[5] Express passenger trains on the South Island Main Trunk were some of the last services to be hauled by steam locomotives in New Zealand.

The introduction of the DJ class in 1968 sealed the fate of steam, and in May 1969 plans were announced to introduce a premier diesel-hauled express to replace the South Island Limited between Christchurch, Dunedin, and Invercargill.

Named the Southerner, it would be hauled by members of the then new DJ class, and unlike the steam-hauled expresses, it would not carry mail.

[1] As a result, all passengers enjoyed wide reclining seats arranged two-and-one; significantly greater comfort than other rail or bus options provided at the time.

[9] Despite the introduction of the Southerner, steam-hauled expresses continued to operate on Friday and Sunday evenings for almost 11 months; the last running on 26 October 1971.

[10] The original Southerner stock consisted of ten (later twelve) single-toilet South Island Main Trunk Railway first-class carriages, two (later three) full buffet carriages, three vans and, in the 1980s, three wooden 50-ft bogie box wagons for parcels, formed into two trains.

[13] The buffet carriages were fitted with new Japanese bogies of Kinki-Sharyo manufacture to ensure a smooth ride.

These two carriages, still retaining their small windows, were permanently allocated to the Southerner when the TranzAlpine was made an all-panorama train.

[14] At the same time, the InterCity refurbishment programme started, a private tourist firm leased a Southerner carriage and marketed it as The Connoisseur car.

In September 1995, five of the first batch of 11 non-air-conditioned panorama carriages were thoroughly overhauled, air-conditioning and a new-style seat (as in the third three-car Northerner and Overlander set) were installed.

Tranz Scenic introduced extra Christchurch-Dunedin, Invercargill-Christchurch, Christchurch-Invercargill and Dunedin-Christchurch services on Fridays, numbered #903 to #906.

On Wednesday, 25 August 1993, the southbound Southerner, consisting of a DF class locomotive, passenger carriage with luggage space at one end, servery car, day carriage and the second of three TranzAlpine and Coastal Pacific power-baggage vans, was hit at Rolleston by a concrete mixing truck.

[15] On Thursday, 14 November 1996, one of the two Southerner trains was involved in a level-crossing crash at Hilderthorpe, North Otago, killing four people.

[18] The train was involved in another crash in July 2000, colliding with a ute at Edendale, 53 kilometres (33 mi) north of Invercargill.

On Monday, 8 January 2001, the southbound Southerner was again involved in a level crossing crash, this time with a cattle truck.

[2] Typically, two DJ class diesel locomotives hauled the train, and when a third was added to increase power on the rugged, difficult line between Oamaru and Dunedin, another 19 minutes were cut from the schedule.

The service ran at a loss and had been supported by government subsidies until these were abolished for all long-distance passenger trains in 1989.

[2] Public outcry failed to save the train, and the last services ran on Sunday, 10 February 2002.

With the rising demand for travel, especially to and from Invercargill, there have been proposals for the reinstatement of the Southerner on an Invercargill-Dunedin-Invercargill daily rotation.

With Otago University and Southern Institute of Technology encouraging studies between the two campuses, students would benefit if enough interest was generated.

An alternative rolling stock option would be to use one of the three Silver Fern railcars owned by KiwiRail once the Coastal Pacific service resumes.

[24] The News story was around a advocacy group called "The Future is Rail" have talked to several District Councils and Regional Councils in Otago and Canterbury through their Long Term Planning Process outlined under the Local Government Act 2002 to fund a $176,000 NZD Feasibility Study.

Great Journeys New Zealand will bring back the service for four days (only running from Christchurch to Dunedin) in May 2025.