line is one of the most spectacular and scenic in the world with its chain of 19 tunnels, one of which the Otira tunnel is one of the longest in the world.
The line is also known for its many viaducts, where here again afford great scenery and engineering feats of the 1930s. The line at one stage was threatened with closure,
but these days is a very profitable piece of New Zealand rail network running daily 8 coal trains, 2-3 freight trains and the world famous
TRANZAlpine scenic train.