A carriage on the first passenger train to travel by rail from Wellington to Auckland will be on the tracks again to commemorate the centenary of this historic journey.
Over three days from 6-8 August, hundreds of people will travel on a steam train that will re-enact this important first trip from one end of the North Island Main Trunk line to the other.
ONTRACK Chief Executive William Peet said this was an amazing opportunity to travel on a train that comes as close as possible to the 1908 original.
“The re-enactment is an ambitious project that has involved hundreds of volunteer hours over the past year, but this is a fitting recognition of the effort that was involved in running the original train,” William Peet said.
“It’s important to celebrate the running of the train as one of the key events in the opening of the North Island Main Trunk. The opening of the line had a huge impact on the economic and social development of the central North Island.
“The first journey pre-dated the actual opening of the line - temporary tracks were laid so the train could get through in time to welcome the US Navys ‘Great White Fleet’.
“The Minister of Public Works had made a now famous £1000 wager with the Engineer in charge of the central section that the line would be ready to take a train to Auckland for fleet week celebrations.
”The ‘Great White Fleet’ was on a world tour as a display of American naval power and influence and the ‘Parliament Special’ carried 200 passengers, including 44 parliamentarians, from Wellington to Auckland for the fleet’s reception.
The train left Wellington at 10pm on 7 August and took more than 20 hours to reach Auckland, arriving by 6.30pm the following day.
“The workers and engineers on the unfinished central section of the North Island Main Trunk went to great lengths to make that first trip possible back in 1908. One hundred years on the challenge now is to ensure the historic carriages and locomotives can run.
”The 2008 train will use one of the original carriages from the 1908 ‘Parliament Special’ which has been restored by heritage operator Mainline Steam. The three other carriages on the train all date from 1909-1912 and were once used on the North Island Main Trunk.
The train, operated by Steam Incorporated, will leave Wellington at 8.30am on Wednesday 6 August and travel to Taihape. On Thursday 7 August it will travel over the mountainous central section of the North Island Main Trunk to Taumarunui, and will arrive into Britomart station in Auckland at approximately 4pm on Friday 8 August.
William Peet said the 2008 journey would take three days to allow the train to stop and let the public see the train and get on board.
“There are a number of towns along the North Island Main Trunk whose existence is based on the building of this railway line. Hundreds of people will get the chance to celebrate and commemorate what was an important moment in New Zealand’s history.
“The North Island Main Trunk played a significant role in New Zealand’s social and economic history and opened up the North Island settlement, farming and forestry.
”The North Island Main Trunk was officially completed on 6 November 2008 when Prime Minister Sir Joseph Ward drove the last spike in the line. The 2008 Parliament Special train is the first of several commemorations planned for the North Island Main Trunk centenary.