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A double articulated Fiat, at Aickens.1960s.
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DescriptionAfter the withdrawal of KB steam steeds from regular service in 1968 all passenger traffic for the next ten years was carried out by railcars.
After the excitement of steam, railcars seemed a mundane affair, and few rail fans paid much attention to them,until 1976 that they too would be withdrawn,after wearing out and would not be replaced.
This fine pre 1970 photo of a double articulated Fiat,is unrepeatable.None of this class were preserved.The setting is Aickens, with a 423 in the backgroundPhotographerG.B.ChurchmanDate of Photo1960`s.Map[1] ContributorJames Newby
After the excitement of steam, railcars seemed a mundane affair, and few rail fans paid much attention to them,until 1976 that they too would be withdrawn,after wearing out and would not be replaced.
This fine pre 1970 photo of a double articulated Fiat,is unrepeatable.None of this class were preserved.The setting is Aickens, with a 423 in the backgroundPhotographerG.B.ChurchmanDate of Photo1960`s.Map[1] ContributorJames Newby
Shown in this image
Location (city or town)AickensOrganisation (eg business)NZ RailwaysEventA double articulated Fiat
Category Information
Category TagRailways
From Facebook
CommentsRoger O'Regan
I loved and used the railcars frequently to head from ChCh to Stillwater. I could wait there till the unit arrived to take me to The Landing. If I was real lucky ( and often was) I could get ride with The Press runner Charlie something, and make home around 7.00 am. I did prefer the old Vulcans over the Fiats, but nothing has come close to them in efficiency for passengers. 70 to 75 mph coming in from Springfield in the sixties.
Caroline Dunlop
Travelled a lot on the railcars from Westport to Christchurch to boarding school late 1950s to early 60s.
Ken Tomlinson
66 to 68 rode these going to boarding school in Canterbury. They often hooked up the doubles school holiday time.
Ed Dando
Was on that train
Gary Scott
2 of these have survived. 1 in the grass grub format and the other in its original format.
Both at Paihiatua Railcar society. 133 and 121.
121 under restoration. Huge job. Check out railcars.co.nz
Kevin Oregan
Beaut photo. Great service. Kevin
Les Holmes Germanicus
It amused me when they stripped out the motors and used them like carriages, towed by a diesel loco, getting even more mileage out of these Fiat railcars.
Margaret Standen
Used to travel from Stillwater to Christchurch to boarding regular and recall waiting for trains to pass. If I was Lucky my Uncle John would be driving the railcar and I got to sit up the front with him
David Hall
So loved the Refreshment Room's at Stillwater, Otira and Springfield.
Richard Howe
I clipped tickets on these in the North Island from Gisborne to Wellington, and from Christchurch to the Coast, and South. They were not as good to ride in as the older Vulcan railcars in the South, and the Standard railcars in the north. Noisy, and vibrating machines. They did the job though, and should have been replaced by another type at the end. The Standard.
May be an image of train and railroad
Lesley Parker Butland
Loved the trips on the railcar
Richard Howe
The Vulcan.
May be an image of train and railroad
Fiona Bigham
What a shame to lose such history.
Neville Jackson
Life moves on , but the broom and gorse carry on. Great pic of the crossing.
Judith Schroder
Travelled on this many times in the 60s from Kaimata to Christchurch.
Howard Topp
A modern version of a rail car running from Westport to Hokitika would be viable I think
Cheryl Townsend
I had many a trip on the rail car
Kevin Bell
It was a great way to travel and it was affordable not like the exorbitant fares on the Tranzalpine.
William Glendenning
I rode these from Greymouth to ChCh & back in very early 60s. I think most were Vulcans by that time. Did ride them occasionally in 1956, from ChCh to Westport, either coming or going to Invercargill (by Steam) Better than the steam trains.
Mike Roesler
Peice of crap Italian engineering
Bill Liddell
Travelled on them to Boarding School and Varsity for 8 years from Stillwater
Christina Fairhurst
Sandra.....remember those train journeys to Greymouth?
