The Gisborne City Vintage Railway (GCVR) Incorporated is a railway preservation group based in Gisborne, New Zealand. Operating on part of the northern section of the mothballed Palmerston North–Gisborne Line, the group was founded in 1985.[1] After signing a lease with KiwiRail, Gisborne City Vintage Railway now operates its steam locomotive WA 165 on public excursion trains from Gisborne south to Muriwai, a distance of about 17 kilometres (11 mi). GCVR runs charter and public excursions, mainly from October to June.
| Gisborne City Vintage Railway | |
|---|---|
 Locomotive WA 165 near State Highway 2 | |
| Locale |  Gisborne, New Zealand |
| Commercial operations | |
| Name | Palmerston North–Gisborne Line |
| Original gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
| Preserved operations | |
| Stations | Gisborne |
| Preserved gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
| Commercial history | |
| Opened | 1942 |
| Closed | 2012 |
From 1986, the group began restoration of WA 165, the first locomotive built at NZR's Hillside Workshops in 1897. The locomotive was returned to steam in 2000.[1] The group then began running excursions from Gisborne.
Lease
editIn 2012 KiwiRail announced that it was mothballing the Napier-Gisborne section of the Palmerston North-Gisborne Line, due to the cost of repairing storm damage to the line. This put the future of Gisborne City Vintage Railway in question. In 2013 the group's president, Geoff Joyce, told the Gisborne District Council that the group was preparing a business case to lease the line from KiwiRail.[2] The plan included leasing 34 km of track from Gisborne to Beach Loop.[2] In September 2015, Gisborne City Vintage Railway signed a License to Occupy agreement with KiwiRail, which enables them to lease the line from Gisborne to Beach Loop. In addition to paying the lease, they also have to maintain that section of the line including all of the bridges.[3]
Repairs and maintenance
editAs at 1 January 2021, damage to the track at Beach Loop was preventing Gisborne City Vintage Railway from operating south of Muriwai. In December 2022, the Eastland Group announced that the Tūranganui River railway bridge, used by the train to collect cruise ship passengers from the port was no longer considered safe. As an interim measure, a bus was arranged to take cruise ship passengers from the port to connect with the train.[4] Later that month, the Gisborne City Vintage Railway reported that it aimed to raise $800,000 to undertake repairs and maintenance on the line to Muriwai.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Gisborne City Vintage Railway - History". Archived from the original on 19 November 2021. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ a b Marino Harker-Smith (15 May 2013). "Lifeline for rail line". Gisborne Herald. Archived from the original on 9 April 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2013.
- ^ "FRONZ Journal" (PDF). Federation of Rail Organisations of New Zealand. September 2015. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 September 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Mystery surrounds how long Gisborne rail bridge was unsafe". RNZ. 5 December 2022. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ "Group raising $800k to maintain KiwiRail line for historic train". RNZ. 20 December 2022. Archived from the original on 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
External links
edit
Media related to Gisborne City Vintage Railway at Wikimedia Commons
- Gisborne City Vintage Railway official web site.
- From ruins to steam YouTube video clip