Wairarapa Mail
Encyclopedia
The Wairarapa Mail was a passenger train operated by the New Zealand Railways Department
(NZR) between Wellington
and Woodville
, continuing on to Palmerston North
as a mixed train
. It ran from 1909 until 1948 and its route included the famous and arduous Rimutaka Incline.
until 1908, the route through the Wairarapa was NZR's primary means of accessing Wellington as the western line through the Kapiti Coast
and Horowhenua was privately owned by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. The Napier Express
passenger train operated from Napier
to Wellington via the Wairarapa, but on 7 December 1908, the Wellington and Manawatu Railway was purchased, and in early 1909, the Napier Express was diverted to the quicker western route. Accordingly, the Wairarapa Mail was introduced to provide Wairarapa residents with connections to Wellington, Manawatu, ad the Hawkes Bay.
station as their Wellington terminus. The Wairarapa Mail was the only long-distance train to run out of NZR's Lambton Quay station, which primarily served commuter traffic from the Hutt Valley. Between the Hutt Valley and the Wairarapa, the train had to travel over the Rimutaka Incline over the Rimutaka Range
, and at its terminus in Woodville, its carriages were attached to a slow mixed train
from Dannevirke
that continued through the Manawatu Gorge
to terminate in Palmerston North. Passengers could also connect with the northbound Napier Express in Woodville.
The Wairarapa Mail was hauled by a diverse range of motive power. Until World War II
, WW class steam locomotive
s were typical motive power between Wellington and Summit at the western end of the Rimutaka Incline, while H class
Fell engines
handled the train over the Incline, and from Cross Creek at the eastern end through to Woodville, A class
locomotives were normal. Passenger carriages were often older wooden mainline carriages displaced from premier services by new rolling stock; some of these carriages were gas-lit into the 1930s and even later.
Dramatic changes took place in the later half of the 1930s. In 1936, railcar
s of the RM class
Wairarapa type
were introduced on the Wellington to Woodville route, and their ability to run over the Rimutaka Incline at speed allowed a quicker timetable. The railcars became quite popular, but the Mail continued to run daily, and in 1937, the Wellington Railway Station
was opened, replacing the Thorndon and Lambton Quay termini and allowing the Mail to operate from the same station as the other mainline expresses. The timetable in 1939 allowed for a 7:50am departure from Wellington for the northbound service, reaching Masterton
at 11:17am and Woodville at 1:22pm before progressing on as part of a mixed train to Palmerston North, arriving at 2:53pm. The southbound service left Woodville at 12:13pm after the arrival of a mixed that had left Palmerston North at 11:04am, and it passed through Masterton at 1:59pm before terminating in Wellington at 5:44pm. Allowances were made for refreshment stops in Masterton and Woodville as the Mail was never fitted with dining car
s.
. After the war, AB class
locomotives were introduced in both the Hutt Valley and Wairarapa and this somewhat modernised the train, but coal shortages in 1944 had led to the service's reduction to running thrice weekly. From this point, the railcars came to be dominant and they fully replaced the Mail in 1948.
was opened, eliminating the Incline, and by December 1963, passenger demand exceeded the capacity of the 88 seater railcars
that had taken over from the Wairarapa railcars. Accordingly, a permanent carriage train was re-introduced to the Wairarapa; this service was the forerunner to the still-operational Wairarapa Connection.
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...
(NZR) between Wellington
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 Woodville
Woodville, New Zealand
Woodville is a small town in the southern North Island of New Zealand, 75 km north of Masterton and 25 km east of Palmerston North. In the 2006 census 1,398 people are usually resident in Woodville, a decrease of 81 people, or 5.5%, since the 2001 Census.-Early History and Local...
, continuing on to 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...
as a 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...
. It ran from 1909 until 1948 and its route included the famous and arduous Rimutaka Incline.
Introduction
From the 1897 completion of the Wairarapa LineWairarapa Line
The Wairarapa Line is a secondary railway line in the south-east of the North Island of New Zealand, connecting the capital city of Wellington with the Wairarapa region. The line ends at Woodville, where it joins the Palmerston North - Gisborne Line...
until 1908, the route through the Wairarapa was NZR's primary means of accessing Wellington as the western line through the Kapiti Coast
Kapiti Coast
The Kapiti Coast is the name of the section of the coast of the south-western North Island of New Zealand that is north of Wellington and opposite Kapiti Island. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Wellington Regional Council...
and Horowhenua was privately owned by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. The Napier Express
Napier Express
The Napier Express was a passenger express train operated by the New Zealand Railways Department initially between Napier and Palmerston North and later between Napier and Wellington. It ran from 1891 until 1954.-Introduction:...
passenger train operated from 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"...
to Wellington via the Wairarapa, but on 7 December 1908, the Wellington and Manawatu Railway was purchased, and in early 1909, the Napier Express was diverted to the quicker western route. Accordingly, the Wairarapa Mail was introduced to provide Wairarapa residents with connections to Wellington, Manawatu, ad the Hawkes Bay.