Shona Ratana
Stillwater or Greymouth to Christchurch. Loved these railcars. Happy memories here.
Pauline Thompson
I remember those days! Arrive at destination feeling like i needed a good face wash....
· Reply ·
· 17h
Marilyn Fraser
I remember these so well too. Fantastic.
· Reply ·
· 15h
Gregory Ross
We'd meet in the Christchurch Central Rail Station on Moorhouse Ave at 5:30 on Friday evenings in the 1960s and find our teacher and other boys in our parties amidst the milling crowd of trampers and travellers, and all board the railcar with other high schools' parties and tramping club parties, and our packs would be stowed away by the guard in just the correct order so that those who were getting off first, at Mt White Bridge to tramp the Hawdon and Andrews, would not cause the guard to have to dig into the huge pile of packs, and so on, all packs stacked in order. Next came the parties hopping off at Klondike Corner to tramp the Waimak next morning;. Then came the Mingha/Edwards trampers who would hop off near Greeny's Shelter and camp there the night before tramping up those valleys next day. Finally there would be those who would get off at Kelly Creek and maybe some at Aitkens to tramp the Taramakau. On Sunday evening, we'd wait on the tracks and flag down the railcar to be taken back to CHCH after the weekend's tramp. All extremely exciting for young high school lads, and those tough weekend tramps were the making of some of us. Sometimes we teens would load our bikes onto the railcar and go all the way from CHCH to Awatuna, just north of Hokitika, and spend a holiday at my father's batch there, there catch the railcar at Awatuna, with our bikes, back to CHCH. Happy 2022 to all.
Barry Mcgreevy
Used to travel on railcars thru buller gorge early 1960s Thier was a stop by the swing bridge across buller river Where we caught it to westport
Murry Cave
I liked how they would stop to drop you off at random bridges etc for a tramp and then pick you up again at the end. Then you had the green ones inevitably nicknamed Grassgrubs
Phil Norton
When at Christchurch Teachers College (*primary) 1975-79 we students got off and on that railcar and did various trips up the Taramakua River ..Lake Karapatika/..to the Otahake river.. .Mingha-Deception( only did a part of this) ..JHarpers Pass. / Lake Sumner..and of course Jacksons Pub and Otira..ah those were the days..no huts ..sandflies rain ..
Lyn Gosling
I loved the railcars
Bruce Keddie
Interesting the impression these had on us. The memories we have of them. They were only in service about 20 years. That's like something be retired now that was introduced in the year 2000 and yet they seem to be a big part of a generations life.
I loved and used the railcars frequently to head from ChCh to Stillwater. I could wait there till the unit arrived to take me to The Landing. If I was real lucky ( and often was) I could get ride with The Press runner Charlie something, and make home around 7.00 am. I did prefer the old Vulcans over the Fiats, but nothing has come close to them in efficiency for passengers. 70 to 75 mph coming in from Springfield in the sixties.
Caroline Dunlop
Travelled a lot on the railcars from Westport to Christchurch to boarding school late 1950s to early 60s.
Ken Tomlinson
66 to 68 rode these going to boarding school in Canterbury. They often hooked up the doubles school holiday time.
Ed Dando
Was on that train
Gary Scott
2 of these have survived. 1 in the grass grub format and the other in its original format.
Both at Paihiatua Railcar society. 133 and 121.
121 under restoration. Huge job. Check out railcars.co.nz
Kevin Oregan
Beaut photo. Great service. Kevin
Les Holmes Germanicus
It amused me when they stripped out the motors and used them like carriages, towed by a diesel loco, getting even more mileage out of these Fiat railcars.
Margaret Standen
Used to travel from Stillwater to Christchurch to boarding regular and recall waiting for trains to pass. If I was Lucky my Uncle John would be driving the railcar and I got to sit up the front with him
David Hall
So loved the Refreshment Room's at Stillwater, Otira and Springfield.
