Birchwood is a locality in the Southland Region

Southland Region

Southland is New Zealand's southernmost region and is also a district within that region. It consists mainly of the southwestern portion of the South Island and Stewart Island / Rakiura...

 of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

's South Island

South Island

The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...

. It is situated west of Ohai

Ohai

Ohаi is a town in the Southland Region of New Zealand's South Island. It is located 65 kilometres northwest of Invercargill and 25 kilometres west of Winton. The 2001 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings gave its population as 399, a decline of 22.2% or 114 people since the 1996...

 and Nightcaps

Nightcaps

Nightcaps is a town in the Southland Region of New Zealand's South Island. According to the 2001 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings, its population is 339, consisting of 186 males and 153 females. This represents a decline of 13.6% or 54 people since the 1996 census. State Highway 96...

, and north of Tuatapere

Tuatapere

Tuatapere is a small rural town in Southland, New Zealand . It is located eight kilometres from the southern coast. The Waiau River flows through the town before reaching Te Waewae Bay, where it has its outflow into Foveaux Strait...

 and Orawia, with the nearest State Highway

New Zealand State Highway network

The New Zealand State Highway network is the major national highway network in New Zealand. Just under 100 roads in both the North and South Islands are State Highways...

 in Ohai.

Birchwood was once the terminus of a private railway line run by the Ohai Railway Board, an extension of the Wairio Branch

Wairio Branch

The Wairio Branch, now incorporating the Ohai Industrial Line, is a branch line railway in Southland, New Zealand. It opened in 1882 and is the sole remaining branch line in Southland, and one of only a few in the entire country...

. The 19 km line from Wairio to Birchwood ran via Ohai and opened in 1934. The section from Ohai to Birchwood had been closed by the time the section from Wairio to Ohai was incorporated into the national network

Rail transport in New Zealand

Rail transport in New Zealand consists of a network of gauge railway lines in both the North and South Islands. Rail services are focused primarily on freight, particularly bulk freight, with limited passenger services on some lines...

in 1990.