Museum of Transport and Technology

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Exhibition hall for aircraft on the grounds of MOTAT 2

The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) is a technology and transport museum in Auckland , New Zealand .

Geographical location

The museum is located in the Western Springs neighborhood and has two locations connected by a tram line; this is used in the museum's own traffic with historical vehicles. The Auckland Zoo is also nearby .

history

Flying boats in the outdoor area
Passenger cabin in the Short Solent flying boat
Historic tram on the route between the two MOTAT locations

The MOTAT was founded in 1960 by a number of interest groups that had come together in 1957 to collect and receive historic tram vehicles and railroad locomotives. The museum opened in 1964.

The museum owns land vehicles and airplanes , which are still looked after to a large extent by volunteers . The land vehicles collected include railway vehicles - including 7 steam locomotives -, trams, tractors , carriages , approx. 100 motor vehicles , motorcycles , trucks , police and fire engines , electrical devices and exhibits for space travel . The New Zealand Police Department's historic vehicle collection was housed in the museum until 2011 .

organization

The work of the museum is based on the Museum of Transport and Technology Act of 2000. Among other things, this ensured the financing of the full-time and voluntary employees.

Locations

MOTAT 1 - Great North Road

MOTAT 1 was built on the site of the steam pumps that created the pressure for Auckland's water supply before 1928. The pump house and its furnishings from 1877 have been preserved as an exhibition object in the museum. It was renovated in 2002 and reinforced against earthquakes . The steam engine was able to be put into operation again in 2007 for the first time in 79 years. There are other historical operational steam engines in the collection. The large pump in the Pump House is currently being restored.

On vehicles are exhibited among other things

There are 9 individual buildings at this location. These include the Walsh Memorial Library, a pump house, auto shows, telecommunications exhibits, the Tram Collection, and the Innovation Hub.

MOTAT 2 - Motions Road / Meola Road

The second location of MOTAT mainly houses the aircraft collection. In addition, there is a several hundred meter long railway line on the site, which is used by historic trains hauled by steam locomotives. Historical buildings from the colonial era have been erected on the open-air site and combined to form a village street.

For the aircraft collection, the Sir Keith Park Memorial Aviation Collection , a new exhibition hall was opened on September 9, 2011 for NZ $ 16.6 million . It is also a memorial to the New Zealand soldiers who fell in the air war in World War II . Historical military vehicles are also housed on the site. Among other things, aircraft from the New Zealand manufacturer De Havalland are shown here. Partially outside the hall, there are flying boats from Pan American World Airways , Imperial Airways and Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL) that are too big for the hall. Also important are the exhibits on Richard Pearse's flying machines , who claimed to have flown before the Wright brothers , on Charles Kingsford Smith and Jean Batten , early aviation pioneers , and their aircraft.

On the railway line operating facilities and vehicles of the former New Zealand Government Railways are shown.

tram

MOTAT tram connection
   
MOTAT 2
   
zoo
   
Western Springs Park
   
MOTAT 1 / Great North Road Site
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MOTAT 1
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The two exhibition areas of the MOTAT are connected by a tram line, on which historical vehicles from the collection run during the opening hours of the museum in order to transport visitors between the locations. The line was built in several construction phases: First, in 1967, 1 track was laid on the grounds of MOTAT. In 1980 the tracks were laid outside the exhibition grounds along the Great North Road and in 1981 extended to the “Zoo” stop. In 2006 the extension to the MOTAT 2 exhibition area followed, which went into operation in 2007. The line is laid with three- rail track , so that railways with gauge 1,220 mm and standard gauge (4 ft and 4 ft 8 1⁄2 inches) can run here. The trams run every 15 minutes during opening hours.

The tram collection includes 20 vehicles, electric trams, steam trams, and cable cars, many of which are ready to use. The vehicles come from the former tram operators in Auckland , Wellington , Wanganui , Dunedin and Melbourne and Sydney in Australia .

See also

Web links

Commons : Museum of Transport and Technology  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files
  • Homepage . Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT),accessed February 7, 2016.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Museum of Transport and Technology Act 2000
  2. Tramway . Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) , archived from the original on February 7, 2016 ; accessed on May 3, 2019 (English, original website no longer available).

Coordinates: 36 ° 52 ′ 4.5 ″  S , 174 ° 43 ′ 39.3 ″  E