The Ab 608 Passchendaele pulls into Shannon Railway Station.
The Ab 608 Passchendaele pulls into Shannon Railway Station.
All aboard ... some lucky Levin residents were treated to a steam-powered train ride to Shannon and back again this week.
More than 250 passengers - mostly wide-eyed children - had their tickets clipped and boarded the Ab 608 Passchendaele on Tuesday, stopping off for a sausage and icecream before turning around and heading home.
For most, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and memorable for all the sights and sounds associated with a coal-powered steam train, the rhythmic clacking of the tracks, the iconic hooting sound of the driver’s whistle, and for the hiss of steam she lets off when she stops.
It was a trip back in time.
The rare opportunity came initially through an idea from Te Takeretanga o kura-hau-po staff, and then some goodwill from KiwiRail and Steam Incorporated, who are based near the tracks in Paekakariki.
Librarian Pam Coleman wrote to Steam Inc with the idea, and through good fortune it just so happened that KiwiRail were able to time the charter with an operations training day.
Steam Inc operations manager Jack Dolman said it was a rare set of circumstances that allowed the chartered train to go ahead.
“Pam [Coleman] reached out to us and wanted to charter a train, which would normally cost $40,000 to $50,000 ... we definitely don’t say no, but normally those figures are not enough,” he said.
“It was just fortunate we happened to be having a training run in conjunction with KiwiRail. It tied in well. It meant we could offer the possibility and were keen to make it work.
“As much as we love to support the community, it’s really hard to cover costs, and this was a brilliant way to give back to the community.”
Some of the team from Steam Inc.
The train was assembled with six carriages and extra crew, chugging into Levin station before noon and reaching Shannon with a “whoot whoot” by lunchtime.
The sound of the 1000 horse power train was a magnet for a constant stream of onlookers on the journey, many who stopped to wave from the side of the road, or from their back porches, and more often than not the driver obliged with a whistle back.
“Everyone loves to hear the whistle,” he said.
Coleman said she put forward the idea as a way of engaging children with the library in an effort to improve reading and literacy rates, and Shannon library was also part of the focus too.
“So many kids’ books and songs are about trains. People love trains and write stories and sing about trains,” she said.
Horowhenua Mayor Bernie Wanden took the trip to Shannon on the Ab 608 Passchendaele.
“New Zealand’s poor literacy rates highlight how important stories are so if we can foster that love of reading we can get them visiting the library ... the passion behind it was to give people that experience and link it to stories about trains.
“We could always have more people using the library. A love of reading is so important for wellness and wellbeing.
“It was the first time KiwiRail have done anything like this so we are very grateful. I wrote a letter and they were really positive in their response to see what they could do.”
Passengers thank the driver of Ab 608 Passchendaele for their safe journey.
Steam Inc became a registered incorporated society in 1972 with the intention of saving and overhauling steam locomotives, now celebrating its 50th anniversary. Current president Peter Norman joined the society that year and had served ever since.
They were self-funded and primarily run by volunteers alongside a current fulltime staff of seven. Profits come from donations, memberships, events and ticket sales.
Dolman said while there was a generation of New Zealanders for whom rail travel was commonplace, the chance to journey by steam train was now rare.
“Rail travel was just something everybody did 50 years ago. Now it’s a novelty,” he said.
“It’s an authentic trip, and that’s an objective of Steam Inc to take people back to what it was like 100 years ago.”
Later this week she would ferry across Cook Strait to be based at the top of the South Island for Marlborough Flyer season, and would be kept busy giving cruise ship passengers and tourists a journey they won’t forget.
The main trunkline between Shannon and Levin provided some unique views of the region.
Ab 608 was built in Addington and entered service in October 1915, one of 153 ever built worldwide. She was withdrawn in 1967, and after a lengthy restoration that started in 1997 she returned to service in 2014 in time for an Anzac Day memorial service that year, and had been in commission since.
The restoration effort had been huge. After being dismantled she was found to be in poorer condition than had been thought as a new tender body needed to be constructed because the original was too worn to fix.
The boiler has required extensive surgery and many missing or worn parts rebuilt. Excluding volunteer time, the restoration effort was estimated to have cost more than $500,000.
She was given the name Passchendaele in 1925 by the then Minister of Railways Gordon Coates in memory of the more than 5000 New Zealand railwaymen that served in World War I.
Ab 608 was used on royal tours, hauling the Prince of Wales around the South Island in 1920, and the Duke and Duchess of York in 1927.
