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Story: Railways

Bush tramway viaduct

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Bush tramway viaduct

Private tramways sprouted all over New Zealand – some of them as big and as busy as New Zealand Railways branch lines. Forestry companies built bush tramways in remote places, and in steep country, large wooden viaducts were constructed to support them. The Mangatukutuku viaduct in the King Country, about 30 metres high, was built to transport logs to the mill at Ōngarue.

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How to cite this page

Neill Atkinson, Railways – Private rail lines, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/21388/bush-tramway-viaduct (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Neill Atkinson, published 6 April 2010.