Northland Express

The Northland Express ( also Opua Express ) was an express train which was operated 1925-1956 by the New Zealand Railways Department on the route from Auckland via Whangarei to Opua in the Bay of Islands.

Operation

On November 29, 1925, the North Auckland Line which connects Auckland Whangarei Northland and other parts of the region, completed. Soon afterwards perverted and passenger trains, but could only drive slowly because of the curved road and the height differences.

The Northland Express inverted three times a week in each direction. Mixed trains on the Okaihau and Dargaville Branch offered connection to the express train. In the 1950s, the train took 5 hours and 20 minutes between Auckland and Whangarei and was pulled by steam locomotives such as the J- class.

On the same route reversed to 1956 between Auckland and Opua a nocturnal Mischzug, who was nicknamed " Morepork " after a local owl species.

Replacement

In the 1950s, the Railways Department, the express trains remaining in the province decided to replace it with multiple units. 35 railcars RM class, each with 88 seats were procured in 1955 and in November 1956 the Northland Express was replaced by this. The route was also changed, the trains had stopped running from now Otiria northeast across the Opua Branch, but northwest to Okaihau. Opua was connected by mixed trains from Whangarei out, but had no connection to the trains on the main line. The Mischzug of Dargaville had until 1967 following the trainsets, then here the passenger traffic was all set.

The trainsets shortened the travel time between Auckland and Whangarei to 4 hours and 10 minutes. However, mechanical noise immunity and competition from road traffic after the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge in 1959 bestowed this compound is not a long life. She was hired in July 1967, passenger traffic was carried on the North Auckland Line and the Okaihau and Opuan - branch lines also with mixed trains. The compound of Okaihau was adjusted 1974, the two other two years later.

• Rail ( New Zealand)