Silver Star (NZR Train) - Replacement

Replacement

The Railways Department attempted to replace the Northerner and Silver Star with a refurbished Silver Star which would be a 50% seating and 50% sleeper train, redeploy eight 30-seat cars from the Northerner rolling stock on the Wellington - Napier service, and relocate the three 32-seat and three 36-seat Endeavour cars to the Christchurch - Picton route, but these plans came to nothing after the Silver Star stock was withdrawn from service and blue asbestos insulation was found inside the coaches. The relevant union refused to work with the dangerous material, and the carriages lay parked in sidings for over ten years while their future was debated. Options included continuing with the refurbishment and using the trains on a double daily service (both overnight and daylight) to improve utilisation and enabling the train's externally similarly-styled daytime equivalent, Silver Fern railcars, to be redeployed on other routes. However, the government baulked at the cost (which was estimated at being over $20 million to refurbish the train) given a large budget deficit and public debt, so decided against funding the refurbishment plan.

In December 1987, the Wellington-based Silver Star cars were hauled to Auckland by DX5477, where private tourist firm Pacific Trailways intended to convert all 27 passenger cars into a luxury tourist train that would travel around both North and South Islands for NZ $1000. Nothing eventuated and all the cars languished in Auckland for two more years.

In 1990, the 31 cars were purchased by the British luxury travel company, Orient Express Trains & Cruises (of Orient-Express Hotels) and taken to A & G Price, of Thames, for regauging from New Zealand's 1067 mm gauge to 1000 mm gauge for Thai and Malaysian railway lines. 24 cars (19 sleepers, three buffet cars and two power vans) went to Singapore where an extensive internal rebuild and fit-out as well as exterior painting and badging on was undertaken by the new owners at their (then) newly-constructed maintenance depot on KTMB land in Singapore's Keppel Road rail yards. A 25th car also went to Singapore, but is stored unrefurbished. Since then the refurbished consist has, along with non-Silver Star stock, operated a regular 5-star luxury cruise-train service between Singapore and Bangkok as the Eastern & Oriental Express.

Six cars remain at A & G Price - two double sleepers, two single sleepers and two power vans. All are owned by Orient-Express Trains & Cruises.