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Rolleston () is the seat and largest town in the
Selwyn District Selwyn District is a predominantly rural district in central Canterbury, on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is named after the Selwyn River / Waikirikiri, which is in turn named after Bishop George Selwyn, the first Anglican b ...
, in the
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
region of New Zealand's
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
. It is located on the
Canterbury Plains The Canterbury Plains () are an area in New Zealand centred in the Mid Canterbury, to the south of the city of Christchurch in the Canterbury region. Their northern extremes are at the foot of the Hundalee Hills in the Hurunui District, and ...
south-west of
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
, and is part of the wider Christchurch metropolitan area. Rolleston is one of the fastest growing towns in New Zealand, having grown from a population of around 2,800 in 2001 to around 28,000 in 2023. The town has a population of making it New Zealand's 21st-largest urban area and the second-largest in Canterbury (behind Christchurch).


History

Rolleston originated as a railway terminus in 1866, and is named after the Canterbury statesman
William Rolleston William Rolleston (19 September 1831 – 8 February 1903) was a New Zealand politician, public administrator, educationalist and Canterbury provincial superintendent. Biography Early life Rolleston was born on 19 September 1831 at Maltby, York ...
. Rolleston, who was born in Yorkshire in 1831 and died in 1903, served as Superintendent of the
Province of Canterbury The Province of Canterbury, or less formally the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces which constitute the Church of England. The other is the Province of York (which consists of 12 dioceses). Overview The Province consi ...
from 1868 until 1876 (when central government abolished the New Zealand provinces). He also served as a Member of Parliament, holding various Cabinet portfolios. In the 1970s, Prime Minister Norman Kirk had a dream of turning the town of fewer than 1,000 people into a city of 80,000. He nicknamed it the "Town of the Future", however the single "Town of the Future" sign has long since been removed from the entrance to Rolleston. Selwyn District Council proposed an industrial subdivision, Izone, in 2000. The council purchased rural land adjacent to the Main South Line opposite the town the following year.
The Warehouse Group The Warehouse Group (TWG) was established by Stephen Tindall in 1982 and is the largest retail group in operation in New Zealand. It is a corporate conglomerate that consists of The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming. History Th ...
developed its South Island distribution centre at the Izone. The Selwyn District Council built the Toka Hāpai Selwyn Health Hub in 2021. The Health Hub was completed in May 2021, and has a Canterbury District Health Board Primary Birthing Unit as well Pacific Radiology, a physiotherapist and may have a general practice service. It was estimated to cost $14.7 million. In late 2020, the
Selwyn District Council Selwyn District Council is the territorial authority for the Selwyn District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South I ...
were considering applications (private plan changes) to rezone land around Rolleston to accommodate a further 4500 houses. The Christchurch City Council was opposing this until concerns about the “significant adverse effects of downstream traffic within Christchurch” could be addressed. In 2021, a $85 million shopping centre called Rolleston Fields was planned to be built on the old Rolleston domain on Tennyson Street. It is expected to form part of a new town centre that has been master planned by the Selwyn District Council. It is expected to include cinemas and a covered farmers market. It is planned to be built in four stages. The Selwyn District Council are planning to also build a pedestrian square to provide an "identifiable heart" of the town.


Christchurch earthquakes

Rolleston was close to the epicentre of the
2010 Canterbury earthquake The 2010 Canterbury earthquake (also known as the Darfield earthquake) struck the South Island of New Zealand with a moment magnitude scale, moment magnitude of 7.1 at on , and had a maximum perceived intensity of X (''Extreme'') on the Mercal ...
being near the end of the Greendale Fault, experiencing movement two times the strength of that in Christchurch City. Residents were without power following the quake, some for more than 48 hours, and were required to boil water for weeks before services were restored. Rolleston was close to many of the aftershocks following the September quake. Rolleston suffered low damage due to the ground having underlying stones and stable rock. For such reasons, Rolleston had not been affected by
liquefaction In materials science, liquefaction is a process that generates a liquid from a solid or a gas or that generates a non-liquid phase which behaves in accordance with fluid dynamics. It occurs both naturally and artificially. As an example of t ...
, and only a few houses had been condemned and demolished from earthquake damage. The
2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. New Zealand Daylight Time, local time (23:51 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the Canterbury Region ...
caused a minor amount of extra damage, mostly to buildings which had already been previously affected. The population of Rolleston has expanded rapidly since the Christchurch earthquakes due to the land stability and fast tracking of building consents by the Selwyn District Council.


