Okaihau
| Okaihau | |
|---|---|
 Okaihau
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| Coordinates: 35°19′S 173°47′E / 35.317°S 173.783°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Northland Region |
| District | Far North District |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Total | 717 |
Okaihau is a small town in the Northland Region of New Zealand's North Island, just north of Kaikohe. State Highway 1 passes through the town. The 2006 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings recorded Okaihau's population as 717, an increase of 30 people since the 2001 census.
On 29 October 1923, a branch line railway was opened to Okaihau from the junction with the North Auckland Line at Otiria. Work on an extension of the line beyond Okaihau to the Hokianga Harbour and Kaitaia proceeded slowly, and in 1936, the line was essentially complete to Rangiahua. However, it was decided that construction beyond Rangiahua would be excessively expensive and the steep section from Okaihau to Rangiahua was seen as unnecessary and accordingly removed. The railway line thus became known as the Okaihau Branch and Okaihau became New Zealand's northernmost railway terminus. With Okaihau being on the main State Highway north (SH1) it became the transshipping point for goods from rail onto road and vice versa.
For the Okaihau Branch's first few decades of operation, passengers were catered for by mixed trains that carried freight as well and ran to slow timetables. These mixed services offered connections with the Northland Express passenger train that ran thrice weekly between Auckland and Opua, but in November 1956, the carriage train was replaced by a railcar service run by RM class 88 seaters. The northern terminus was changed from Opua to Okaihau, and the railway line rose in prominence and importance. The railcars provided a considerable improvement in service and were very popular throughout their service duration. However, mechanical faults plagued the railcars and they were cancelled in July 1967. Mixed trains continued to operate to Whangarei until 21 June 1976, when the line became freight-only. However, declining freight volumes due to deregulation of the transport industry in 1983 meant that the line did not last much longer, and it closed on 1 November 1987.
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