The G'Day Country Redux Launch
Author offers advice to Minister of Tourism
by our reporter at the launch


On a freezing southerly last Saturday 50 brave souls came from the south, which was probably a respite, and as far north as Auckland for the launch at Paekakariki Railway Station Musuem of the revamped book of a rail journey around New Zealand, 'The G'Day Country Redux'.
Block cake, ham sandwiches and asparagus rolls were washed down with wine and cafe drinks in the original railway tearooms.
The author dressed up in his McGill tartan is seen striding down the museum and presenting an NZR cup and saucer to the museum secretary Christine Johnson. The cup is from NZR's last-ever crate of these Crown Lynn collectables, which was made available at the launch of the original 1985 publication in the Wellington Railway Station.

The crowd was warmed up by New Zealand's top singer/songwriter Wayne Mason of 'Nature' fame. Wayne sang his recent composition 'What Fred Said' in honour of Fred Hamer, who marked the end of 53 years on the railways by driving the train featured on the cover of the new edition, the Parliamentary Special steam train centenary North Island Main Trunk Line trip from Wellington to Auckland last year.

McGill noted that none of the half-dozen politicians who got photo opportunities on that trip whom he invited to the launch were able to attend. He said this was no surprise, given they have maintained the swingeing and totally unncessary charge of $30,000 for passenger train excursions. The result of this he said was that there was a threat this month to close and rip up the rails from Napier to Gisborne, when Mainline Steam says it would do regular trips without this tax on a journey that rivals Tranz Alpine for scenic splendour. McGill advised the Minister of Tourism John Key to check out the numbers of overseas visitors who come here expecting train journeys through our magnificent country, and find there is a partial and truncated Main Trunk Line, missing the best passenger train journey in the country, if not the Southern Hemisphere, namely the old Southerner from Christchurch to Invercargill. You'll have to read my book, he said, to be reminded what that trip was like, the incredible vistas coming in to Dunedin as opposed to the dire concrete motorway canyon.

The revived Overlander trip from Wellington to Auckland was made by the author and his colleague Michael O'Leary as an introduction to the new edition, to prove how pleasant and stress-free train journeys can be as an alternative to traffic-clogged roads. In his speech he suggests the Minister of Tourism might also in his other job note that one of President Obama's first initiatives was to direct $8 billion to rapid rail transit to be built along mortorways, while the French, Italians, Germans and Spanish are spending $200 billion over the next 10 years to treble their rail capacity for high-speed trains. Australia is also expanding rail. Only New Zealand's 'doliticians', he said, are irresponsibly letting a major rail resource and alternative transport system slip away.

He concluded by reading out a letter he received from ex-guard and present Auckland train driver Isaace Broome after sighting the announcement of the launch in Beattie's Book Blog. Mr Broome provides a comprehensive time table for reintroducing passenger trains from Britomart to the tourist and holiday spots of Rotorua, Tauranga, Taupo, Bay of Islands and Napier, Wellington to Gisborne and Christchurch to Dunedin, particularly at the weekends when our Kiwi Rail capacity lies idle. This would utilise our publicly funded rail network and undoubtedly save casualties on our congested roads. People would get back to work refreshed. The old Silver Fern railcars could be brought back at little cost.
Surely this is a no-brainer! Yet the Ministers of Tourism and Transport press on with incredibly expensive cycle ways, whilst ignoring the likes of the Taieri Gorge railway that gets the cyclists to the ways. Hence doliticians.

McGill suggests if you want to know what is so pleasant about rail you could do worse than invest in his book, which in the new edition has more than 100 images of the wonderful sights you never see from a car. You could even lend a hand by sending the book to your local MP, who flies above all this and takes a car from the airport and is plain unaware of our magnificent and comprehensive rail network. Those pollies, he reckons, need a shunt!
Check the book out at your bookstore. If they don't have it, get them to order it, or get it direct from the publisher on his website.