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
Wairarapa Line the Ngauranga Gorge; and a siding to a military camp north of Featherston during World War I. Nine tunnels have been constructed on the various routes of the Wairarapa Line. Of these, only three are still in use for railway purposes, and only the Wiwaka tunnel in northern Wairarapa has remained unaffected by deviations since the line opened. Five of these tunnels are now part of the Rimutaka Rail Trail: Mangaroa, Pakuratahi, Summit, Siberia and Prices. The Rimutaka Incline Railway project hopes to incorporate these tunnels into its restored railway line across the Rimutaka Ranges. From Wellington to Woodville: From