Southerner (New Zealand train)

Express passenger trains on the South Island Main Trunk were some of the last services to be hauled by steam locomotives in New Zealand. These services, especially in the late 19th century and early 20th century, were the flagships of the passenger network and received the newest and best motive power and rolling stock. In the mid-20th century, these expresses were augmented by evening railcars between Christchurch and Dunedin.[1]

DJ3228 (D^J 1222) preserved in "Southerner Blue" livery at Dunedin in 2017

By the late 1960s steam locomotives had been phased-out from the North Island, and a serious effort was being made to replace steam locomotives with diesel-electric locomotives in the South Island. The introduction of the DJ class in 1968 sealed the fate of steam, and on May 1969 plans were announced to introduce a premier diesel-hauled express to replace the South Island Limited between Christchurch, Dunedin, and Invercargill. Named the Southerner, it would be hauled by members of the DJ class, and unlike the steam-hauled expresses, it would not carry mail. It began service on 1 December 1970.[1]

The business model behind the Southerner was a limited-stop service, halting only at major towns, with feeder bus services to smaller towns that had been bypassed.[4] The reintroduction of buffet carriages, the first time since the removal of dining carriages in the 1930s as an economy measure also eliminated the refreshment stops which added time and inconvenience to the journey.[5] The Southerner was a single-class train using former first-class carriages.[1] As a result, all passengers enjoyed wide reclining seats arranged two-and-one; significantly greater comfort than other rail or bus options provided at the time.[6]

Initially, it was planned to use two DG class locomotives to haul the train.[5] When the service was introduced, a single DJ class locomotive was used.[7]

Despite the introduction of the Southerner, steam-hauled expresses continued to operate on Friday and Sunday evenings for almost 11 months; the last running on 26 October 1971. This was the last steam-hauled, regularly-scheduled revenue service in New Zealand. The service was replaced with a diesel-hauled train, which continued until 1979.[8] The evening railcars lasted a few years longer, but the age of the Vulcan railcars was becoming increasingly obvious and the service was cancelled in April 1976 without replacement. After 1979, the Southerner was the only long-distance passenger service on the South Island Main Trunk.[8]

The original Southerner stock consisted of ten (later twelve) single-toilet South Island Main Trunk Railway first-class carriages, two (later three) full buffet carriages, three vans and, in the 1980s, three wooden 50-ft bogie box wagons for parcels, formed into two trains. All passenger carriages were rebuilt NZR 56-foot carriages dating from 1938–1945.[1]

A pressure-ventilated former composite first-class (14 seats) and second-class (28 seats) carriage and the only 56-ft car to serve in a Vice-Regal capacity for a Governor-General as a kitchen carriage for the 1934-built North Island Vice Regal car[9] (hence the unique design) were rebuilt as full buffet carriages, incorporating full-length counters and 20 swivel stools.[10] In 1973, a former double-toilet (later designated a North Island Main Trunk railway first-class car) was rebuilt as a third buffet car. Two carriages retained their "coupe" compartment for train staff (one car for each train) and one car in each train retained its compartment for hostesses.[11]

After air-conditioned panorama carriages were introduced, the train's popularity increased to the extent that Tranz Scenic introduced extra Christchurch-Dunedin, Invercargill-Christchurch, Christchurch-Invercargill and Dunedin-Christchurch services on Fridays, numbered #903 to #906. These were short-lived, ceasing after the 1996 Hilderthorpe, North Otago level-crossing accident.

Patronage continued to fall away, even when—from 1993 onwards—panorama carriages were introduced to this service. Two carriages came from the original Bay Express, two were Southerner carriages turned panorama carriages for the TranzAlpine and Coastal Pacific and one car that was formerly The Connoisseur car (also an original Southerner car). Two Picton/Greymouth carriages turned panorama carriages also served these trains until joining the Bay Express to Napier. The original TranzAlpine servery/observation car and its Coastal Pacific equivalent were assigned to the Southerner.[13]

On Wednesday, 25 August 1993, the southbound Southerner, consisting of a DF class locomotive, passenger car with luggage space at one end, servery car, day car and the second of three TranzAlpine and Coastal Pacific power-baggage vans, was hit at Rolleston by a concrete mixing truck. The bowl of the truck bounced off all three passenger carriages and ripped two of them wide open. Three people were killed,[14] one of whom was Louise Cairns, daughter of former New Zealand cricketer Lance Cairns and sister of then-representative Chris Cairns. Chris Cairns has since become a campaigner for safety around the rail corridor and level-crossings through the Chris Cairns Foundation, which later became known as TrackSAFE Foundation New Zealand.[13]

Two days later, a replacement train consisting of three recently refurbished carriages and the FM power and baggage van with 37.5 kW generator from the Auckland excursion fleet was brought in to supplement the remaining four Southerner carriages. The first and second of these temporary replacement carriages seated 50, alcove-style, like the Southerner carriages, but with a more modern seat, seen on upgraded Masterton carriages and the NIMT carriages. The third car seated 54 in the same type of seat, but with all seats facing into two centre tables, one on each side of the aisle. The NIMT car turned buffet car in 1973 returned to the train as part of the replacement consist.[13]

