Map Colour Key & General
Information (Revised October 2011)
Symbols Key
These symbols are used throughout the
maps. The meaning of the colours used with these symbols is listed in
the second table.
Public station (open for
passengers or freight traffic etc)
Non-public station or location
(for operational purposes only) e.g. crossing loop, TWC intermediate
board
Rail-road crossing (a grade
separated or level crossing between a railway and a road) e.g. level
crossing, overbridge, combined bridge
Rail-rail crossing (a grade
separated or level crossing between two railway lines) e.g. diamond
crossing, overbridge
Rail crossing something else
(usually a river) e.g. a bridge
Turntable or turning place
Tunnel or subway
Premises or complex of
facilities
(such as freight terminal)
Facility (such as building,
weighbridge)
General or non railway feature
Route
and Symbol Colour Codes Key
The colours have
different meanings depending on whether they are being used with a
route line, station or feature.
Colour
Route Line
Station
Feature
Open public route on which
traffic is currently
operating.
Currently open
Currently in existence
Open public route which has been
suspended or
mothballed (not formally closed).
Formerly open public route which
has been formally
closed. Track or features may be removed. The route location may be
approximate or incorrect, especially with old lines which have been
closed for many years.
Closed (location may be
approximate)
Removed
Public route never or not yet opened. A currently
or formerly designated rail corridor on which construction may or may
not have occurred.
Never or not yet opened (usually
on a never or not yet
opened line)
Never or not yet brought into
use (usually on same type of route)
Private / heritage route, siding or tramway (open
or closed). Track or features may or may not be present.
Station on private / heritage
route (open or closed)
Route of
indeterminate status, ownership and location. Commonly used to map
overseas lines.
Same as route.
Rail trail. May
include sections that do not follow a known railway route.
Hypothetical route
Hypothetical station
Hypothetical feature
Currently open road or public
track
Closed road, or former road
(such as former highway) still in use
White
Proposed road or
corridor
Uncertain status, may be
uncertain
location
Uncertain status, may be
uncertain location
General Notes
This format has been revised as of January 2011 with
further revision through October 2011, and
some of the colours or symbols have been reassigned or added to this
list for the
first time. Files will be gradually updated during 2011 to reflect
changes in this list. Older maps not yet updated will display different
uses for the symbols in particular.
Google Maps is unable to display all the colours
correctly at this time.You should use Google Earth if you want
to ensure you are viewing colours correctly.
Whenever imagery is updated in Google Earth/Maps, it is common for the
position of routes or symbols to become misaligned. I do not check for
this and generally do not correct alignment errors as a matter of
course.
All route ownership and status descriptions apply to New Zealand only.
This is the reason why Brown is the predominant colour for overseas
lines.
