News

Chain Hills Planting

24 October 2025

Planting the bank

2025 Candidate Survey

05 September 2025

Results of survey of 2025 Council Candidates.

Chain Hills Construction

18 August 2025

Construction close to completion!

Stage One Underway

06 June 2025

Construction of the 1.5km first stage of the Dunedin Tunnels Trail, from Wingatui to and through the Chain Hills tunnel, is set to begin next week and is due for completion in October.

Annual Plan Submission 2025

08 April 2025

Green light for Dunedin tunnels trail

27 February 2025

The Dunedin Tunnels trail shared path cycleway project will have its first stage ready by October

DCC dropping trail from 9yr plan

10 February 2025

Reflections Aug 2024

09 August 2024

Some of the work done inside the Chain HIlls tunnel to deflect potential dripping

Annual Plan Submission 2024

05 April 2024

More generous Community support

22 December 2023

Valley Community Workshop and Firebrand support

So it begins!

08 August 2023

Work starting on the Chain Hills tunnel.

Chain Hills Open Day May 2023

14 May 2023

What a great Day! The Chain Hills Open Day was an overwhelming success for the Dunedin Tunnels Trail Trust, with nearly 2000 people attending over a sunny 3 hours.

Stuff Article April 2023

22 April 2023

Annual Plan Submission 2023

12 April 2023

Progress Update

06 April 2023

Things continue apace on the design work ...

Valley Community Workspace support

24 March 2023

Valley Community Workspace donation

Council votes to proceed with trail

24 May 2022

Council voted to proceed with the Tunnels Trail as a single stage project from Mosgiel through to Caversham. We're underway!

Full Trail Option To Go To Annual Plan

04 February 2022

The prospect of a cycling and walking trail between Mosgiel and Dunedin is getting ever closer for Dunedin city councillor Rachel Elder and Dunedin Tunnels Trail Trust representatives Gerard Hyland and Jane Bruce.

DCC project Page

12 April 2021

Well, it’s been just over a year since the DCC announced it was starting on the Tunnels Trail project. While things have been silent publicly, there has been considerable work progressing in the background.

DCC Starting The Project

10 February 2020

The Tunnels Trail project has been designated as a major project by the Dunedin City Council, connecting Wingatui to Kaikorai Valley Rd.

Laying The Groundwork

25 March 2018

Preparations continue

While negotiations are in progress with KiwiRail, and easement developments are underway, work continues in small stages where we can.

You Did It

27 July 2017

Individual donations, Dunedin Amenities Society, Rotary, Lions, and the DCC all came together to make it possible for the Trust to be able to secure the property at Gladstone Rd and will allow the trail to be built to and through the Chain Hills tunnel.

Chain Hills Tunnel Open Day A Success

26 March 2017

Close to 500 people were able to take the opportunity to take a stroll through the Chain Hills tunnel on Saturday and see for themselves what a wonderful place this is and what the shared path cycleway will be like once it is developed.

Hope Remains

02 October 2014

A project to create a cycle trail through old train tunnels between Dunedin and Mosgiel has just been set back once more because of a lack of funds. However, Dan Hutchinson discovers the freight train of government funding could be just around the corner.

Long Way To Go

20 August 2014

Organisers behind the plan to create a cycle trail between Mosgiel and Dunedin say it is going to take longer than hoped.

Tunnel Trails Come Closer

07 November 2013

A dream to re-create the start of the Otago Central Rail Trail through a pair of disused rail tunnels in Dunedin has received a major boost from Government safety officials.

Wheels In Motion For Trail

06 November 2013

It is hoped ground will be broken early next year on the first stage of a project aiming to provide a cycle trail link between Mosgiel and Dunedin.

Getting Traction

16 January 2013

The Dunedin Tunnels Trail Trust expects to see the first stages of a planned Mosgiel to Dunedin cycle trail under way this year, after a memorandum of understanding for trail maintenance was signed with the Dunedin City Council last month.

Sponsorship Mooted

19 July 2012

Naming rights for the 139-year-old Caversham Tunnel could be up for grabs as part of fundraising efforts to reopen the 865m cycle and pedestrian route to Kaikorai Valley.

Caversham Tunnel Vision Could Cost $1.6m

24 January 2012

The Dunedin Tunnels Trail Trust is facing a $1.6 million hurdle in its quest to reopen the old Caversham tunnel to cyclists.

More Gas Tests Needed At Caversham Tunnel

12 December 2011

The failure of gas-monitoring equipment after just one day inside the Caversham tunnel last month means the month-long testing programme must be repeated.

Cycling Through Dunedin's Hills

13 August 2011

The thought of being able to cycle between Dunedin and the Taieri Plain through two old railway tunnels is never more appealing to cyclists than when they are chugging up the Caversham hill.

Commitment To Reopen Tunnel

14 May 2011

The Dunedin City Council has committed to reopening the Caversham tunnel to cyclists and pedestrians, and will spend $100,000 on tunnel safety work in the next year, despite a blunt warning about the dangers inside.

Report Flags Cheap Option

26 August 2010

Consultants have stopped short of discouraging the Dunedin City Council from opening the Caversham tunnel to cyclists - in a report a tunnel proponent calls short-sighted and clouded with "Rolls-Royce" price tags.

Chain Hills Tunnel Walk

29 May 2010

A walk through the 145-year-old Chain Hills rail tunnel, near Mosgiel, was once the highlight of many Noakes family birthday parties.

Cyclists Prefer Tunnel

06 April 2010

A plan by the New Zealand Transport Agency to create a cycleway over the Caversham Hill is not the best option for cyclists, according to the group pushing to be able to use a former rail tunnel through the hill.

Delays Frustrate

26 November 2008

There are still no signs of action on a proposal to convert Dunedin's Caversham Valley rail tunnel for use by pedestrians and cyclists.

Push To Get Momentum

21 November 2008

In 1907, Mr D. Reid petitioned the local council for public access; a similar proposal by the Dunedin Cyclist Coalition in 1978 had "merit"

Group Has Tunnel Vision

28 October 2008

Two tunnels 'great asset' as a Coast to Clyde trail.
Hidden, but not forgotten, is the Abbotsford end of the former Chain Hills rail tunnel

Tunnel Opening Explored

19 August 2008

There may be a glimmer of light at the end of the Caversham tunnel but Gerard Hyland is having trouble seeing it.

Promoted For Access

11 August 2008

Since 2005, Mr Hyland and fellow "Old Caversham Rail Tunnel" advocate Jane Bruce, of Dunedin, have developed plans for the disused 865m tunnel to be re-surfaced and lighting installed to provide bicycle and pedestrian access

Tunnel Vision

27 May 2006

Only the ghosts of steam trains past echo down a disused and, to many, forgotten rail tunnel that runs from Caversham to Kaikouri Valley. Dunedin City Council reporter David Loughrey talks to a man who wants the tunnel to be used as a walk and cycle track.

Lookout Point Tunnel

05 October 1872

On Thursday, the 26th Sept. [1872], about three o'clock, the piercing of the Look-Out Point Tunnel was effected by the passing of a drill between the headings on each side.