THE STATIONS New
Karangahape Station
City Rail Link is bringing rail to Karangahape Road in 2024, transporting thousands of people to and from this vibrant uptown community every day. Up to 1,400 people an hour are expected to get off a train at the new Karangahape Station during peak travel times.
As it was a travel route used by pre-European Māori, Karangahape Road is an older thoroughfare than Queen Street, which was developed by Europeans in the 1840s. The Karangahape ridge and valley to the south was a rural area outside the town of Auckland until well into the 1860s. Under consideration is calling the station Karanga-a-hape.
The new 15m-deep, 300m-long mid-town station under Albert Street is expected to be New Zealand’s busiest train station. It’s also futureproofed for any future decision to create a North Shore rail line.
As with all the new CRL stations, Aotea will be a uniquely New Zealand station, with architectural design features that leave you in no doubt of which country you are in. These are being developed in partnership with mana whenua. The Wellesley Street entrance will feature hundreds of rods suspended from the ceiling, creating a dappled lighting effect that mimics water and creates a ripple effect as you pass underneath. The rods represent the stems of flax plants when they are made into piupiu (cultural skirts). Within the station, seven skylights will represent the seven stars of the Matariki constellation. It brings beams of light from the heavens into the darkness of the underground concourse and platform areas. The internal station walls are not only efficient structural N elements but have been modelled on Māori woven patterns. The acoustic panels lining the station walls will reflect a similar pattern.
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Aotea Square
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As with the Mercury Lane entrance of Karangahape Station, there is the potential for a building above Aotea Station’s Wellesley Street entrance. Land resource consent has been secured for a 41,000sqm office tower in this location. In fact, there could be two commercial towers; one directly above the station box and another to the south. EET
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Aotea Station - its interim name - will have entrances on Victoria Street and Wellesley Street. Its mid-town location - near the Aotea Centre, Auckland Town Hall, Civic Theatre, SKYCITY, Auckland Art Gallery, Auckland Central Library, cinemas, tertiary institutions and shopping precincts - will make it a popular stop for many.
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The name ‘Karangahape’ stems from ‘Te Karanga a Hape’, the welcoming call of Hape who, according to legend, arrived on a stingray prior to the arrival of the Tainui waka and welcomed his relatives to the area.
The new Karangahape Station is also expected to unlock additional high-density residential development and generate urban renewal within this colourful innercity fringe catchment. The station site represents about 2,600sqm of land, so once we finish, there is potential for development on the land we needed during construction. There will also be a new laneway to the west of the station entrance that connects Mercury Lane with East Street, providing improved connectivity for those walking to the station and over to Cross Street.
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As commuters travel through the station to the platforms below, the experience is intended to be just as exciting as the entrance. The current reference design proposes the use of modular lining panels that offer dramatic relief in their form and acoustic absorption by their pattern. The overall experience is one of rising from and descending into the earth, with the incorporation of subtle colour
What’s in a name?
In 2018, Auckland Council and the Government agreed to future-proof the City Rail Link and expand station sizes to cater for rocketing growth in rail patronage across Auckland. This allows for a second station entrance to be built at Beresford Square and for the square itself to be redeveloped as an attractive public space.
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The modern new station is being designed in partnership with Mana Whenua. The Mercury Lane entrance will feature a stunning architecturally-designed ceiling that invokes the branching arms of the vast spreading canopies of kauri trees, radiating out from massive trunks. It will also include a series of large climbing patterns that are revealed as commuters pass through the space.
differences that reflect the geological layers of the earth as people descend to platform level. Light and sound may also be used to enhance the experience of the entrance space.
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The new Karangahape Station will have two entrances – one on Mercury Lane (next to the Mercury Theatre) and the other in the centre of Beresford Square. It will be the deepest of CRL’s stations at 32 metres underground and will have 150-metre platforms to cater for longer ninecarriage trains.
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CRL/Underground Track
Simplified map indicative only - not to scale