On Thursday, 14 November 1996, one of the two Southerner trains was involved in a level-crossing crash at Hilderthorpe, North Otago, killing four people.[15] The train was involved in another crash in July 2000, colliding with a ute at Edendale, 53 kilometres (33 mi) north of Invercargill. On Monday, 8 January 2001, the southbound Southerner was again involved in a level crossing crash, this time with a cattle truck. The DC-class locomotive and two of three passenger carriages were derailed, injuring 21 passengers and forcing the destruction of 10 cattle-beasts.[16]

The advantages of the new technology and the removal of delays caused by the carriage of mail, and the elimination of refreshment stops became apparent instantly, with the travel time between Christchurch and Dunedin cut by almost an hour from 7 hours 9 minutes to 6 hours 14 minutes. Initially, the service stopped at only a small number of stations along the Main South Line – Gore, Balclutha, Dunedin, Oamaru, Timaru and Ashburton, with feeder bus services for passengers travelling to other destinations.[2] Gradually, additional stops were added, although a number were "stops on request" only.[2]

Typically, two DJ class diesel locomotives hauled the train, and when a third was added to increase power on the rugged, difficult line between Oamaru and Dunedin, another 19 minutes were cut from the schedule.[11]

The Southerner was notable for being the first train on New Zealand Railways to include a full dining service since the abolition of dining carriages as an economy measure in World War I. The Southerner had a full-service buffet car with 20 seats that served hot meals and cafeteria-style food, replaced in the early 1990s with a buffet bar service for passengers to purchase food to be consumed at their seats.[12]

By the 1990s, the DJ class had been largely withdrawn and other locomotives hauled the Southerner, including the DC and DX classes.

The service ran at a loss and had been supported by government subsidies until these were abolished for all long-distance passenger trains in 1989. New Zealand Rail changed the seating configuration by replacing the very generous three-abreast configuration with a more standard four-abreast, with reduced (but still generous compared to bus) seat pitch. The full-service buffet car was replaced with a buffet servery. Both measures reduced costs significantly, but the service was challenged by the increasing number of low-cost shuttle bus services, particularly between Christchurch and Dunedin, which were significantly cheaper than the train. Nonetheless, the Southerner still operated seven days a week, one service each way.[13]

As branch lines were nearly non-existent (and with those still in use not open to passenger train) and as Dunedin's suburban passenger services had been withdrawn by 1982, it was the sole regular train to stop at the famous Dunedin Railway Station, once the country's busiest.[17] At this time, the typical consist comprised only two or three carriages and a power/luggage van, and the southbound journey from Christchurch and Dunedin was timetabled to take 5 hours 46 minutes, with an additional 3 hours 19 minutes to reach Invercargill. Northbound, the journey from Invercargill to Dunedin was scheduled at 3 hours 28 minutes, with another 5 hours 27 minutes to Christchurch.[13]

It continued to face increased bus competition, and with increased car ownership and competition in the airline industry, the Southerner seemed unable to find a profitable niche.[13]

In 2001, Tranz Rail sold a 50% share in long-distance passenger services operated by Tranz Scenic to directors of Australian company West Coast Railway, but the company elected not to purchase the Southerner without the promise of a subsidy. The Ministry of Economic Development funded a feasibility study into the economic impact of subsidising the Southerner, but this failed to demonstrate a viable business case for the service; patronage having fallen to an average of between 40 and 50 people per day in each direction. This was roughly half what was necessary to make the train viable. As neither airline nor bus services along the route were subsidised, the government decided not to subsidise the train and its demise was inevitable.[2]

Public outcry failed to save the train, and the last services ran on Sunday, 10 February 2002. The carriages were re-allocated to the TranzAlpine between Christchurch and Greymouth and the TranzCoastal between Christchurch and Picton. Invercargill lost its status as the southernmost passenger station in the world.[3]

The South Island Main Trunk is now almost wholly without any passenger trains. The northern portion between Christchurch and Rolleston is still used by the TranzAlpine, and Dunedin Railway Station and the South Island Main Trunk out to Wingatui remain in use as by Dunedin Railways' Taieri Gorge Limited, a popular daily tourist train operated by the Dunedin Railways along the former Otago Central Railway. Dunedin Railways also run the weekly Seasider on the section of line between Dunedin and Palmerston using a Silver Fern railcar leased from KiwiRail.

With the rising demand for travel, especially to and from Invercargill, there has been of talk of reinstating the Southerner on an Invercargill-Dunedin-Invercargill daily rotation. With Otago University and Southern Institute of Technology encouraging studies between the two campuses, students would benefit if enough interest was generated. KiwiRail has stated that it has no interest in the services but said a private operator would be assisted if an attempt was made to operate the route.

In December 2016 KiwiRail announced that it was considering establishing a temporary Southerner-style service using scenic carriages from the Coastal Pacific, whilst that service remained suspended following the large Kaikoura earthquake. An alternative rolling stock option would be to use one of the three Silver Fern railcars owned by KiwiRail once the Coastal Pacific service resumes.

In June 2017 the government made a grant of $50,000 to evaluate the business case for reinstating the Southerner.[18]

Despite this revived interest, the service did not return and there are now discussions around chartered services for pop concerts.[19]

• Southerner Rail Passenger Service: Viability Study
• Tribute page to the Southerner