Amenities

Rolleston is home to Pineglades Naturist Club, the South Island's largest
naturist resort A naturist resort or nudist resort is an establishment that provides accommodation (or at least camping space) and other amenities for guests in a context where they are invited to practice naturism – that is, a lifestyle of non-sexual socia ...
. The Selwyn Aquatic Centre has five pools including a 25-metre pool with ten lanes. Foster Park, Brookside Park and Rolleston Reserve provide sports grounds for many sports including cricket, softball, baseball, hockey, football, rugby, rugby league, athletics, tennis and netball. Foster Park also includes an off-leash dog exercise area. The Rolleston public library,
Te Ara Ātea Te Ara Ātea is a multi-function cultural and community centre in the town of Rolleston, New Zealand. It houses workshops, performance spaces, art and museum exhibitions including nationally significant taonga, and a modern library. It opened on ...
, opened in December 2021. The $22.2 million building was designed by architects Warren and Mahoney. The two storied 2200 square metre building is expected to be the centrepiece of Rolleston's town centre. Prior to its opening the library shared premises with the Rolleston Community Centre. The Selwyn Sports Centre, the largest sports centre in Canterbury, opened on 2 May 2021. It has eight indoor courts and an indoor walking track. Rolleston is set to build the South Island's biggest retail complex called The Station.


Climate

The
radiata pine ''Pinus radiata'' ( syn. ''Pinus insignis''), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico (on Guadalupe Island and Cedros island). It is an evergreen conifer in the ...
plantations that were once a feature of this part of Canterbury have largely been replaced by more water-intensive grazing land to take advantage of the "dairy boom" of the early 21st century. Shelter belts of radiata, another significant earlier feature of the Plains (and very effective at mitigating the desiccating effects of the nor'west wind), have also been removed as they formed a barrier to the huge central-pivot irrigators that are now commonplace in the area. Rolleston is very exposed on the Canterbury Plains and is therefore slightly drier, with a more
continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...
, than nearby Christchurch. There are many vineyards in the area. The warmest month of the year is January with an average high temperature of 23 °C. The coldest month of the year occurs in July, when the average high temperature is 10 °C. Monthly rainfall ranges between an average of 33mm in January to 56mm in July. On 26 January 2021, a maximum temperature of was registered.


Demographics

Rolleston is described by Statistics New Zealand as a medium urban area, and covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Until 1990 the town had only a few sealed streets and a population of just under 1,000. The current expansion began in the 1990s. Before the 2023 census, the urban area had a smaller boundary, covering . Using that boundary, Rolleston had a population of 17,532 at the
2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...
, an increase of 7,926 people (82.5%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 12,510 people (249.1%) since the 2006 census. There were 5,622 households, comprising 8,679 males and 8,850 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.98 males per female, with 4,539 people (25.9%) aged under 15 years, 3,201 (18.3%) aged 15 to 29, 8,538 (48.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,257 (7.2%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 86.1% European/
Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...
, 9.4%
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
, 2.5% Pasifika, 8.9% Asian, and 2.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 23.0, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 58.1% had no religion, 32.2% were
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, 0.2% had
Māori religious beliefs Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
, 1.0% were
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
, 0.5% were
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
, 0.6% were
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
and 2.0% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 2,721 (20.9%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 1,821 (14.0%) people had no formal qualifications. 3,420 people (26.3%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 8,346 (64.2%) people were employed full-time, 1,824 (14.0%) were part-time, and 315 (2.4%) were unemployed.


Education

Rolleston has six full primary (year 1–8) schools: *Clearview Primary School is a state school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 2010. *Lemonwood Grove School is a state school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 2017. *Rolleston School is a state school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 1893. *Rolleston Christian School is a state-integrated nondenominational Christian school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 2015. *Te Rōhutu Whio School is a state school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 2022. *West Rolleston Primary School is a state school with a roll of approximately students. The school opened in 2016. Waitaha School is a special needs school with a roll of students. Rolleston College is the sole secondary school in Rolleston, with a roll of approximately students. It opened on 30 January 2017, initially taking only Year 9 students and adding year levels as the 2017 Year 9 cohort moved through; the school opened to all year levels (Years 9 to 13) in January 2021. Prior to Rolleston College's opening, the nearest secondary school to Rolleston was Lincoln High School in Lincoln. All these schools are coeducational. Rolls are as of


Transport


Bus

Three local bus routes serve Rolleston, both being part of
Environment Canterbury Environment Canterbury, frequently abbreviated to ECan, is the promotional name for the Canterbury Regional Council. It is the regional council for Canterbury, the largest region in the South Island of New Zealand. It is part of New Zealand's ...
's
Metro system Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separated rapid transit line below ground surface through a tu ...
: route 5 connects Rolleston with central Christchurch,
Linwood Linwood may refer to: Places Many of the place names for Linwood come from the presence of linden trees. Australia * Linwood, South Australia *Linnwood, Guildford, 11-35 Byron Road, Guildford, New South Wales Canada * Linwood, Ontario * Linwood, ...
, and New Brighton via Templeton, Hornby and
Riccarton Riccarton may refer to: New Zealand * Riccarton, New Zealand, a suburb of Christchurch ** Riccarton (New Zealand electorate), the electorate named after it ** The location of Riccarton Race Course * a locality on the Taieri Plains in Otago Scot ...
, route 820 (Burnham to Lincoln) connects Rolleston to the nearby towns of Burnham and Lincoln, and route 85 (Rolleston to Ara Institute) an express route connecting Rolleston with Central Christchurch and Ara Institute via
Christchurch Hospital Christchurch Hospital is the largest tertiary hospital in the South Island of New Zealand. The public hospital is in the centre of Christchurch city, on the edge of Hagley Park, and serves the wider Canterbury region. The Canterbury District ...
.


