Wairio Branch
| Wairio Branch | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Other names | Ohai Line Ohai Industrial Line |
| Status | Open (first 9km) Mothballed beyond Lorneville |
| Owner | KiwiRail |
| Locale | Southland, New Zealand |
| Termini | |
| Connecting lines | KiwiRail Main South Line |
| Service | |
| Type | Heavy Rail |
| System | New Zealand Government Railways (NZGR) |
| Operator(s) | Railways Department Ohai Railway Board (past) |
| History | |
| Opened | 2 February 1882 (to Wairio) |
| Absorbed Ohai Branch | 1992 |
| Mothballed beyond Lorneville | 2025 |
| Closed | Passenger: 28 June 1954 |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 66.4 km (41.3 mi) |
| Number of tracks | Single |
| Character | Rural, at-grade |
| Track gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
The Ohai Line, formerly known as the Ohai Industrial Line and previously the Wairio Branch and the Ohai Railway Board's line, is a 54.5 km branch line railway in Southland, New Zealand. It opened in 1882 and is one of two remaining branch lines in Southland, and one of only a few in the country. A number of smaller privately owned railways fanned out from Wairio; one of these lines, to Ohai, was originally built by the Ohai Railway Board and was worked by New Zealand Railways from 1990 and incorporated into the national network in 1992. The line is currently out of use north of the Lorneville marshalling yards that serve the large Alliance freezing works and private spur line. In 2025, the line's sole customer north of Lorneville, Bathurst Resources, announced that the last coal mine it operates in the region (Takitimu) will close in 2027, with the railing of coal from Invercargill coming to an end in 2026. The first 9km of the line will be retained to Lorneville to serve the Alliance Freezing Works.