A double-headed steam train out of Wellington, late 1920s

A pair of Ab class 4-6-2 work hard, although none of the train is visible on the bridge over the Hutt Road, so one of them is probably a helper until the easy gradients are reached at Paekakariki.  This line, now the Johnsonville Branch, was the Main Trunk to Auckland at the time, until the Tawa deviation was built in the 1930s. It was originally built by private enterprise -- the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company.  Reclamation work in the harbour is obvious. Another train is on the Hutt Valley line but too amorphous to distinguish.

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