Rail

Rolleston is the site of the railway junction between the Midland line to
Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori language, Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast List of regions in New Zealand, region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The populat ...
and the
Main South Line The Main South Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is a railway line that runs north and south from Lyttelton, New Zealand, Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the ...
. The town served as a major railway junction point from the 1880s until the late 1980s, when the New Zealand government deregulated the railways, and Rolleston became a stop only for the tourist-oriented
TranzAlpine The TranzAlpine is a passenger train operated by the Great Journeys New Zealand division of KiwiRail in the South Island of New Zealand over the Midland Line, New Zealand, Midland Line; often regarded to be one of the world's great train jour ...
rail service. In 1993 Rolleston saw one of the country's worst level-crossing accidents, when a cement mixer truck collided with a passenger train at the now-closed George Holmes Road level crossing and killed three train passengers. The Labour Party promised to invest $100 million in Christchurch's public transport, including commuter rail between Rolleston and the city if it won the 2017 election. Andrew Little said the Rolleston to Christchurch commuter railway line would be a permanent service and the Labour Party wanted to see it up and running "within a few years". A commuter railway line would require significant central government money and land acquisitions to be achievable. The
New Zealand Transport Agency NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), superseded by is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing, and administering the New Zealand st ...
expects the business case should be ready in 2021. A commuter rail link to Rolleston is still under consideration in 2022. This was again under consideration in 2025. Rolleston is home to a significant freight hub with the aim to reduce truck movements through Christchurch to the Port of Lyttelton.


Road

State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...
passes through Rolleston on its route between Christchurch and
Timaru Timaru (; ) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to peo ...
. In September 2020, the extension of the Christchurch Southern Motorway was completed, connecting Rolleston and Addington at Brougham Street. This has significantly improved commuting times to Christchurch. A two-lane overbridge has been proposed to connect residential areas of Rolleston to the industrial zone ( Izone), crossing SH 1 from Rolleston Drive to Hoskyns Road. Construction is expected to commence in 2024 and be completed in late 2027. The project is expected to cost of $125 million.


Cycling

There are several cycling-friendly routes available with another under construction.
Christchurch City Council The Christchurch City Council (CCC) is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Christchurch is Phil Ma ...
major cycleway routes programme includes the South Express route, leading from Hagley Park, through
Riccarton Riccarton may refer to: New Zealand * Riccarton, New Zealand, a suburb of Christchurch ** Riccarton (New Zealand electorate), the electorate named after it ** The location of Riccarton Race Course * a locality on the Taieri Plains in Otago Scot ...
, Hei Hei and
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
to Templeton where it transitions to
Selwyn District Council Selwyn District Council is the territorial authority for the Selwyn District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South I ...
. From there, the route follows an off-road shared path and a quiet Manion Road until crossing
State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...
at Weedons Ross Road overbridge. The last mile is a sealed shared pathway and some further quiet urban streets. Cycling between Rolleston and
Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...
follows a sealed shared path that runs beside "Lincoln Rolleston Road" and Boundary Road.


Air

The nearest major airport is
Christchurch Airport Christchurch Airport is an international airport serving Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located to the northwest of the city centre, in the suburb of Harewood. Christchurch (Harewood) Airport officially opened on 18 May 1940 and became New ...
, northeast of Rolleston. The town is under the approach to runway 02 at Christchurch Airport, and the airport's 50dBA noise contour extends into eastern Rolleston, which has limited development in these areas.


Government

Rolleston is part of the Selwyn electorate. The
Selwyn District Council Selwyn District Council is the territorial authority for the Selwyn District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South I ...
is responsible for providing local government services to Rolleston. The Selwyn District Council is based in Rolleston at 2 Norman Kirk Drive.


Prison

Rolleston Prison is located just west of the town, housing up to 260 minimum to medium security male prisoners.


Military

Burnham Military Camp Burnham, also known as Burnham Camp, is the largest army base in New Zealand's South Island. It is located 28 kilometres south of Christchurch on the Canterbury Plains in the Selwyn District, close to the town of Dunsandel. Burnham was named af ...
is located about 3 kilometres west from the town centre. Burnham was a major staging post for the
NZDF The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; , "Line of Defence of New Zealand") is the three-branched military of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and its Realm of New Zealand, realm, pro ...
and overseas military forces during the Christchurch Earthquakes.


References

{{Authority control Selwyn District Populated places in the Canterbury Region *