Listen
It's the inspiration for one of our most famous folk songs, and now Taumarunui is back on the main trunk line.
But the local mayor wants to see people in the central North Island town get a cheaper ticket to the town.
Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton says this month's reinstatement of Taumarunui as a station stop on the main line is just one part of the challenge.
He says while the move is good for local businesses, the train itself is priced for tourists rather than rural Kiwis and "a mix of other people".
He says rural New Zealand is getting a "kick in the guts".
Kirton spoke to Corin Dann.