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
Sutton Tunnel railway accident the other end was Norton station, which has been replaced by Runcorn East station. Sutton Tunnel railway accident The Sutton Tunnel railway accident occurred in the Sutton tunnel between Frodsham and Moore in Cheshire, England on 30 April 1851. As a result of it nine people died and between 30 and 40 were injured. On 18 December 1850 a new railway was opened between Chester and Warrington by the Birkenhead, Lancashire and Cheshire Junction Railway. This halved the distance by rail between Manchester and Chester as trains could travel via Warrington rather than via Crewe. An early attraction to be