After being out of service for over 9 months, and the expenditure of in excess of $40,000 on new electrical equipment, the Vintage Wellington Trams, a familiar attraction at Queen Elizabeth Park for the past 50 years, are “Back in Business.”
An electrical storm in January this year caused irreparable damage to the main electrical switch for the tramway overhead power, resulting in a complete shut down of tram services.
Museum Vice President of Marketing and Operations, Russell Jenkins, comments that to have no trams running in what was one of the regions best summers on record, was a big blow to the Museum which relies on income from tram rides, along with sales from its small kiosk, to fund operations and ongoing maintenance.
It is with thanks to RPS Switchgear Ltd, Electra, our Insurer, coupled with many hours of voluntary effort by members of the Tramway Museum, that a new power supply has been commissioned.
The trams are now running between 11 am and 4 pm every Saturday and Sunday from the museum site at the McKays Crossing entrance to the park all the way down to Whareroa Beach.
From Boxing Day through until Wellington Anniversary Day, the trams will operate daily and the museum displays will be open for the public.
