Rimutaka Tunnel The first shot was fired in 1948 when the Public Works Department started the tunnel with bores of at the western end and at the eastern end. A contract for completing the tunnel was let to a consortium of Morrison Knudsen Inc. and Downer and Company on 7 May 1951. The work commenced at the west end in July 1951 and at the east end in August. The contract was expected to be completed in four years, but the headings met on 20 April 1954 with the concrete lining finished a month later. New Zealand Railways took possession of the
Cross Creek railway station origin of the name Cross Creek has not always been clear, it is generally accepted based on the writings of surveyor John Rochfort that it was derived from a Mr. Lot Cross, who lived and farmed in the vicinity of the site that was later to become the station. In the early days of the railway, it was known as Cross’s Creek, but was simplified to Cross Creek in the 1880s. Construction of the station was included in the Incline Contract for the Rimutaka Incline, which was to cover formation works from south of the Summit Tunnel to Featherston. It