The Most Unusual Airport in the World: Trains Cross the Middle of the Runway and Controllers Synchronize Every Second to Avoid Collisions

Written by Romário Pereira de Carvalho

Published on 03/11/2025 at 20:36

Updated on 03/11/2025 at 22:14

Pista do aeroporto de Gisborne é compartilhada por trens e aviões Reprodução/X/@MrTimDunn

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In New Zealand, Gisborne Airport Stands Out for a Rare Detail: A Railway Line Crosses Its Main Runway, Requiring Absolute Synchronization Between Trains and Airplanes to Ensure Safety and Functioning

Located in the city of Gisborne, on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, Gisborne Airport is one of the most unusual facilities on the planet. This is because a railway line cuts directly across its main runway, causing planes and trains to share the same physical space.

The coexistence between air and rail transport requires precise coordination. Traffic controllers must synchronize landings, takeoffs, and train crossings to avoid any type of conflict.

This unusual operation has turned the airport into a symbol of ingenuity and logistical care.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Signal Lights and Careful Control

For over two decades, the site used a system of flashing red lights to alert pilots about the approach of a train.

When the signal turned green, the runway was cleared for use. This system was essential while the regular line between Gisborne and Napier was active.

However, the system was deactivated after the regular rail service was discontinued, according to the British newspaper The Sun.

The change occurred mainly because maintaining the system represented a high and unnecessary cost, as train traffic had decreased drastically.

Only One Steam Train Still Crosses the Runway

Today, the crossing of the line is made only by the steam train from Gisborne City Vintage Railway. It operates about 15 times a year, usually during the summer and on days when cruise ships arrive.

Even so, each crossing requires verbal authorization from aviation authorities.

According to Hadley Cave, Chief Executive of the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand, trains are treated like any other vehicle on the runway.

“Aircraft will still have priority. It’s just a matter of fitting the crossings between landings,” he explained.

A Unique Airport in the Global Scenario

Gisborne Airport occupies about 400 acres and has a terminal with four gates. It is believed that the railway was built before the decision in the 1940s to transform the area into an airfield.

With landscapes marked by vineyards, surfing beaches, and the famous Rere Rockslide, Gisborne is also the first inhabited place in the world to see the sunrise.

With information from R7.

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The Most Unusual Airport in the World: Trains Cross the Middle of the Runway and Controllers Synchronize Every Second to Avoid Collisions

In New Zealand, Gisborne Airport Stands Out for a Rare Detail: A Railway Line Crosses Its Main Runway, Requiring Absolute Synchronization Between Trains and Airplanes to Ensure Safety and Functioning

Signal Lights and Careful Control

Only One Steam Train Still Crosses the Runway

A Unique Airport in the Global Scenario

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The Most Unusual Airport in the World: Trains Cross the Middle of the Runway and Controllers Synchronize Every Second to Avoid Collisions

In New Zealand, Gisborne Airport Stands Out for a Rare Detail: A Railway Line Crosses Its Main Runway, Requiring Absolute Synchronization Between Trains and Airplanes to Ensure Safety and Functioning

Signal Lights and Careful Control

Only One Steam Train Still Crosses the Runway

A Unique Airport in the Global Scenario

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Where there was only sand and wind at 40 degrees, China built a megacity of 500,000 inhabitants with farms, wineries, and universities in the middle of the desert using melted glacier water from hundreds of kilometers away.

At over 8,800 meters above sea level, the summit of Mount Everest is made up of rocks that originated at the bottom of an ocean about 500 million years ago and were pushed to the highest point on Earth by the collision of tectonic plates.

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NASA photographed a nearly perfect square with 3 km sides on Mars, 13 times larger than the Great Pyramid of Giza, but the official explanation is natural erosion; still, no one has explained why the four sides have almost identical lengths.

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