The Dunedin Heritage Light Rail Trust presented chairman Neville Jemmett with life membership at its meeting on Tuesday.
"That was a big surprise," he said.
Trust members noted his significant contribution towards the trust’s efforts to preserve carriages and work towards the potential reinstatement of the Mornington cable car line.
At the same meeting, retiring trust treasurer Trevor Goudie was also surprised to be awarded an honorary life membership.
"It proved to be more of a surprise than I thought," he said.
The impetus for the trust began in 2007 when painter and author Don McAra wrote Hold Very Tight Please! The Cable Cars of New Zealand, his illustrated history of the country’s cable cars.
Mr McAra said a few months after the book was launched, a meeting was held at Toitū Otago Settlers Museum which attracted about 200 enthusiastic fans of the cable cars.
The idea to reinstate a cable car line between the Exchange and Mornington was born.
In 2013 the trust was established, and Mr Jemmett secured space from the Dunedin City Council at Mornington Park for an interim cable car shed.
In September 2019 hundreds attended the official opening of the shed when two restored cable cars rolled out to the sound of bagpipes.
The trust was working on a proposed expanded museum and cable car house, designed by trust member and architect Michael Wyatt.
This would replace the interim shed, and it was anticipated it would accommodate up to six cable cars and have a second story that could house a cafe and museum.
Mr Jemmett said because this would be a bigger structure it would require approaching the Dunedin City Council about extending the available area at Mornington Park.
The proposed building would also have to go through a consent process.
The ultimate aim was to re-establish a cable car line from the Exchange to Mornington, he said.
