The Northland Express, also known as the Opua Express, was an express passenger train

Train

A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...

 operated by the New Zealand Railways Department

New Zealand Railways Department

The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...

 between 1925 and 1956. It ran from Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

 via Whangarei

Whangarei

Whangarei, pronounced , is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. Although commonly classified as a city, it is officially part of the Whangarei District, administered by the Whangarei District Council a local body created in 1989 to administer both the...

 to Opua

Opua

Opua is a locality in the Bay of Islands, in the sub-tropical Northland Region of New Zealand. It is notable as the first port for overseas yachts arriving in the country after crossing the Pacific Ocean...

 in the Bay of Islands

Bay of Islands

The Bay of Islands is an area in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located 60 km north-west of Whangarei, it is close to the northern tip of the country....

.

Operation

On 29 November 1925, the North Auckland Line linking Auckland to Whangarei and other parts of Northland was completed. Soon after passenger expresses began to operate, but the twisting, rugged nature of the railway line meant that they did not achieve particularly fast speeds.

The Northland Express was the premier service north of Auckland and it operated thrice weekly in each direction. Mixed train

Mixed train

A mixed train is a train that hauls both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In the early days of railways they were quite common, but by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. As the trains provided passengers with very slow service, mixed trains have...

s operated from the termini of the Okaihau

Okaihau Branch

The Okaihau Branch, sometimes known as the Kaikohe Branch and rarely the Rangiahua Branch, was a branch line railway that joined the North Auckland Line of the national rail network of New Zealand at Otiria. It was the most northerly line in New Zealand and was intended to run all the way to Kaitaia...

 and Dargaville

Dargaville Branch

The Dargaville Branch is a branch line railway that leaves the North Auckland Line not far south of Whangarei and runs westward to Dargaville. Construction of this relatively short line took approximately two decades, and when it was completed, it linked the now closed Donnelly's Crossing Section...

 branch line

Branch line

A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...

s to connect with the express. By the 1950s, the Northland Express was able to maintain a schedule of 5 hours and 20 minutes on the section between Auckland and Whangarei and was operated by steam locomotive

Steam locomotive

A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...

s such as the J class

NZR J class (1939)

The NZR J class steam locomotives were a class of locomotive used in New Zealand. Following the success of the K class on NZR main lines, there was an urgent need for a modern, powerful locomotive capable of running over secondary lines laid with lighter rails. Thus a new "Mountain" 4-8-2 type...

.

In tandem with the Northland Express, a nightly Mixed train

Mixed train

A mixed train is a train that hauls both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In the early days of railways they were quite common, but by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. As the trains provided passengers with very slow service, mixed trains have...

 ran between Auckland and Opua until 1956. This un-named train was known locally as the "Morepork", after a breed of native owl.

Replacement

In the 1950s, the Railways Department made the decision to replace its remaining provincial expresses with railcar

Railcar

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...

 services. 35 RM class

NZR RM class

The RM class is the classification used by the New Zealand Railways Department and its successors given to most railcars and railbuses that have operated on New Zealand's national rail network. As NZR and its successors has operated many diverse types of railcars, alternate names have been given...

 88 seater railcars

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...

 were supplied in 1955, and in November 1956, the Northland Express was replaced by these railcars. They did not operate entirely the same route as the Northland Express; at Otiria

Otiria

Otiria is a rural locality in the Northland Region of New Zealand's North Island. It neighbours Moerewa to the east, with the nearest major town, Kawakawa a few kilometres further eastwards. Other nearby localities include Pokapu to the south, Orauta to the west, and Hupara to the north.-...

, instead of heading northeast on the Opua Branch

Opua Branch

The Opua Branch or Otiria-Opua Industrial Line, partially still operational as the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway, is a former section of the North Auckland Line in the Northland Region of New Zealand, between Otiria and the Bay of Islands township of Opua. The first section was constructed as a...

, they ran northwest to Okaihau. From this time, Opua's passenger services were provided by mixed trains from Whangarei and they were not timetabled to provide a connection with the railcar service, although the Dargaville mixed continued to meet the railcars until March 1967, when passengers ceased to be carried on the Dargaville Branch.

The railcars reduced the journey time between Auckland and Whangarei to 4 hours and 10 minutes, but mechanical faults with the railcars and the 1959 opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge

Auckland Harbour Bridge

The Auckland Harbour Bridge is an eight-lane box truss motorway bridge over the Waitemata Harbour, joining St Marys Bay in Auckland with Northcote in North Shore City, New Zealand. The bridge is part of State Highway 1 and the Auckland Northern Motorway...

meant that the railcars did not have a long future. They ceased operating in July 1967 and passenger services on the North Auckland Line and Okaihau and Opua branches were operated by mixed trains. The Okaihau mixed ended in 1974, followed by the others in 1976.