Auckland's City Rail Link extends evening, peak-time services

Auckland Transport (AT) is about to extend rail service hours to accommodate commuters' social lives.

From 22 November, the City Rail Link timetable will feature trains running every 15 minutes until 11pm on Friday and Saturday.

After 11pm, trains will continue every half hour, until after midnight, depending on destination.

"As Auckland heads into a busy summer, it will soon be easier for people to use more frequent evening rail services to go to restaurants, bars, gigs and events," Auckland Transport chief executive Stacey van der Putten said.

"Running trains every 15 minutes until later in the evening gives more people flexibility to make public transport part of their plays for enjoying everything happening in Auckland, as we head towards the festive season.

"We are seeing more people choose public transport for everything from commuting to nights out, these changes are about keeping pace with demand and responding to that."

AT will also extend its services to west Auckland, with more peak-time trains between Kingsland and Henderson.

Waitākere councillor Shane Henderson said trains from the west have proved popular, but the initial timetable didn't always cater to commuters' travel plans.

"I'm happy to see that has now been addressed with extended peak services, so more people have time savings from trains coming every 7-8 minutes.

"We said from the beginning that launching the City Rail Link was just the start. As customers and rail staff settle into the new network, and travel patterns become clearer, we're able to make further improvements that deliver more frequent services where they're needed most."

The City Rail Link has boosted use of Auckland network since it opened.

More than 108,000 trips were taken on Friday, 30 October - a record for one day.

That result capped a month that saw 2.1 million trips, the busiest October on record.