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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Waitara Railway Preservation Society

The Waitara Railway Preservation Society is a society established in 1999 to operate a heritage railway over the former Waitara Industrial Line railway that operated between Lepperton and Waitara in the New Plymouth District of New Zealand's North Island. The line had been closed that year after 124 years of operation, after the closure of the local AFFCO freezing works in the town.

The preserved line

The preserved line begins at the northern end of the Lepperton Railway Yards (just past the main line turnout) and continues parallel to the Marton - New Plymouth Railway for a few hundred meters before turning right at Sentry Hill towards the Waiongana Stream. After crossing the stream the line runs to the former Waitara Road station and former Waitara Taranaki Co-Operative Dairy Company buildings at Brixton. The line continues from here towards Waitara, passing underneath State Highway 3 at Big Jim's Overpass. Finally, the line drops into the Waitara Valley and into the township of Waitara proper, finishing just before the Waitara River.

In Waitara, most of the infrastructure is gone with only the main line and one loop remaining in the yard. The former Tahora station has been relocated to Waitara Road, where the society's rolling stock is stored. The site of the Lepperton railway station & yard is still owned and operated by KiwiRail, where the station building was removed in 1994.

The branch line has 8 level crossings along its length, all of which are protected by compulsory stop signs. Issues with these were raised in the community in 2004 as legally traffic has to stop even though trains seldom ran more than once a month. The Land Transport Safety Authority (now NZTA) would not allow Give Way signs and reinstating bells and lights had been reported as costing over $250,000 per crossing (almost the purchase price of the entire line in 1999) making installation unlikely for foreseeable future. Rail operations have become more frequent since then but motorists failing to stop for the societies trains is still an issue.

Operation

Trains are run twice daily on the first and third Sundays of the month, departing from Waitara. The trip takes 70-80 minutes return. The railway also offers charter services by arrangement.

Since around 2007, trains had only journeyed as far as the Waiongana River bridge due to the deterioration of the sleepers on the structure. In April 2014 the bridge was re-sleepered and maintenance completed on the main bridge structure (including removing the former Waitara town water pipes from the side). This has allowed trains to return to the entire branch line (and a proposed loop at the former Sentry Hill station site).

In 2019 the society entered into a lease to the Lepperton railway sidings (but not the main line and loop) which will allow locomotives to switch ends of the train. As part of this agreement, the society has built a new linking track to bypass the Kiwirails network which is under Centralised Traffic Control.

Former logo of the Waitara Railway Preservation Society.
Former logo of the Waitara Railway Preservation Society.

Rolling stock

Locomotives

The Waitara Railway Preservation Society owns a number of diesel shunting locomotives, either operational or awaiting restoration. These include:

Class & Number TMS Number Type Year Built by Makers Number Status Notes
- - 0-4-0D diesel shunter 1954 Drewry 2507 Unknown Built for Northland Fertiliser Co, Whangarei. Donated in 1999.
PC 11 - 0-6-0D diesel shunter 1958 Bagnall 3144 In service Built for Portland Cement.
Donated to the Taranaki Flyer Society Incorporated in 2010 but returned in 2013 when that group folded.
D 240 DSA414 0-6-0D diesel shunter 1956 Bagnall 3079 Stored Arrived 2008 from Ravensdown Fertilizer, New Plymouth.
D 423 DSC2257 Bo-Bo diesel shunter 1963 NZR Addington Workshops 403 of 1963 Stored Formerly use at Ravensdown Fertilizer, New Plymouth.
D 453 DSC2584 Bo-Bo diesel shunter 1966 NZR Addington Workshops 433 of 1966 Stored Purchased in 2003.
- TR1026 / Price222 0-6-0D diesel shunter 1968 A & G Price Ltd 222 of 1968 In Service Built for Pacific Steel in Otahuhu.
Purchased by Tranz Rail in 1997 and classified as Price 222, before being reclassified TR 1026.
Privately owned.
T 108 TR407 0-4-0D diesel shunter 1957 A & G Price Ltd 177 of 1957 In service

Former resident locomotives

Locomotives formerly based at Waitara include:

  • F 250 0-6-2T steam locomotive, built in 1892. Leased from the Waikato branch of the NZR&LS
  • T 164 0-4-0D diesel shunter, built in 1959. Now at F&DSRS in Feilding. Privately owned.

