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Endeavour (train)
Encyclopedia
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
and Napier
Napier, New Zealand
Napier is a New Zealand city with a seaport, located in Hawke's Bay on the eastern coast of the North Island. The population of Napier is about About 18 kilometres south of Napier is the inland city of Hastings. These two neighboring cities are often called "The Twin Cities" or "The Bay Cities"...
(and for part of its history, Gisborne
Gisborne, New Zealand
-Economy:The harbour was host to many ships in the past and had developed as a river port to provide a more secure location for shipping compared with the open roadstead of Poverty Bay which can be exposed to southerly swells. A meat works was sited beside the harbour and meat and wool was shipped...
) in the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
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...
. The service was modelled on the Southerner service in the South Island, and operated from 1972 to 1989.
Introduction of the Endeavour
The Endeavour was introduced on Sunday, 6 November 1972 as a carriage train to replace a railcarRailcar
A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach , with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g., the Great Western...
service between Wellington and Napier. The 88-seater
NZR RM class (88 seater)
The NZR RM class 88-seaters were a class of railcar used in New Zealand, known unofficially as 'articulateds', 'twinsets', 'Drewrys' and 'Fiats'. They were purchased to replace steam-hauled provincial passenger trains and mixed trains...
railcars used on this route were deteriorating due to age and were notoriously unreliable, and the success of the Southerner inspired the creation of the Endeavour. In its first incarnation, it was hauled by a DA
NZR DA class
The NZR Da diesel-electric mainline locomotive class ran on the New Zealand railway system between 1955 and 1989. With 146 locomotives, it was the most numerous class to operate in New Zealand, just five more than the AB class steam locomotive....
diesel electric locomotive and had a consist of a guard's van, five passenger carriages and a buffet car. The Endeavour's carriages were painted in a distinctive blue livery rather than the red scheme usual at the time, and the locomotive carried a headboard
Headboard (train)
A Train headboard is a board hung on the front of a locomotive. Generally it can depict a named train, although other purposes also exist. Headboards are distinct from locomotive nameplates....
, the only instance of regular headboard use in the country at the time. The new train ran roughly to the railcar timetable, taking five and a half hours between Wellington and Napier. Although some railcar services supplemented the Endeavour in its early years, these all ceased by the end of 1976, with the Endeavour proving more popular with passengers.
The consist was five former second class NZR 56-foot carriage
NZR 56-foot carriage
The NZR 56-foot carriage is a class of 17.07m-long railway passenger car formerly used on almost all long-distance rail transport in New Zealand, and still in service. Some have been preserved.-1927: Prototypes:...
s that had been converted to 20-bunk Ambulance cars in World War Two. When peacetime resumed, the five cars were fitted out in the late 1940s and early 1950s with 35 first class seats to a newer design, and one car trialled fluorescent lighting and individual overhead at-seat reading lights, which became a standard feature on the Northerner
Northerner (train)
The Northerner was an overnight passenger train between Wellington and Auckland in New Zealand. Originally numbered 227 southbound and 626 northbound, it replaced the unnamed and less revered ordinary express trains supplementing the luxurious Silver Star , which had replaced the Night Limited in...
. These newer seats were retained and reupholstered. Three cars seated 36, while two seated 32 to accommodate a staff compartment. The buffet car was a 56-ft two-lavatory first class car, later designated a North Island Main Trunk first class car, seating 31. This car was completely rebuilt to incorporate a full-length counter with 20 stools alongside. One 56-ft van was added to the train, also thoroughly rebuilt. A second van, similarly fitted, was added later.
A sixth second class later Ambulance car had been similarly fitted with 35 first class seats to the newer 1950s design and, because of the increasing popularity of the Endeavour, was regularly added to this train to help carry extra passengers, especially in holiday times. The car was refitted for permanent service on this train, and had a staff compartment built in. It now seated 32.
