The ''Kaimai Express'' long-distance passenger train was operated by

Tranz Rail Tranz Rail, formally Tranz Rail Holdings Limited (New Zealand Rail Limited until 1995), was the main Rail transport in New Zealand, rail operator in New Zealand from 1991 until it was purchased by Toll Holdings in 2003. History The New Zealand ...

under the

Tranz Scenic Great Journeys New Zealand is the tourism division of KiwiRail that operate its three Scenic train services (TranzAlpine, Northern Explorer and Coastal Pacific). The new division was launched in May 2017 and replaced the former tourism brand Ki ...

brand (originally by New Zealand Rail Limited under the InterCity Rail brand) between the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-larges ...

cities of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

and

Tauranga Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...

via Hamilton. It used the

Silver Fern ''Alsophila dealbata'', synonym ''Cyathea dealbata'', commonly known as the silver fern or silver tree-fern, or as ponga or punga (from Māori or ),The Māori word , pronounced , has been borrowed into New Zealand English as a generic term f ...

railcar A railcar (not to be confused with a railway car) 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 (carriage, car), with a drive ...

s and operated from 9 December 1991 until 7 October 2001.

Background

In 1928, when the

East Coast Main Trunk Railway The East Coast Main Trunk (ECMT) is a railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, originally running between Hamilton and Taneatua via Tauranga, connecting the Waikato with the Bay of Plenty. The ECMT now runs between Hamilton and Kawerau ...

was completed to Taneatua, a passenger train commenced operating from

on a slow (12-hour) schedule. Within a year this was upgraded to 10.5 hours and named the ''

Taneatua Express The ''Taneatua Express'' was an express passenger train operated by the New Zealand Railways Department that ran between Auckland and Taneatua in the Bay of Plenty, serving centres such as Tauranga and Te Puke. It commenced in 1929 and operated ...

''. For much of its life, it ran only twice or thrice weekly. In 1959 the express was replaced by a daily railcar service using 88 seater railcars: due to negligible traffic to Taneatua, it terminated at

Te Puke Te Puke is a town located 18 kilometres southeast of Tauranga in the Western Bay of Plenty of New Zealand. It is particularly well-known for the cultivation of Kiwifruit. Te Puke is close to Tauranga, Mount Maunganui, Papamoa, and Maketu, whi ...

. It did not last long, as the circuitous rail route struggled to compete with private cars, being withdrawn from 11 September 1967. In 1980

radio station Radio BoP started running an excursion train from Tauranga to

Matamata Matamata () is a town in Waikato, New Zealand. It is located near the base of the Kaimai Ranges, and is a thriving farming area known for Thoroughbred horse breeding and training pursuits. It is part of the Matamata-Piako District, which takes ...

and

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompa ...

via the new

Kaimai Tunnel The Kaimai Tunnel is a railway tunnel through the Kaimai Range in the North Island of New Zealand. Since it was opened in 1978, it has held the title of longest tunnel, at , in New Zealand, assuming this distinction from the previous title ho ...

under the name ''Kaimai Express'', using NZR locomotives and carriages from Steam Inc and Railway Enthusiasts Society. The excursions were repeated in 1981 and 1982.

Operation

In 1991, the Silver Fern railcars that operated between

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...

and Auckland were replaced by the locomotive-hauled '' Overlander'', and they were transferred to new routes from

, the ''

Geyserland Express The ''Geyserland Express'' was a long distance passenger train operated by the Tranz Scenic division of Tranz Rail (previously the New Zealand Rail Limited division InterCity Rail) between Auckland and Rotorua in New Zealand's North Island. It ut ...

'' to

and the ''Kaimai Express'' to Tauranga. The latter train's name came from the

through the

Kaimai Ranges The Kaimai Range (sometimes referred to as the ''Kaimai Ranges'') is a mountain range in the North Island of New Zealand. It is part of a series of ranges, with the Coromandel Range to the north and the Mamaku Ranges to the south. The Kaimai ...

, opened on 12 September 1978. This gave a much faster and more direct route to the

Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaw ...

, substantially faster than the ''Taneatua Express'' and 88-seater railcars. The first ''Kaimai Express'' ran on 9 December 1991, a morning service from Tauranga to Auckland and a return afternoon service, taking roughly 3.5 hours in each direction. In 2000 timings were changed to enable the introduction of the

Waikato Connection The ''Waikato Connection'' was a short-lived express passenger train between Hamilton and Auckland in New Zealand's North Island. It consisted of a weekday single return service using diesel multiple unit railcars. Like its southern counterpa ...

morning and evening commuter service between Hamilton and Auckland. The southbound service departed Auckland at 8:20am and reached Tauranga 3 hours 31 minutes later at 11:51am, northbound from Tauranga at 1:05pm to Auckland at 4:34pm, 3 hours 29 minutes later. Consideration was made at one point by Tranz Rail to extend the service to

Mount Maunganui Mount Maunganui (, ) is a major residential, commercial and industrial suburb of the Tauranga metropolitan area, located on a peninsula to the north-east of Tauranga's city centre. It was an independent town from Tauranga until the completio ...

, but this did not eventuate due to the cost of building a platform at Mount Maunganui which would be required. Whilst the Kaimai Express service had the potential to compete with car and bus services, a lack of marketing and advertising resulted in insufficient patronage for the service to be profitable, and in 2001 it was announced that the service was too uneconomic to continue. No subsidies came forth from the government and no private companies wished to invest in it. It operated for the final time on 7 October 2001.

References

External links

Kaimai Express timetable and information
{{NZR Passenger Long-distance passenger trains in New Zealand Rail transport in the Auckland Region Rail transport in Waikato Rail transport in the Bay of Plenty Region Railway services introduced in 1991 Railway services discontinued in 2001 1991 establishments in New Zealand 2001 disestablishments in New Zealand Discontinued railway services in New Zealand