Rail

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has primary regulatory responsibility for rail safety in New Zealand. Our rail networks cover some of the country’s most demanding and often isolated terrain, while urban environments and the places where road and rail meet also present significant challenges.

The Rail Safety Regulator has a critical regulatory role in assuring stakeholders and the public that the country's rail networks are being managed safely. This is achieved through regulation of the rail industry in accordance with the Railways Act 2005(external link), which involves:

• maintaining oversight of organisations and persons who affect the safety of rail activities
• ensuring that rail operators and access providers are competent to hold a licence and operate in a safe manner
• ensuring participants pay their fair share so we can invest in an effective and robust regulatory system.

The Rail Safety Regulator also works closely with other agencies and regulators, including WorkSafe(external link) and the Transport Accident Investigation Commission(external link) (TAIC).

Contact us

If you have any questions or feedback, please contact your licence manager. If you don’t have a licence, or aren’t sure who your licence manager is, email railregulation@nzta.govt.nz and a member of the team will be in touch.