The Lynx Express was a long-distance passenger train in the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

of New Zealand that ran the length of the Main North Line between Picton and

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

. The service was operated by New Zealand Rail Limited business unit InterCity Rail.

Operation

New Zealand Rail began The Lynx fast ferry service as part of the Interisland Line at the end of 1994, with the 74-metre Incat

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

being leased for that summer from Condor Ferries. It provided a faster alternative to the conventional ferries and . To complement the faster ferry, a passenger train from Picton to Christchurch and return was introduced. Named the Lynx Express, it debuted on Monday, 19 December 1994 and unlike the Coastal Pacific it ran beyond Picton railway station to and from the ferry terminal. The Coastal Pacific Express connecting with the conventional ferries ran from Christchurch to Picton and back. Two cars from the original Southerner later used on the Northerner were rebuilt to the same specification as the new

TranzAlpine The TranzAlpine is a passenger train operated by the Great Journeys New Zealand division of KiwiRail in the South Island of New Zealand over the Midland Line, New Zealand, Midland Line; often regarded to be one of the world's great train jour ...

cars. They each seated 50 passengers in seats designed for the

Wairarapa Connection The Wairarapa Line is a New Zealand interurban commuter rail service along the Wairarapa Line between Masterton, the largest town in the Wairarapa, and Wellington. It is operated by Wellington suburban operator Transdev Wellington, Transdev (w ...

and Northerner/ Overlander, featuring alcove-style seating with tables along with panoramic windows and air conditioning. These cars were complemented by the then-recently refurbished former Southerner, later Northerner, and an InterCity spare buffet car with 24 seats and tables, arranged alcove style, and a Daewoo modular former

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

suburban van converted to a power and baggage van with a new 90 kW generator. Despite the improved accommodation on the newer train, as opposed to the Coastal Pacific, and its faster timetable with only two intermediate stops at Blenheim and

Kaikōura Kaikōura (; ) is a town on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, located on New Zealand State Highway 1, State Highway 1, north of Christchurch. The town has an estimated permanent resident population of as of . Kaikōura is th ...

, the service failed to attract sufficient revenue, and when the Condor 10 returned from 1995 to 1996, the service was not resumed.

Accident

On 23 December 1994, just a few days after its introduction, the Picton bound Lynx Express was involved in accident at a

level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, o ...

with State Highway 1 north of Omihi. A car illegally tried to cross in front of the train and was struck, resulting in the death of one of the car’s occupants. The car’s driver and another occupant suffered serious injuries.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{NZR Passenger Long-distance passenger trains in New Zealand Rail transport in the Canterbury Region Rail transport in the Marlborough District Railway services introduced in 1994 Named passenger trains of New Zealand Railway services discontinued in 1995 Cook Strait Ferry 1994 establishments in New Zealand 1995 disestablishments in New Zealand Discontinued railway services in New Zealand

Operation

Accident

See also

References

Citations

Bibliography