 This route included the Rimutaka Incline, which caused the journey time to increase by an hour, a move unpopular with passengers.Two Rogers K class locomotives were transferred from the South Island to operate the trains, and in 1899 they were joined by two more South Island locomotives, of the N class, allowing the timetable to be accelerated to 10.5 hours.N class engines were sometimes assisted by M class tank locomotives, and this combination was referred to as the "'en and chicken".