Canterbury Railway Society Inc

This vehicles began life in 1933 when then General Manager, G H Mackley, had a Leyland Cub converted to run on the railways as an inspection car. It was nicknamed "The Red Terror". In 1941 it was rebuilt at Hutt and converted for use as an overhead line inspection vehicle. It remained in the North Island until 1946, most likely being used on the suburban electrification work.
A memo dated 22 May 1946 approved the shipping to the South Island and it was eventually shipped on the Port Waikato on the 19th October 1946, arriving at Lyttelton on the 24th October 1946. It operated at Otira where it remained until 1996. With the end of electrification between Arthur's Pass and Otira, the vehicle is now part of the South Island's only electrified railway at Ferrymead and is presently stored.

The original motor was a Leyland KE2 petrol, six cylinder (3 3/8 x 5) of max BHP 60.
A four speed gearbox giving a max speed of 50 MPH. Accomodation for the driver and seven passengers.
In May 1961 it was transferred to Linwood for a overhaul and the original Leyland petrol engine was deemed to be life expired and after negotiations with NZ Railways Road Services, a 1958 Bedford 6 cylinder motor was offered and accepted. This was fitted in July 1961.

4 files, last one added on Oct 01, 2005

This was built in the 1930s to replace the E1 battery electric locomotive supplied by English Electric with the EOs in 1922. It is powered by a petrol engine and was in use at Otira for many years, becoming redundant when the electrification was discontinued in 1997. It was then transferred to Ferrymead where the engine has been overhauled and some minor repairs and painting carried out to the bodywork. Commonly known as the "piecart", it is now being used on the overhead extension toward Ferrymead Station.

4 files, last one added on Dec 04, 2005

British Railway Engineer John Barrowclough Fell's centre-rail system for increased traction on steeply graded railway lines was used in three places around the world for locomotive traction, including two in New Zealandm and in many more for braking purposes.

In the South Island of New Zealand, centre rails were laid on the Roa and Rewanui Inclines on the West Coast near Greymouth for braking coal trains down these steeply graded lines (each around 1 in 25). The Roa Incline closed in 1960 due to falling coal orders, while the Rewanui Incline was converted to air-only braking with removal of the centre rail in 1966.

Van F 624 was built for service in the South Island and finished its work with New Zealand Railways on the Rewanui Incline. The van is fitted with special horizontal brake shoes which are forced onto each side of the raised centre rail by large handwheels.

In normal service the centre-rail brakeblocks wore rapidly and had to be changed often. The need for the centre rail diminished when air braking became commonplace on the coal lines and the van was no longer required for this work.

Fell's system was used for locomotive tractionon the famous Rimutaka Incline in the central North Island. A Fell locomotive and brake van from the Rimutaka Incline are on display at the Fell Engine Museum in Featherston.

2 files, last one added on Sep 21, 2005

Vice Regal car A 1825 arrived at Ferrymead in October 1999. It was used by New Zealand Railways as a Research Test Car and it is now undergoing restoration to return it to the condition that it was in when used for the 1953-54 Royal Tour of New Zealand.

4 files, last one added on Apr 24, 2006

Around 10.00am on the 15th December 2005 carriage A 222 arrived by truck to Ferrymead. The carriage which came from Wellington by ship arrived minus its bogies which were coming down by train and then bought out by truck later that day.

A history of carriage A 222.
A222 is made up from one and a half Class C carriages (6 wheel - 33ft 6in). The major part of the body came from C222, hence the number was retained for the conversion. The C cars were built in the mid 1870's in Britain by the Oldbury Car Company. The conversion to bogie carriage was carried out in 1889 probably by Hillside Workshops, the carriage and a half being placed on a bogie underframe of 43 ft. It was rated 2nd class, seating 48 passengers with a toilet fitted at one end. Lighting was by 3 colza oil lamps. In 1904 the toilet was removed, an additional light was fitted and end gates and handrails were also fitted. It appears to have never been fitted with Westinghouse brakes. It was relegated to a non revenue car (Ea1943) in 1945 and remained in service until the early 1960's. In 1963 it was rescued and restored to its old number as an exhibit at the Railways Centennial Exhibition in Christchurch that year.
It was stored in various locations in both islands for the next 40 or so years, being used in some railway events, finishing up in Wellington, before being allocated to Ferrymead in 2004. It is to be restored to its 1904 configuration and will retain its green livery.

7 files, last one added on Dec 28, 2005

Special car A 1617 was built in the Addington workshop in 1927 for the tour of the Duke & Duchess of York and was allocated to the South Island main trunck and branch lines.

A history of carriage A 1617
By 1927 most of the existing Special Carriages had become outmoded, so it was decided to build new coaches for the tour of the Duke & Duchess of York (later King George VI & Queen Elizabeth).
Loading gauge limitations in the South Island demanded a compact vehicle for the purpose, and as the royal couple were not required to sleep overnight on the train, the design did not need to include a stateroom. A vehicle with a total length of 47.5 feet and a maximum width of 7 foot 10 inches resulted, with a quite revolutionary appearance (for New Zealand carriages.)
The exterior of the carriage was steel paneled, with a rounded “chariot” end containing large observation windows. The main entrances on each side were offset from each other, and led directly into the lounge area. Larger than normal windows were fitted complete with coloured “lead-light” top lights. The lounge (15foot 8 inches by 6 foot 10 inches wide) accommodated a chesterfield, and four lounge chairs. At the leading end was a dining table with five chairs. A corridor lead off the lounge along one side of the carriage to access two bedrooms, each containing two bunks, a bathroom, and a kitchen. The kitchen was capable of cooking for 12 persons.
The interior of the carriage was panelled with polished mahogany, and all metal fittings were of oxidized silver. Electrical equipment included fans and cigar lighters.
At the conclusion of the Royal Tour, the carriage was set aside for the use of Members of Parliament.
It 1953/54 it was used as a support vehicle on the South Island Royal Tour Train of Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. After 26 years of service the only improvements made were to fit new carpets (taken out of Vice Regal car A1825) and some additional electric fitments. The bogies were also upgraded to Timken 25330 roller bearing type.
A1617 and A1655 (the General Managers Carriage) were both written of in 1958, and were to have been put up for tender for sale, however by the early 1960’s it was decided that they would become the property of the NZR Welfare Society, and be placed at Arthurs Pass to be used as holiday cottages for railway employees. They both remained here in a corner of the railway yards until 1992, when they were both disposed of.
Since that time A1617 has been moved about several times. Initially it was placed on the platform at Moana station as part of a short-lived tourism venture, before being moved up to an empty section overlooking the lake. The next move was to a block of land north of the Moana township. By this time the weather conditions experienced in the area were taking a toll on the exterior of the carriage.
In 2003 A1617 was purchased by a Dunedin based businesswoman, Cushla Martini, who had the carriage trucked to Dunedin, where it was intended to rebuild the carriage as part of a tourist train venture. Work was started, but had not progressed very far before Ms Martini was diagnosed with cancer . She died in 2005. Ms Martini’s husband decided that the carriage should go to good home in one of New Zealands heritage railways, the final decision being for it to be given to the Canterbury Railway Society, operators of the Ferrymead Railway, and the National Railway Museum of New Zealand. It arrived here in March 2006.

4 files, last one added on Mar 25, 2006