A bush tram and line-side log hauler owned by the Tamaki Sawmill Co., Raurimu. Photographed by Albert Percy Godber circa 1917. In New Zealand railway terminology, a bush tramway is an industrial tramway, most commonly used for logging. They are distinguished from urban trams as bush tramways were predominantly for freight, usually logging in the bush, and not for passengers, and were often built in parts of the countryside that were otherwise inaccessible to transport. In some cases, such as the

Kinleith Branch The Kinleith Branch railway line is located in the Waikato region of New Zealand. The line was constructed by the Thames Valley and Rotorua Railway Company, Taupo Totara Timber Company and rebuilt by the Public Works Department primarily to ser ...

, bush tramways were converted to heavy rail and incorporated into the New Zealand Government Railways network. In modern parlance, both urban trams and bush tramways are known as

light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...

History

Although legally defined as a railway, the

Dun Mountain Railway The Dun Mountain Railway was a privately owned and operated Narrow gauge railway, narrow gauge, long List of horse-drawn railways, horse-drawn Tramway (mineral), tramway from chromite mines in the vicinity of Duppa Lode on the eastern slopes ...

was the first industrial tramway in New Zealand, opening in 1862. The line used horses to haul mineral wagons from Dun Mountain the port of Nelson. "Bush tram" was first used to describe the horse-drawn tramway from Greymouth to the banks of the Taramakau River, which opened in 1867.

Motive power

Bush tramways initially made use of horses and in some cases log haulers (

stationary steam engine Stationary steam engines are fixed steam engines used for pumping or driving mills and factories, and for power generation. They are distinct from locomotive engines used on railways, traction engines for heavy steam haulage on roads, steam car ...

s pulling wagons by chain or rope) alongside tramway tracks for motive power. As tramways grew longer, steam locomotives were used, usually geared locomotives. Following the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the New Zealand Forestry Service banned steam locomotives in native bush, and there was a rush to replace steam locomotives with diesel or petrol alternatives.

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History

Motive power

See also

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