New Bogies
With the success of the Korean-built bogies on the Northerner cars, the Endeavour cars were later fitted with this type of bogie. Work on Endeavour car underframes was not as substantial as that carried out on the Northerner underframes.Buffet Car Removed
On Saturday, 8 August 1981, the Endeavour had its buffet carriage withdrawn as an economy measure (similar reductions in catering were applied across other catered long distance passenger trains). As a result, the schedule was amended to extend the stop at Palmerston North railway station so passengers could purchase refreshments at the station cafeteria.Blue Fern
On Tuesday, 18 August 1981, one of the three Silver FernNZR RM class (Silver Fern)
This article is about the New Zealand railcar service and the railcars themselves. For other uses, see Silver Fern .The NZR RM class Silver Fern is a class of railcar in New Zealand. The three air-conditioned and sound-proofed 723-kW 96-seater diesel-electric twin-set railcars were built by...
railcars derailed near Waiouru
Waiouru
Waiouru is a small town in the centre of the North Island of New Zealand. It is on the North Island Volcanic Plateau, 25 kilometres south-east of Mount Ruapehu, and in the Ruapehu District....
on the North Island Main Trunk Railway and the next day, the Endeavour's entire consist was diverted to the NIMT as a substitute, known as the Blue Fern
Blue Fern (train)
The Blue Ferns, an unofficial name, were temporary replacement locomotive-hauled carriage trains between Wellington and Auckland on the North Island Main Trunk Railway in the North Island of New Zealand, in 1981-1984 and 1989-1990.-Twist of Fate:...
.
Extension to Gisborne
The Endeavour initially terminated in Napier with a connecting un-named service operating between Napier and Gisborne, which last operated on 30 May 1976. For approximately two years, no passenger service operated between Napier and Gisborne. This was remedied in 1978 when a Napier-Gisborne return rail service was re-introduced, using a pair of AC cars (88-seat railcars converted into un-powered passenger carriages hauled by a locomotive, known as "Grass Grubs" due to their paint scheme). This service connected with the Endeavour at Napier.The Silver Fern accident on 18 August 1981 saw the Endeavour rolling stock redeployed as a replacement between Wellington and Auckland. In order to provide a through service, Red 56-ft former second class passenger cars of 1937-1945 vintage were reallocated from elsewhere to provide a through Wellington-Gisborne service (with the AC cars for Gisborne reallocated elsewhere in the network). The "Endeavour" name was never officially used again for this train or any of its successors.
Some of the 56 ft cars had been moderately refurbished with fluorescent strip lighting and a newer type of window, but still with bench seats akin to local buses of the time. Refurbishing of carriages for the Picton-Christchurch express meant that by late 1982 it was able to be operated by more comfortable AC cars. The northbound service left Wellington at 7:45am and reached Gisborne at 6:30pm, the southbound left Gisborne at 9:55am and reached Wellington at 8:40pm. As it lacked a buffet car, stops were made for refreshments in Napier and Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
. Around this time, the train stopped carrying its distinctive headboard.
The Grass Grub carriages did not last long on the Wellington-Gisborne express, as they were not designed to be towed. The articulation and the chassis of the carriages was wearing out, so they were replaced.
When four of the six Endeavour carriages (three cars seating 36, the fourth 32) previously used returned to the run in May 1984, the better three of the red Gisborne-Napier-Gisborne cars were re-assigned to the Masterton commuter runs, but during busy holiday periods they saw regular duty on the Gisborne Expresses, complementing the blues.
New Route, New Seats
On Tuesday, 11 September 1984, two Southerner cars, which had been exchanged for the other two Endeavour cars, one with 50 (ex 33) seats, the other 45 (ex 29) seats, and two 46- seat car-vans with luggage space at one end, one MitsubishiMitsubishi
The Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...
and two Daewoo
Daewoo
Daewoo or the Daewoo Group was a major South Korean chaebol . It was founded on 22 March 1967 as Daewoo Industrial and was dismantled by the Korean government in 1999...
-built modular guard's vans for luggage and two 50-ft wooden box wagons for parcels traffic were added to the four Endeavour cars to form two new Gisborne Express consists. All eight cars had been progressively fitted out with a new design of seat from Addington Workshops
Addington Workshops
The Addington Railway Workshops was a major railway facility established in the Christchurch suburb of Addington in May 1880 by the New Zealand Railways Department. The workshops were previously in Carlyle Street and closed in 1990.-Description:...
, which had proven successful on the Picton/Greymouth trains. The Endeavour cars sat either 54 without staff compartment (ex 36) or xx with staff compartment (ex 32) per car. The three modular vans replaced the two 56-ft Endeavour baggage vans.
