1954: Christchurch’s Last Tram

September 11, 2023

By AHNZ

Today in history, 11 September, 1954, Christchurch ran its last tram (that is, until a reboot of a  heritage tram line in 1995.) These electric trams had served and transformed Christchurch since 1905 so were given a big farewell. The last tram was driven by the Mayor Robert Macfarlane and completed its last run at  Cathedral Square.

Public transport shaped most of the C20th, determining how far from our place of work we could live and therefore the size of our towns and cities.

Auckland had a similar story with its first tram on 17 November, 1902. On that occasion Logan Campbell drove the tram and said “Success to the Tramways Company, may its cars never cease to run in the city of Auckland.” On 29 December, 1956, the last car ceased to run in the city of Auckland in a journey trip down Queen Street.

Electric trams in these cities were also tied to the pioneering of electricity in New Zealand.

“We have lost much with the rise of the private car…the company picnic lost its value when a day at the beach became something most workers could have any weekend at a whim. Many forms of entertainment – dances, race days, sports fixtures, shows- lost their cachet long before television took hold, simply because with access to a car you could get there any time you chose without extensive planning and coordinating with others. When we began using our cars to commute to work, the circle of people in our neighborhood to whom we chatted while hanging from the straps on the tram or nodded at when boarding the bus contracted. We have acquired a greater expectation of privacy since we stopped sharing our space on the way to and from work with other commuters.” – On The Buses, John McCrystal (2007)

“The last route to close was Papanui–Cashmere for which the last timetabled services ran on Friday 10 September 1954. This was followed the next day by a ceremonial running of the last trams, a task performed by two Hills cars. After their journey to Papanui, then Cashmere, they returned to Cathedral Square where a huge crowd had gathered to witness the event. Speeches were made and a ribbon was cut to symbolically inaugurate the replacement bus service.” – Wiki

“Nobody but me seems to give a damn about the tram. They’re all making a fuss about a bus.” – Denis Glover, The Last Tram to Sumner, RNZ (1952,) NZ Sound and Vision

Evening newspapers lost their captive readership, we stopped buying hats, long raincoats and, for the most part, umbrellas. The privacy of the young person created the institution of the teenager. Our shoe quality hit the floor. The quality and cleanness and the company on our trains and buses went from 5 to 1 star. Schools and shops that were still culturally relevant become logistically unnecessary and so were done away with.

To see what trams are like the place to go is Melbourne, Australia. Their network is not as old as ours, starting in 1906, but never closed down. It’s the largest network in the world and last I heard is still growing and very user-friendly. You must learn quickly to develop the reflexes of grabbing something to steady you because the thing can take off at any time. In that way it’s a bit like perpendicular tree climbing because you must always have in your mind what bit of superstructure your hand might dart out and grab at a given moment if things shift and you become unbalanced. Otherwise at any given moment you’re about to go one way while the tram goes another.

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image ref. Christchurch city tour tram. AHNZ Archives (2004)

image ref. Big Red Bus takes over; Christchurch Transport Board 495 in Cathedral Square on 26/02/1986, Flickr; Aga, Pinterest

Ref. Last tram to Papanui 1954, Remembering Christchurch (2021)

Ref. The last tram. September 11 1954. Christchurch. Remembering Christchurch (2021)

Ref. “This was presented to my Grandfather who drove the last tram in Christchurch on September 11th 1954. He was the Mayor at the time. It is the bell from that tram. Remembering Christchurch (2021)

Ref. Christchurch’s last tram from Cashmere to Papanui, Canterbury Stories

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