New Zealand's Trams. Once Were Wonderful.
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- čas přidán 2. 05. 2024
- Trams were everywhere in NZ 100 years ago, but then by the second half last century they weren’t really anywhere. In fact today they don't form a part of a official commuter public transport in any city.
But in spite of that, NZ's tramway history is rich and varied, boasting a fleet that included horse-drawn, cable, electric, funicular, and even battery-operated trams over a century ago. - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Hi Marty, great video. Well done catching all the old tram footage. I missed seeing most the NZ trams, as I traveled there several times during the 1970's. I did manage to ride on the original Kelburn cable car in Wellington and when there again in 1979, I was able to take one of the first rides on the current Kelburn cable car on the official opening day. I have also been on the Farmer's free trolleybus in Auckland the same year. Just of interest, there was also a separate steam tram service at Takapuna in Auckland. Apparently, it was never joined to the rest of the system. Nelson also ran a horse tram service in the early days. Anyway, take care. Rob in Melbourne Australia.
Thanks for the memories. Great to hear you went on the free trolley bus! Free transport feels like it was only a modern concept, but it's been around for years it seems. Thank for the info on the other two. I believe the Nelson tram was called the CITY BUS. A throughly modern name for what was NZ's first tram....
Great video. Well researched and well put together! A few minor corrections.
The Auckland system (And, although I may show my bias, the most superior system) Started officially in November 1902. The opening ceremony took place on the 17th, however operations didn't begin until the 24th. 11 of the original motormen originally came from the Sydney tramways and they came over on a ship called the 'Elingamite' which sank en route. With the company loosing 3 of their own, to allow the survivors time to recover the opening was delayed.
The Wanganui Corp. Tramways had 28 electric trams with six trailers.
The Wellington City Corp. Tramways had 261 electric trams.
The Dunedin City Corp. Electric Tramways had 72 electric trams with six trailers.
Those figures out of 'Always a tram in sight' by Graham Stewart. It is a bible for tramway rolling stock in NZ and if you can pick up a copy, it is well worth it. Very similar to a 'Destination: City' or a 'Destination: Circular Quay'.
Thanks LG3537. Appreciate it. Yes my biggest worry on a video on a whole country video like this - there are so many facts I know some may be wrong. I purchased FROM RUBBER TO RAILS by Graham Steward on line to improve the chances I got the facts right. But even then it didn't have as many details as I needed. So I had created an excel sheet to collate all the information best I could get.. ie length of tramway systems in NZ was quite hard to find (unlike say in Australia). So I was literally adding up line by line for some systems to get a total length.
And while I sort of know Sydney network 'off by heart'.. NZ was new to me.. but all the same I hope that while some facts are not correct this video will help to build awareness of how awesome the Kiwi trams were once upon a time.
@@backtracks.channel As I say still a brilliant video and great to have the story published like this in the digital space. Whilst we have a massive wealth of archives and information within our respective tramway museums alot of it is locked away in the paper form in sectional newsletters etc. Hopefully projects like this can bring more Kiwi tramway info out into the light.
Well done. I can remember catching Auckland trams when I was a toddler.
Great memories. The AKL trams certainly looked great. Love the colour scheme.. sort of a deep red.. and the very large destination rolls on the roof and that they were double rolls.
I believe you missed out the Auckland North Shore tramway which ran between Takapuna and Devonport where it connected to the ferry to the CBD
Thanks. Yes there was both a horse tramway and a steam tramway on the north side of the Harbour. Just to keep the video no longer than about 12 mins I dropped mentioning them (sorry!). I just put Bayswater on the map at the start to acknowledge there were trams up there.
Must grate that you have not yet done a video on the city that did not get rid of their trams... MELBOURNE! The city that has the biggest tram network in the world! ... whereas Sydney chucked out theirs... while Melbourne kept theirs... and what a smart decision that was! That is why Melbourne is the now the biggest and best city in "Oz"tralia!!
Ha, thanks. yes agree strange no Melbourne video on a channel that celebrates trams in Australia. I can only do a video after I have been to the place to do filming.. so just has turned out I hadn't got to Melbourne since starting the channel. But good news - is that I have been to Melbourne now and done a bit of filming... just need time now to make the video (the researching is the fun bit, but does take a bit of time). Hope you like it when I eventually finish it. Cheers m
@@backtracks.channel Good on you... I hope you enjoyed melbourne! Cheers!
Its so sad and stupid the benefits+need for Auckland to build a light rail line through the City and down its busiest bus corridor was identified about the same time as Sydney, early last decade. Sydney just got on with building theirs and pedestrianised its Main street; its not perfect, there is still Work needed. But Auckland kept changing its plan and debating what the Line was actually for or whether street space would be tanken from cars. And eventually mucked around so long they did nothing.
Yes the best thing about the new Sydney light rail going up George Street, probably isn't' the trams themselves, but how it turned a bus and car parking lot into a very pleasant place to be. The fact that all the high end retail and office tenants have moved back to George street is testament to how more attractive the place is these days.
I once spent 45 mins in a bus going from Circular Quay to Central down George Street during Peak because the traffic (I lived at Clovelly at the time and the bus still travels the original Clovelly tram route).
@@backtracks.channel and given that fact, you have to wonder what the reaction is within Department and policitians minds with George Street being so popular. The same level of regeneration IS possible on Broadway-Parramatta Road, Oxford Street, King Street and William Street in one form or another.
Agree. I think the ALTRAC people who own / operate the Sydney light rail have been making submissions to government saying that exact same thing - that there are key roads like the ones above that really need a make over and the light rail can be the catalyst...
And while you were over there, did you have a feed of that famous NZ delicacy..... *Fush & Chups?* LOL😃
Ha ha! And thanks. Yes being honest New Zealand restaurant do fantastic fish and chips.. but my favourite fish is smoked kahawai - really challenging to catch (got some off the coast of Auckland once). thanks for watching :)
as with so much that happened in the 50's and 60's, mistakes were made, so much "old" stuff was thrown away in favour of the "new and modern"
Couldn't agree more! (not to mention all the great architecture that we lost at the same time).
@@backtracks.channel much of the justification at the time was that it was poorly maintained and decrepit, I'm sure that heaps of the modernist and butalist architecture that went up to replace it was very nice looking at the time, but it seems like even more quickly it has become poorly maintained and decrepit. Here in New Zealand as a part of earthquake safety standards much of the brutalist buildings around are being torn down and replaced, though thankfully many actual heritage buildings are for the first time in some instances being repaired, maintained and upgraded to meet new regulatory standards. Wellington Central Train Station here in Wellington was during the craze of the 60's under consideration for being torn down, thankfully they didn't and now it's one of the most gorgeous buildings in the city both inside and out.
Just rubbed out myself 😅
Woops.. oh I get that now.. thanks.... name changed.
@@backtracks.channel oh no! I liked the old name 😂
ha, no my mum would have asked me to change it :)
@@backtracks.channel Regardless of the name, another informative video! Thanks Marty 🤓