Railway_viaduct_at_Makatote_under_construction,_1908

The Makatote Viaduct (Bridge 179) takes the

North Island Main Trunk railway The North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) is the main railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, connecting the capital city Wellington with the country's largest city, Auckland. The line is long, built to the New Zealand rail gauge of and ser ...

(NIMT) across the

Makatote River The Makatote River is a river of the centre of New Zealand's North Island. It flows west from the slopes of Mount Ruapehu, and from the Hauhungatahi Wilderness Area, before entering rough hill country, veering southwest and entering a gorge cut a ...

. It is from

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, at the foot of Ruapehu, in northern

Manawatū-Whanganui Manawatū-Whanganui (; spelled Manawatu-Wanganui prior to 2019) is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, whose main population centres are the cities of Palmerston North and Whanganui. It is administered by the Manawat ...

(central

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

), between

Erua Erua is a small town on the North Island Central Plateau in New Zealand. The town is located on New Zealand State Highway 4 immediately to the south of the town of National Park. The town is administered by the Ruapehu District Council and f ...

and Pokaka. It was built between 1905 and 1908 for the

Public Works Department This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

(PWD), who passed it to

New Zealand Railways Department The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR (New Zealand Government Railways) and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway ...

(NZR) in 1909. When built it was tallest, and is now the third tallest, viaduct in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, the higher ones being the 1981 North Rangitikei , further south on the NIMT, and 1937

Mohaka viaduct The Mohaka Viaduct is a railway viaduct spanning the Mohaka River in northern Hawke’s Bay, on the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand, near the small settlement of Raupunga. It was built between 1930 and 1937 by the Public Works De ...

, on the Gisborne line.

Design and construction

Like most of the other NIMT viaducts, Makatote was designed by

Peter Seton Hay Peter Seton Hay (1852–19 March 1907) was a New Zealand civil engineer and public servant. He was born in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland on 12 July 1852. He was brought to Dunedin in April 1860. In 1875, he joined the Public Works Department ...

, later PWD Engineer-in-Chief. Spans 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10 are steel plate girders, spans 4-8 are steel Pratt trusses each long.

Piers Piers may refer to: * Pier, a raised structure over a body of water * Pier (architecture), an architectural support * Piers (name), a given name and surname (including lists of people with the name) * Piers baronets, two titles, in the baronetages ...

1, 2, 3, 9, 10 and 11 are of

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete (RC), also called reinforced cement concrete (RCC) and ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having hig ...

with piers 4 to 8 being steel

trestles ATLAS-I (Air Force Weapons Lab Transmission-Line Aircraft Simulator), better known as Trestle, was a unique electromagnetic pulse (EMP) generation and testing apparatus built between 1972 and 1980 during the Cold War at Sandia National Labora ...

on reinforced concrete footings. Pier 6 is the highest. Tenders were called on 15 May 1905.

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

firm, J. & A. Anderson & Co, won the bid a month later. The viaduct was estimated to cost £43,132, but the final cost was said to be £53,369 ($8.6m at 2016 prices) in 1908, though £56,251 was shown in a 1912 parliamentary paper. Two years were stipulated to complete the contract, but there were problems with foundations, weather, floods, shortage of cement in 1907 and "want of sufficient suitable men". Equipment, materials and stores seem to have been shipped by two routes. Some went to

Whanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whangan ...

and were barged up the

Whanganui River The Whanganui River is a major river in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the country's third-longest river, and has special status owing to its importance to the region's Māori people. In March 2017 it became the world's second natura ...

Pipiriki Pipiriki is a settlement in New Zealand, on the east bank of the Whanganui River, due west of the town of Raetihi and upriver from Whanganui; it was originally on the opposite bank. It is the home of Ngāti Kura, a hapū of the Ngāti Ruanui iwi ...

