Wellington railway station

I can remeber travelling to Wellington from Taita (which was the end of line until the early 50's). The train consisted of the old red wooden "rattlers" usually 2nd class and guards van at the rear, hauled by a steam engine or later a small red diesel loco. I also remeber Mum taking my brother I into the Cafeteria, she would have a pot of Tea and a sandwich and we would get a milkshake and sandwich.

My grandmother used to work in the cafateria that was in the middle of the station around the 1960-70s.

The electric units in the 1950s and 1960s were used by most working folk, as well as university students, living in the suburbs. Such was the demand for rail transport that most carriages were full to 'standing room only' in the morning and again in the evening. Reading the Dominion or Evening Post was a challenge in such cramped conditions. As a university student I watched and learned how it was done. One could read the entire newspaper, regardless of the number of pages or how it was divided up, without moving ones arms past the invisible centre line of the seat. It was an amazing art of origami, but often silently scoffed at by those who read books or other academic literature.

My main memory of the Wellington Railway Station in the early 1960s was the Tannoy loudspeaker system. The announcer would often present important information for commuters, some items lasting up to half a minute, but the echoing problem prevented almost everyone actually understanding what was said. However, the most important information was relayed by exasperated railways staff who shouted and waved red flags at commuters as we ran for our lives to catch the unit as the doors were closing.