The WRPS's collection of rolling stock consists of both passenger carriages and freight wagons, and is either owned outright by the society or is leased from the Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand. This includes:

Passenger Vehicles

Class & Number TMS Number Type Year Built by Status Notes
A 1952 A56536 56ft Passenger Car 1939 NZR Addington Workshops In Use
A 1837 AL50182 50ft Car Van 1936 NZR Otahuhu Workshops Under Restoration
A 709 AD1403 60-foot Carriage Stored Privately Owned. Former Postal Van F 709 / Business Car
A ??? AD1432 60-foot Carriage Stored Privately Owned. Former Postal Van F 711/ Business Car

Guards Vans

Class & Number TMS Number Type Year Built by Notes
F 582 F1180 50' Guards Van 1931 NZR Addington Workshops
F 726 F1892 37'6" Guards Van 1964 NZR Otahuhu Workshops Modified for passenger use.
F 745 F2094 37'6" Guards Van 1967 NZR Otahuhu Workshops

Goods Wagons

Class & Number TMS Number Type Sub-type Year Built by Notes
N 1566 NA749 Flat Deck 1977 NZR Addington Workshops Rebuilt as NAK 6118 in 1987. Mobile ticket office built on deck of wagon.
N 1671 NA2396 Flat Deck 1977 NZR Addington Workshops Rebuilt as NAK 6486 in 1987.
N 1907 NA4993 Flat Deck 1977 NZR Addington Workshops Rebuilt as NAK 6078 in 1986. Used as open carriage for passengers.
N 1777 NA3562 Flat Deck 1977 NZR Addington Workshops Rebuilt as NAK 6541 in 1987.
N 1872 NA4618 Flat Deck 1977 NZR Addington Workshops Rebuilt as NAK 6056 in 1987. Pessenger body built on deck.
N NAK6595 Flat Deck
L 17200 LA3264 High-side L-6 1931 NZR Otahuhu Workshops
U 955 UB833 Flat Deck U-5 1938 NZR Otahuhu Workshops Used as open passenger vehicle EA3298.
U 810 UC248 Tank wagon UC-3 1938 NZR Petone Workshops
U 79 EA1012 Horse Box U-4 1931 NZR Otahuhu Workshops Frame only. Used as passenger vehicle.
U 3082 US55 Flat Deck US-1 1968 NZR Hillside Workshops
Y 65 - Ballast Wagon Y-2 1890
Y 600 YB1466 Ballast Wagon YB-4 1941 NZR Otahuhu Workshops
Y 710 YC124 Ballast Wagon Y-1 1959 NZR East Town Workshops
- YH477 Ballast Wagon Y-1 1979 NZR East Town Workshops
Z 282 Z201 Box Wagon Z-14 1941 NZR Otahuhu Workshops
Z 656 ZP10063 Box Wagon 1968 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
- ZP14531 Box Wagon Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

Buildings & Facilitates

Station Buildings

None of the original station buildings remained when the line was purchased. Since the railway was purchased, new stations have been created. This has included relocating two historic station buildings, both former New Zealand Railways stations.

  • Waitara Road's station complex includes the former Tahora & Waitōtara station buildings. The Tahora building is fully restored while the Waitōtara building is under restoration.
  • The shelter at Magnolia Glade is a former New Plymouth City Transport bus shelter.

Magnolia Glade

Magnolia Glade is located just past Waitara Road station and is the site of over 200 new trees planted along the line, including a significant number of Magnolias. Trains are operated as part of the Taranaki Fringe Garden Festival each year while the trees are in bloom.

References

  1. ^ WRPS website - Brixton Station
  2. ^ North Taranaki Midweek, 6 July 1994. Page 3.
  3. ^ Rail crossing right of way stirs up a storm, The Daily News, 6 March 2004. Retrieved from www.stuff.co.nz
  4. ^ As noted in WRPS Tablet Newsletters, http://waitararailway.weebly.com/monthly-reports-along-with-the-tablet-news-letter.html
  5. ^ "Chairman's Report" (PDF). The Tablet. April 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  6. ^ "Facebook Update". WRPS Facebook. Waitara Railway Preservation Society. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  7. ^ New Zealand Rolling Stock Register
  8. ^ NZRSR & Taranaki Flyer Society Incorporated
  9. ^ "Monthly Report November 2013-11-01" (PDF). My trains @ Waitara Railway Preservation Society. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  10. ^ New Zealand Railway Steam Locomotive Classes - F Class 0-6-2T Register
  11. ^ WRPS website - F 250

39°01′08″S 174°13′20″E / 39.0190°S 174.2222°E / -39.0190; 174.2222