, then by bullock or horse teams, and later traction engine, to Makatote. Later, some went via

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, then by train to Oio (open by early 1906), and along a new access road (now SH4). As the railhead crept south, the road haul reduced; Raurimu by 10 May 1907, Erua on 1 April 1908. Rather than transport girders from their base in Lyttelton, on 25 June 1906, Andersons opened a large foundry, ( x ) to fabricate the steel on site. It was powered by a wood-burning boiler and steam engine, with electric lights and machines. Electric overhead travelling cranes and a cableway (or

Blondin Charles Blondin (born Jean François Gravelet, 28 February 182422 February 1897) was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. He toured the United States and was known for crossing the Niagara Gorge on a tightrope. During an event in Dublin in ...

) eased on-site transport. A water turbine drove the stone crusher and concrete mixer (adverts from the period said they used 9,000 bags of

Portland Cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th c ...

). The last girder was placed on 4 June 1908, following which the cableway was dismantled to allow earthworks and track laying to be completed on 3 August 1908. Check rails prevented a derailed tender falling off the viaduct in 1949.

Maintenance and upgrades

Although designed for 84 ton locos, 94 ton X Class were built for opening the line. Strengthening of all NIMT bridges from 1925 to 1932 allowed

axle load An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearing ...

s up to 14 tons and 135 ton K and 145 ton Ka classes. Further work from 1983 to 1989 added brackets on the west of the viaduct for electrification masts and strengthening for 105 ton EF Class electrics, with 18 tonne axle loads and higher

tractive force As used in mechanical engineering, the term tractive force can either refer to the total traction a vehicle exerts on a surface, or the amount of the total traction that is parallel to the direction of motion. In railway engineering, the term tr ...

s. River erosion caused problems for the foundations either side of it. Pier 6 was underpinned in 1981-82 with two new cylinders and prestressed concrete caps. Caps were also added to Piers 3 and 9, which were also vertically prestressed. On the other side, Pier 7 was threatened. During the privatisation period repairs were minimal, so that, although the risk was being monitored, nothing was done. When

ONTRACK KiwiRail Holdings Limited is a New Zealand state-owned enterprise responsible for rail operations in New Zealand, and operates inter-island ferries. Trading as KiwiRail and headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail ...

took over in 2004, it assessed Makatote as its highest structural risk, since much of it could collapse, especially if there was an earthquake. In 1906 Pier 7 had been found to have a "rotten foundation" and so had a deeper footing.

Fulton Hogan Fulton Hogan is a large infrastructure construction, roadworks and aggregate supplier company in New Zealand, which is also active in wider Australasia. The company was founded by Julius Fulton and Robert Hogan in Dunedin in 1933. In 2013 the ...

began $4.2 m of reinforcing work in April 2006 to prop up Pier 7's footings with about 100m³ of concrete, steel cased concrete

piles Hemorrhoids (or haemorrhoids), also known as piles, are vascular structures in the anal canal. In their normal state, they are cushions that help with stool control. They become a disease when swollen or inflamed; the unqualified term ''hemo ...

down to below the river and ground anchors.

Piezometer A piezometer is either a device used to measure liquid pressure in a system by measuring the height to which a column of the liquid rises against gravity, or a device which measures the pressure (more precisely, the piezometric head) of groundwa ...

s monitored that the work didn't cause further weakening and trains limited to to minimise movement of some trusses. The work was completed on schedule at the end of February 2007, despite having to cope with a spring, heavy rain, snow and winds. The viaduct was given Category 1 listing by the

New Zealand Historic Places Trust Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

in 2009. Paint applied in 1959 and partially repainted in 1997, was showing signs of flaking off, so a $13m project started in 2014 to blast off 7 tons of

lead paint Lead paint or lead-based paint is paint containing lead. As pigment, lead(II) chromate (, "chrome yellow"), lead(II,IV) oxide, (, "red lead"), and lead(II) carbonate (, "white lead") are the most common forms.. Lead is added to paint to acceler ...

