Waiteti Viaduct

Waiteti viaduct
Waiteti Viaduct in 2015
Coordinates38°21′38″S 175°11′17″E / 38.360509°S 175.188137°E / -38.360509; 175.188137
CarriesSingle track of the North Island Main Trunk
CrossesWaiteti Stream
OwnerKiwiRail
Characteristics
DesignPlate girder and Pratt truss
MaterialWrought iron
Total length128.6 metres (422 ft)
Height35 metres (115 ft)
No. of spans4
History
Engineering design byPublic Works Department
Constructed byJ. & A. Anderson & Co
Construction start1888
Construction end10 July 1889
Designated15 February 1990
Reference no.4175
Location

The Waiteti Viaduct (Bridge 179), 3 km (1.9 mi) south of Te Kuiti and 2.5 km (1.6 mi) north of the station site, was opened in 1889. It is the most northerly of the major viaducts on the NIMT. At its highest, the railway is 35 m (115 ft) above the road to Mangaokewa Scenic Reserve and the Waiteti Stream, a tributary of the Mangaokewa Stream, which flows into the Waipā.

Te Araroa walk track runs through the Mangaokewa valley, near the viaduct. The nearby 200 ha (490 acres) Mangaokewa Scenic Reserve is mainly podocarp/tawa forest with nīkau groves.

The 154 acres (62 ha) for the Waiteti section of the railway was acquired under the Public Works Act in 1888, apparently without payment.