and again in 1990, the Blue Fern train ran instead of railcars after Silver Fern railcar RM18 was involved in an accident. Disposal and preservation In 2019, the two remaining serviceable Silver Ferns, RM24 and RM30, were withdrawn from service. RM18 was transferred to Christchurch so that the fleet were in the same place. KiwiRail planned major overhauls on the railcars, but the Covid-19 pandemic brought those plans to an end. KiwiRail then sold the railcars to the Pahiatua Railcar Society in September 2020 as there was no future in cruise ship traffic for a number of years. KiwiRail said that if the society did not buy the railcars they would be scrapped, as KiwiRail believed the Pahiatua Railcar Society were the only group capable of looking after them. All three Railcars were transferred to Pahiatua in late 2020, and RM30 has been overhauled ready for the 50th Anniversary of the Railcars entering service in late 2022. See also Locomotives of New Zealand References Footnotes Citations Bibliography External links RM class (Silver Fern) Silver Fern Rail transport in New Zealand