It's now one year to the day since the Te Huia train first ran in passenger service on the Hamilton to Auckland section, and I thought I'd make a video to celebrate and review this service. All the pictures and footage is my own (except one image of a crimson crane).
The service is hauled by three of KiwiRail's DFB class diesel locomotives, while the coaches are heavily rebuilt ex-British Rail Mk2 stock. In the early 2000s they were initially rebuilt as SA / SD coaches for Auckland commuter service, but have since been made redundant by CAF-built electric trains.
After being stored in Taumarunui for a few years, twelve of those old coaches have been rerefurbished for Te Huia service. The SAs are now called SR or SRC, while the SD cab-cars are now classified as SRV.
Te Huia relaunched on January 24th, 2022, having been out of action since August 2021. The train runs from Hamilton to Auckland ~ two of New Zealand's biggest cities ~ serving six stations in the process:
Hamilton ~ Frankton
Hamilton ~ Rotokauri (The Base)
Huntly
Papakura
Puhinui
Auckland Strand