, using about 200 tons of

garnet Garnets () are a group of silicate minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. All species of garnets possess similar physical properties and crystal forms, but differ in chemical composition. The different s ...

, strengthen and replace some steel sections and apply an oxide paint to the of the viaduct.This was completed in October 2016. Access was by two 4 ton pier access gantries and used 330 tons (or 272 tons) of scaffolding hanging below the bridge. In both 2007 and 2014 efforts were made to protect the

rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

and

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

and a family of

whio The blue duck or whio (''Hymenolaimus malacorhynchos'') is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae endemic to New Zealand. It is the only member of the genus ''Hymenolaimus''. Its exact taxonomic status is still unresolved, but i ...

nesting very close to the viaduct. In 2007 silt traps were built and work scheduled to minimise disruption during the spring breeding season. From 2014 the viaduct was progressively shrink-wrapped (se
time lapse video
as the leaded paint was removed and the residue vacuumed to a storage site about south of the bridge. Weekly checks of the river were also made and KiwiRail funded rat and stoat trapping along the banks of the river until 2019.

Station

During construction the camp operated as a lunch stop for passengers on the coach between the temporary railheads at Ohakune and Raurimu. A station to the north of the viaduct, operated by PWD, opened on 1 May 1908 The second-class fare from Auckland to Wellington, including the , 2½hr journey by coach between Makatote and Ohakune, was £1 17s 2d (2016 equivalent $300). Makatote closed on 4 January 1909, 5 months after the through line was opened and shortly before it was handed over to NZR. A few months after

electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...

, on 13 September 1986, a new

passing loop A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains or ...

opened at Makatote.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Makatote Viaduct
Google Maps Street View
Photos * Alexander Turnbull Library
1908 construction1908191019131968
* Papers Past
1912

Daylight Limited The Daylight Limited was an express passenger train between Auckland and Wellington, New Zealand along the North Island Main Trunk. It commenced in 1925 and was replaced by the Scenic Daylight in 1963. Introduction After the introduction of ...

with NZR WAB class i
1930
an
1936
* Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries - 190

** [http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%227-A8461%22 1906 - road bridge]
1880s road bridge
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19060621-14-1%22 camp and Ruapehu]
concrete shuttering
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19061129-2-3%22 flood damage]
foundry
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19061206-4-2%22 pack & road bridges]
pier foundations
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%227-A8170%22 rock crusher]
work site
** 1907

[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19070425-3-1%22 electric cableway]
inside foundry
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19071017-15-3%22 view from south], *
1908
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22NZG-19080222-20-3%22 going through camp]
carriage and coach
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19080618-6-5%22 tramway in cutting]
widening cutting
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%227-A8270%22 pier]
part-built bridge
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19080806-16-2%22 worker's hut in winter]
truss girder
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19080618-6-6%22 lowering last truss]
near completion
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19080806-16-3%22 in snow]
road & railway bridges
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19081112-7-1%22 final coach run]
latticework
*

[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19090121-10-4%22 Ruapehu from viaduct]
tramway & viaduct
[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?BU=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aucklandcity.govt.nz%2Fdbtw-wpd%2FHeritageImages%2Findex.htm&AC=QBE_QUERY&TN=heritageimages&QF0=ID&NP=2&MR=5&RF=HIORecordSearch&QI0=%3D%22AWNS-19091028-6-2%22 road bridge]. ** 1910 Joseph Ward, Sir Joseph Ward & Lord Kitchener Wants You, Lord Kitchener]
on bridge
** 196

* ttps://atojs.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/atojs?a=d&cl=search&d=AJHR1909-II.2.4.2.14&srpos=50 Group photo of co-operative workmen 1909 (page xiv)* New Zealand Railways Magazin
1931
* 1963 image on
2008 postage stamp
Railway bridges in New Zealand Steel bridges in New Zealand Ruapehu District Rail transport in Manawatū-Whanganui Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic places in Manawatū-Whanganui Bridges in Manawatū-Whanganui Viaducts in New Zealand