Over the next three years, the line between Dunedin and Christchurch was completed; Christchurch and Timaru were linked on 4 February 1876, followed by Oamaru on a year later, and the difficult section between Oamaru and Dunedin was finally completed on 7 September 1878.
The 1920s saw much indecisiveness and disputes over what route to take between Waipara and Wharanui.