Richard Howe
I clipped tickets on these in the North Island from Gisborne to Wellington, and from Christchurch to the Coast, and South. They were not as good to ride in as the older Vulcan railcars in the South, and the Standard railcars in the north. Noisy, and vibrating machines. They did the job though, and should have been replaced by another type at the end. The Standard.
May be an image of train and railroad
Lesley Parker Butland
Loved the trips on the railcar
Richard Howe
The Vulcan.
May be an image of train and railroad
Fiona Bigham
What a shame to lose such history.
Neville Jackson
Life moves on , but the broom and gorse carry on. Great pic of the crossing.
Judith Schroder
Travelled on this many times in the 60s from Kaimata to Christchurch.
Howard Topp
A modern version of a rail car running from Westport to Hokitika would be viable I think
Cheryl Townsend
I had many a trip on the rail car
Kevin Bell
It was a great way to travel and it was affordable not like the exorbitant fares on the Tranzalpine.
William Glendenning
I rode these from Greymouth to ChCh & back in very early 60s. I think most were Vulcans by that time. Did ride them occasionally in 1956, from ChCh to Westport, either coming or going to Invercargill (by Steam) Better than the steam trains.
Mike Roesler
Peice of crap Italian engineering
Bill Liddell
Travelled on them to Boarding School and Varsity for 8 years from Stillwater
Christina Fairhurst
Sandra.....remember those train journeys to Greymouth?
Shona Ratana
Stillwater or Greymouth to Christchurch. Loved these railcars. Happy memories here.
Pauline Thompson
I remember those days! Arrive at destination feeling like i needed a good face wash....
· Reply ·
· 17h
Marilyn Fraser
I remember these so well too. Fantastic.
· Reply ·
· 15h
Gregory Ross
We'd meet in the Christchurch Central Rail Station on Moorhouse Ave at 5:30 on Friday evenings in the 1960s and find our teacher and other boys in our parties amidst the milling crowd of trampers and travellers, and all board the railcar with other high schools' parties and tramping club parties, and our packs would be stowed away by the guard in just the correct order so that those who were getting off first, at Mt White Bridge to tramp the Hawdon and Andrews, would not cause the guard to have to dig into the huge pile of packs, and so on, all packs stacked in order. Next came the parties hopping off at Klondike Corner to tramp the Waimak next morning;. Then came the Mingha/Edwards trampers who would hop off near Greeny's Shelter and camp there the night before tramping up those valleys next day. Finally there would be those who would get off at Kelly Creek and maybe some at Aitkens to tramp the Taramakau. On Sunday evening, we'd wait on the tracks and flag down the railcar to be taken back to CHCH after the weekend's tramp. All extremely exciting for young high school lads, and those tough weekend tramps were the making of some of us. Sometimes we teens would load our bikes onto the railcar and go all the way from CHCH to Awatuna, just north of Hokitika, and spend a holiday at my father's batch there, there catch the railcar at Awatuna, with our bikes, back to CHCH. Happy 2022 to all.
Barry Mcgreevy
Used to travel on railcars thru buller gorge early 1960s Thier was a stop by the swing bridge across buller river Where we caught it to westport
Murry Cave
I liked how they would stop to drop you off at random bridges etc for a tramp and then pick you up again at the end. Then you had the green ones inevitably nicknamed Grassgrubs
Phil Norton
When at Christchurch Teachers College (*primary) 1975-79 we students got off and on that railcar and did various trips up the Taramakua River ..Lake Karapatika/..to the Otahake river.. .Mingha-Deception( only did a part of this) ..JHarpers Pass. / Lake Sumner..and of course Jacksons Pub and Otira..ah those were the days..no huts ..sandflies rain ..
Lyn Gosling
I loved the railcars
Bruce Keddie
Interesting the impression these had on us. The memories we have of them. They were only in service about 20 years. That's like something be retired now that was introduced in the year 2000 and yet they seem to be a big part of a generations life.
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West Coast New Zealand History (3rd Jan 2022). A double articulated Fiat, at Aickens.1960s.. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 4th Apr 2026 10:13, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/19936