Very good transport news in New Zealand today: trains have resumed between Napier and Wairoa after eight years. Each train contributes just a third of the emissions of the approx. 50 trucks it replaces.
So, for this occasion, here's some history! 1/22 nzherald.co.nz/business/news/…
So, for this occasion, here's some history! 1/22 nzherald.co.nz/business/news/…
Maps in this thread are mostly by @caracevaaa (you'll pick my crude sketch), and the research is from our nearly-complete book on NZ's passenger rail network.
Plans for a railway along the rugged coast north of Napier really got going about 120 years ago. 2/
Plans for a railway along the rugged coast north of Napier really got going about 120 years ago. 2/
Basically, in 1900, the Pākehā population along the coast between Napier and Waihī was small, iwi such as Tūhoe were de facto independent, and the terrain meant that railway construction was super pricey. That's why railways came to this region later than most of NZ. 3/
In the early 20th century there were plans for an East Coast Main Trunk Railway from Napier through Wairoa and Gisborne, and across to the Bay of Plenty. It was never completed. What we know as the East Coast Main Trunk today runs from Hamilton to Tauranga and Kawerau. 4/ 
The southern portion became known as the Palmerston North–Gisborne Line and the two were never linked. The closest they got was Tāneatua east of Whakatane at one end and Moutohorā north of Gisborne at the other. Work was abandoned to Ōpōtiki in 1940 and not resumed after WWII. 5/
So let's talk about Wairoa. Construction was slooowwww. The Public Works Department built a small line to the east, because it preferred to use Waikōkopu as a port. Most PWD lines had regular passenger services but I can only find evidence of occasional excursions here. 6/
Construction from Napier began in 1912 but WWI really delayed things so the first section to Eskdale didn't open until 1923! There's a cool railway dude buried at Eskdale, incidentally. Here's his grave: Alfred Luther Beattie (1852–1920). I was thrilled to visit last month. 7/
Beattie was NZ Railways' chief mechanical engineer 1900–13. He pioneered the 4-6-2 "Pacific" wheel arrangement for steam engines, which became hugely popular globally. The first 4-6-2 was his Q class of 1901. The triumph of his career was the A class of 1906. (Pics: Wikipedia) 8/
The railway crept forward from Eskdale to Pūtōrino in 1930... and then disaster struck. The Hawke's Bay earthquake of 3 February 1931 basically destroyed the line. Bogged in the Depression, George Forbes' United government suspended construction indefinitely. 9/
Locals were mad. M-m-m-m-MAD. But work didn't resume until 1936 under the new Labour government of Michael Joseph Savage. The first train from Napier entered Wairoa on 30 June 1937, and oh boy this was an *event*. 10/
It's hard today to comprehend how exciting railcars were in 1930s New Zealand. A railcar is basically a self-propelled passenger carriage, more nimble and cheaper than steam-hauled trains. Every community hoped railcars would slash their travel times. 11/
New Zealand's first successful railcar type was the Wairarapa class of 1936, designed to run at speed over the Remutaka Range. It visited Wairoa on 30 June 1937 and gee were people falling over themselves to praise this "magic vehicle". (Pic: @ArchivesNZ R19600398) 12/
@ArchivesNZ The railway line wasn't finished—for one thing, the stations hadn't been built yet! NZR expected it would start services in June 1938, and then disaster hit *again*. Flooding on Anzac Day 1938 destroyed the Esk River bridge and munted the line. Wairoa had to KEEP WAITING. 13/
When regular trains finally came to Wairoa, though, they were the most modern in the country. The brand new Standard railcars ran twice daily to Napier from 1 July 1939. The pic is a swell colourisation by Transpress of one in the Hutt in its original livery. 14/
The full line to Gisborne opened in 1942. Passenger trains ran between Gisborne, Napier, and Wellington until 1976, by which point the railcars were unserviceable. National and Labour govts both dithered for *a decade* about ordering replacements and now it was too late. 15/
Wairoa and Gisborne were lucky. NZR intended to resume the service ASAP, and local MP Bob Bell held them to it. Fiat railcars ran on the line from 1956 (pic: Transpress); NZR converted some into "grassgrubs", loco-hauled carriages (pic: Dave Simpson). Trains resumed in 1978. 16/
A decade later and *another* disaster struck the line. Cyclone Bola damaged the railway severely in March 1988. This gave Richard Prebble, minister of transport, handy cover to end all passenger trains north of Napier. The railway re-opened in October 1988 but only for goods. 17/
Passenger trains from Wellington to Napier continued until October 2001. The railway east of Palmerston North has been entirely goods-only from then, which frankly I consider unjustifiable. Here's young me riding the old Bay Express, though! 18/
I made a quick visit to Eskdale in December 2011. I thought I had timed it well enough to photograph a goods train from Napier to Wairoa and Gisborne but I didn't. Here are pictures of a well-presented little station where the last passenger train left over 23 years earlier. 19/
So, you might be wondering why trains ceased a few months later. Have a wild guess! Yep, that bad weather again. The line can't catch a break. KiwiRail decided to mothball the railway north of Napier after a storm in March 2012 rather than repair it. 20/
It's great that trains have returned to Wairoa today. Next step is to reopen the line all the way to Gisborne and get even more trucks off the road, more goods onto lower-emissions trains. And let's get passenger trains back to Napier, at the least! 21/ rnz.co.nz/news/national/…
I'll finish with two photos I took in December of the Port of Napier from Bluff Hill. Left pic: in the foreground is the railyard where trains from Wairoa will come; the long bridge further back is the line to Wairoa. Right pic: looking over the port and bay towards Wairoa. 22/22
