Dunback and Makareao Branches

The Dunback and Makareao Branches were two connected branch line railways, part of New Zealand's national rail network. Located in the Otago region of the South Island, both lines were 15km in length and shared the first 11km. The Dunback Branch, also known as the Waihemo Branch, opened in 1885 and closed in 1968; the Makareao Branch, also known as the Inch Valley Railway or the Inch Valley Branch, opened in 1900 and operated for 89 years.

The first few kilometres of the Dunback Branch were under construction by March 1880 to access a deposit of shingle for use on railway construction and maintenance elsewhere and in operation by 1882. This spur left the Main South Line just north of Palmerston with its points facing south towards Palmerston station. These initial kilometres were built with a further extension in mind, and by 1884 work on completing the line to Dunback was under way. The branch followed the Shag River, and on 29 August 1885 it was formally opened. An extension of this line to Ranfurly and beyond was proposed as a possible route for a railway to Central Otago, but the route of the Otago Central Railway ultimately reached Ranfurly by passing through the Taieri and Maniototo regions.

The Makareao Branch followed approximately 15 years later, with the four kilometres of track constructed by the Public Works Department and opened on 31 March 1900. Its ownership passed through a series of government departments before ultimately coming under the control of the New Zealand Railways Department. This line was built through an extremely rural district, serving no towns or localities; it was built solely to access a limeworks and had a steep climb from its junction with the Dunback Branch at Inch Valley to the terminus in Makareao.

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