Operation
After the WMR was acquired, most of NZR's long-distance trains used the WMR's ThorndonThorndon
Thorndon is an inner suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. It combines residential accommodation and the home of government, and is located at the northern end of the Central Business District...
station as their Wellington terminus. The Wairarapa Mail was the only long-distance train to run out of NZR's Lambton Quay station, which primarily served commuter traffic from the Hutt Valley. Between the Hutt Valley and the Wairarapa, the train had to travel over the Rimutaka Incline over the Rimutaka Range
Rimutaka Range
The Rimutaka Range is one of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand which form a ridge running parallel with the east coast of the island between East Cape and Wellington.The ridge is at its most pronounced in the southern part of the island, where it consists of the Ruahine,...
, and at its terminus in Woodville, its carriages were attached to a slow 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...
from Dannevirke
Dannevirke
Dannevirke , is a rural service town in the Manawatu-Wanganui Region of the North Island, New Zealand. It is the major town of the administrative Tararua District, the easternmost of the districts in which the Regional Council has responsibilities...
that continued through the Manawatu Gorge
Manawatu Gorge
The Manawatu Gorge runs between the Ruahine and Tararua Ranges of the North Island of New Zealand, linking the Manawatu and Hawke's Bay regions...
to terminate in Palmerston North. Passengers could also connect with the northbound Napier Express in Woodville.
The Wairarapa Mail was hauled by a diverse range of motive power. Until World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, WW class 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 were typical motive power between Wellington and Summit at the western end of the Rimutaka Incline, while H class
NZR H class
The NZR H class locomotive was a unique class of locomotive used by the New Zealand Railways Department on the famous Rimutaka Incline, the three-mile section of 1 in 15 gradient between Cross Creek and Summit, over the Rimutaka Ranges...
Fell engines
Fell mountain railway system
The Fell system uses a raised centre rail between the two running rails on steeply-graded railway lines to provide extra traction and braking, or braking alone. Trains are propelled by wheels or braked by shoes pressed horizontally onto the centre rail, as well as by means of the normal running...
handled the train over the Incline, and from Cross Creek at the eastern end through to Woodville, A class
NZR A class (1906)
The A class were steam locomotives built in 1906 with a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement for New Zealand's national railway network, and described by some as the most handsome engines to run on New Zealand rails. The class should not be confused with the older and more obscure A class of 1873. They were...
locomotives were normal. Passenger carriages were often older wooden mainline carriages displaced from premier services by new rolling stock; some of these carriages were gas-lit into the 1930s and even later.
Dramatic changes took place in the later half of the 1930s. In 1936, 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...
s of the 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...
Wairarapa type
NZR RM class (Wairarapa)
The NZR RM class Wairarapa railcar was the first truly successful class of railcars to operate on New Zealand's national rail network...
were introduced on the Wellington to Woodville route, and their ability to run over the Rimutaka Incline at speed allowed a quicker timetable. The railcars became quite popular, but the Mail continued to run daily, and in 1937, the Wellington Railway Station
Wellington Railway Station
Wellington Railway Station is the southern terminus of New Zealand's North Island Main Trunk railway, Wairarapa Line and Johnsonville Line. In terms of number of services and in passenger numbers, it is New Zealand's busiest railway station.-Development:...
was opened, replacing the Thorndon and Lambton Quay termini and allowing the Mail to operate from the same station as the other mainline expresses. The timetable in 1939 allowed for a 7:50am departure from Wellington for the northbound service, reaching Masterton
Masterton
Masterton is a large town and local government district in the Wellington Region of New Zealand. It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a region separated from Wellington by the Rimutaka ranges...
at 11:17am and Woodville at 1:22pm before progressing on as part of a mixed train to Palmerston North, arriving at 2:53pm. The southbound service left Woodville at 12:13pm after the arrival of a mixed that had left Palmerston North at 11:04am, and it passed through Masterton at 1:59pm before terminating in Wellington at 5:44pm. Allowances were made for refreshment stops in Masterton and Woodville as the Mail was never fitted with dining car
Dining car
A dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
s.
Demise
The Wairarapa Mail's demise was primarily due to the introduction of the railcars, and would have likely come about sooner were it not for the traffic boom associated with World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After the war, AB class
NZR Ab class
The NZR AB class was a class of 4-6-2 Pacific tender steam locomotive that operated on New Zealand's national railway system. Originally an improvement on the 1906 A class, 141 were built between 1915 and 1927 by NZR's Addington Workshops, A & G Price Limited of Thames, New Zealand, and North...
locomotives were introduced in both the Hutt Valley and Wairarapa and this somewhat modernised the train, but coal shortages in 1944 had led to the service's reduction to running thrice weekly. From this point, the railcars came to be dominant and they fully replaced the Mail in 1948.
After the Wairarapa Mail
Despite the Mail's demise, carriage trains were sometimes operated to cater for demand at holiday times as the railcars were incapable of running in multiple and there were only five of them. In 1955, the Rimutaka TunnelRimutaka Tunnel
The Rimutaka Tunnel is a railway tunnel through New Zealand's Rimutaka Ranges, between Maymorn, near Upper Hutt, and Featherston, on the Wairarapa Line.The tunnel, which was opened to traffic on 3 November 1955, is long...
was opened, eliminating the Incline, and by December 1963, passenger demand exceeded the capacity of the 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...
that had taken over from the Wairarapa railcars. Accordingly, a permanent carriage train was re-introduced to the Wairarapa; this service was the forerunner to the still-operational Wairarapa Connection.