The two reseated Southerner cars returned to the South Island once all four Endeavour cars and the two cars with luggage spaces received their new seats.
Like the Produce Express (the name given to the Grass Grubs used while Endeavour cars assumed duty on the NIMT) before it, steel box wagons built by Addington Workshops between 1978–1982 were towed along at the rear for parcels traffic. The buffet car did not return. As this had been a change from the red, then green carriages used since 1981, many in Hawke's Bay started referring to the Wellington-Napier express as the "Endeavour" once more, although it lacked any of the catering services that the previous Endeavour once provided. However, the train's reliability began to decline; by this stage, the DA class had being withdrawn or converted into the DC class
NZR DC class
The NZR DC class locomotive is the most common class of locomotive currently in operation on the New Zealand rail network. Primarily employed to haul freight trains operated by KiwiRail, the class is also used for long-distance passenger trains operated by Tranz Scenic and suburban passenger trains...
, so under-powered DBR class
NZR DB class
The NZR Db diesel-electric locomotive class was built in 1965-1966. They were a lighter version of the Da class to operate on secondary North Island lines from which the Da was excluded due to its weight. One of the principal lines which the Db dominated was the East Coast Main Trunk to Tauranga...
locomotives hauled the train and struggled to keep to the scheduled timetable.
On 7 March 1988, Cyclone Bola
Cyclone Bola
Cyclone Bola was one of the costliest cyclones in the history of New Zealand, causing severe damage as an extratropical cyclone when it passed near the country in March 1988. It formed on February 24 to the north of Fiji, and tracking generally southwestward it reached hurricane-force winds near...
struck the east coast of the North Island, causing significant damage to the line between Napier and Gisborne. This led to the abbreviation of the Wellington-Gisborne express at Napier, and although the track was repaired, regular passenger trains ceased beyond Napier. Patronage on the Napier-Gisborne sector was never high except for occasional holiday traffic (it rarely carried more than a busload), and by turning around the train at Napier the number of carriages needed was halved as one train could do a return trip.
Re-Allocation
In 1987, a programme was initiated to upgrade all long-distance passenger trains, and the first train targeted for revamping was the Greymouth "West Coast" Express. An Endeavour car, with hostess compartment, was rebuilt as a servery car for the new TranzAlpineTranzAlpine
The TranzAlpine Express is a passenger train operated by Tranz Scenic in the South Island of New Zealand. This trip is often regarded to be one of the world's great train journeys for the scenery through which it passes . The journey is one-way, taking about four and a half hours...
. A second Endeavour car became a servery car for the new Southerner in 1988, a third car was scrapped and two were extensively overhauled for the replacement Wellington-Napier-Wellington passenger train. The last car and the two car-vans remained on the Endeavour until the service ended.
Prior to the introduction of the Bay Express
Bay Express (train)
The Bay Express was a passenger train between Wellington and Napier in New Zealand's North Island, operating from Monday, 11 December 1989 until Sunday, 7 October 2001. It was operated by New Zealand Railways, later Tranz Scenic.- Introduction:...
, the existing Endeavour Express car, seating 54, and car-vans, seating 46, had their seats reupholstered with sheepskin coverings in an interim attempt to provide more comfort until the "newer" cars arrived.
On Saturday, 4 November 1989, InterCity implemented a new timetable. It had been planned for the Bay Express to have been in service by this date, but because the newer cars were still being rebuilt and both Palmerston North and Napier refreshment rooms closed on the same date, the former NIMT car turned Southerner later Kiwi Lager Express buffet car was added to the Endeavour consist in the interim.
This train, with only the third modular van left available for baggage, and steel box wagons built at Addington between 1978–1982
for parcels, ran until Sunday, 10 December 1989.
When the new train started, the 54-seat Endeavour car and one car-van joined the Wairarapa Connection, while the other car-van became an InterCity
InterCity
InterCity is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe...
spare car.
In 1991, the 54-seat Endeavour car was extensively overhauled and refurbished to become the second incarnation of The Connoisseur car
The Connoisseur car
The Connoisseur cars were special railway carriages that were used in the consist of a number of passenger trains in New Zealand.- Inception :...
.