Cancellations, delays after train derails at Auckland's Britomart station with 30 people on board

Britomart will remain closed overnight and there will be further cancellations and changes on Thursday morning after a train derailed at the Auckland CBD transport hub.

Stuff will have live coverage of the disruption to the morning commute, from 5am.

The front half of a passenger train, with 33 people on board, came off its tracks as it was heading into the hub on Wednesday morning.

NICOLE LAWTON

The train that derailed came to a halt just before hitting a protruding concrete wall

Auckland Transport advised there would be delays and changes to where rains depart and arrive until the station re-opened on Thursday.

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Eastern Line services would arrive at and depart from The Strand on a 20-minute frequency, while Western and Southern Line services would arrive at and depart from Newmarket on a 20-minute frequency.

Onehunga Line services would run as a rail shuttle between Onehunga and Penrose, linking to Southern Line services.

There would also be limited rail replacement buses running between Britomart and The Strand and Britomart and Newmarket.

The buses would depart from stop 7020 at the corner of Commerce and Quay St.

AUCKLAND TRANSPORT

The first three carriages of a six carriage train came off the tracks in Britomart Station on Wednesday.

From 9pm Wednesday, Eastern Line services would only operate between Manukau and Panmure. No train services would operate from Manukau to the Strand after 9pm.

There were also no services to or from Parnell Station until further notice.

Scheduled buses would accept rail tickets and AT HOP Cards.

Auckland councillor Richard Hills tweeted advising commuters to plan their travel in advance or consider working from home on Thursday.

'A POTENTIAL CATASTROPHE'

Emergency brakes were applied and the train came to a halt millimetres before hitting a protruding section of the concrete tunnel wall on Wednesday.

The front carriage, which was slightly askew compared to the other carriages, had dug into the gravel on the side of the tracks and picked up debris which remained lodged in between the train and the wall.

The incident happened as the six-carriage train was arriving at the station, not leaving the station, as Auckland Transport had initially stated.

"The train is still upright and there are no injuries," spokesman Mark Hannan said at 10am. 

Student Mike Corrigan, who was sitting on another train at the station at the time, said panic erupted at the station. 

"I saw a staff member running along the platform yelling something about a derailment. I got out about a minute later as another woman was yelling 'where are the hi-vis vests?'"

Martin Keyte was a passenger on the train when it derailed. 

"It was lucky that no one was standing up at the time, because there was a big jolt when it derailed, and it was lucky that the train stopped when it did. 

"There were only a few centimetres between the train and the wall. The train driver had a front-row seat to a potential catastrophe."

He said he and other passengers were evacuated through the Britomart tunnels, chaperoned by Fire and Emergency NZ.

He said a possible cause could have been a "suspected points system failure", and posted a photo of what appeared to be a train stopped extremely close to a tunnel wall.

Train services in and out of the station were stopped and the station remained closed all of Wednesday. 

The affected passengers were escorted off the train using a temporary platform, and were transferred on to replacement bus services, Hannan said.

"Until the issue is resolved, passengers can expect cancellations and delays."

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission had opened an inquiry into the incident.

The commission's chief investigator of accidents, Captain Tim Burfoot, said a team of investigators would arrive early Wednesday afternoon.

"The commission opens an inquiry when it believes the circumstances of an accident or incident have – or are likely to have – significant implications for transport safety," Burfoot said.

Findings of the investigation could bring about recommendations to be made to Auckland Transport to improve transport safety.