NZR 56-foot Carriage - 1980s: Panoramic Glazing

1980s: Panoramic Glazing

The next major change for the 56 ft carriage fleet occurred in 1988: the first carriage with 1m-high panoramic windows, AS2500, was introduced in the South Island for use on the TranzAlpine Express and later re-numbered ASO27, and was quickly followed by further upgraded carriages, primarily on the TranzAlpine. The 2nd servery car upgraded to this large window configuration was to be numbered AS2517 but was released as ASO 14 – the O for Observation denoted the large panoramic windows, and subsequent cars followed this classification. Further carriages were upgraded over the next five years, and some were fitted with air conditioning, a feature not previously used in New Zealand carriages. Four carriages were modified with lounge seating and a large panoramic window in one end, one car incorporating a servery, but no special classification distinguished these cars from the other AOs or ASOs. Other carriages were given upgraded seating and new paint colours but remained on the older style bogies and without air conditioning, for commuter and charter use. Later, some of these cars included air conditioning but retained the smaller Supavent windows