Picture taken from the southern end of the Rakaia River crossing showing the railway.

Railway at Rakaia - Rakaia visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Railway at Rakaia' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Canterbury.

The Rakaia River crossing was first built on 1873, and then rebuilt in 1939. This rail and road bridge was at the time the longest bridge in New Zealand, and the whole of the southern hemisphere. It is 1.8km long and spans one of the finest examples of a 'braided' river in the world.

Building the rail link from Christchurch to the northern banks of the Rakaia River started in 1865. The line was then extended south to Timaru and then on to Dunedin in Otago. There is a railway station at Rakaia, which is very popular for salmon fishing.

Rakaia is on the 1 Highway about 60km south of Christchurch and 105km north of Timaru.