Endeavour (train) - Introduction of The Endeavour

Introduction of The Endeavour

The Endeavour was introduced on Sunday, 6 November 1972 as a carriage train to replace a railcar service between Wellington and Napier. The 88-seater railcars used on this route were deteriorating due to age and were notoriously unreliable, and the success of the Southerner inspired the creation of the Endeavour. In its first incarnation, it was hauled by a DA diesel electric locomotive and had a consist of a guard's van, five passenger carriages and a buffet car. The Endeavour's carriages were painted in a distinctive blue livery rather than the red scheme usual at the time, and the locomotive carried a headboard, the only instance of regular headboard use in the country at the time. The new train ran roughly to the railcar timetable, taking five and a half hours between Wellington and Napier. Although some railcar services supplemented the Endeavour in its early years, these all ceased by the end of 1976, with the Endeavour proving more popular with passengers.

The consist was five former second class NZR 56-foot carriages that had been converted to 20-bunk Ambulance cars in World War Two. When peacetime resumed, the five cars were fitted out in the late 1940s and early 1950s with 35 first class seats to a newer design, and one car trialled fluorescent lighting and individual overhead at-seat reading lights, which became a standard feature on the Northerner. These newer seats were retained and reupholstered. Three cars seated 36, while two seated 32 to accommodate a staff compartment. The buffet car was a 56-ft two-lavatory first class car, later designated a North Island Main Trunk first class car, seating 31. This car was completely rebuilt to incorporate a full-length counter with 20 stools alongside. One 56-ft van was added to the train, also thoroughly rebuilt. A second van, similarly fitted, was added later.

A sixth second class later Ambulance car had been similarly fitted with 35 first class seats to the newer 1950s design and, because of the increasing popularity of the Endeavour, was regularly added to this train to help carry extra passengers, especially in holiday times. The car was refitted for permanent service on this train, and had a staff compartment built in. It now seated 32.