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Article: All aboard for the end of a travelling era
- Article from:
- Sunday Star-Times
- Article date:
- October 15, 2000
- Author:
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Copyright informationCopyright 2000 Sunday Star-Times. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Tranz Rail is selling its long-distance passenger trains. Who
travels on them? Kim Purdy reports.
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AS THE Overlander passenger train sits at Te Kuiti station, one
of its generators broken down, Bill Lockhart makes a succinct case
for the benefits of rail travel.
"This is part of the fun," the holidaying Australian says during
the unscheduled, 50-minute stop. "If this had been a plane, we'd be
shitting ourselves!"
Aside from that, what are the benefits of travelling 11 hours
from Auckland to Wellington? A plane trip takes an hour and if you
book early enough, isn't much more expensive. Two one-way adult
tickets for the Overlander journey last Thursday cost $276.
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