The tramway's act of parliament prohibited the use of locomotives within the city limits.
This was no real problem for the company, as they had always intended to work the line with horses and rely on gravity for descending ore wagons.
The horses averaged 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) when pulling empty wagons up the incline to the mines, where they were unhitched and returned to First House on Brook Street.
Once the wagons were full, they descended to Nelson in pairs under the control of a brakeman.

Trials were undertaken to determine safe working procedures for descending wagons.
It was soon discovered that as the line had over 700 corners ranging from 20 to 200 metres (22 to 219 yards) radius, descending speeds in excess of 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) meant an unacceptable risk of derailment.
At the bottom of the incline the wagons usually retained sufficient momentum to continue unaided to the corner of Hardy and Rutherford Streets.
The wagons were then hauled by horses at up to 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) through the city to the port where the ore was later shipped to England from the Provincial Government owned wharf.

In February 1862 the company prohibited the carriage of any persons in the wagons on the line as the entire capacity of the 20 wagons was required for the transport of the ore.
Horses hauled the empty wagons up to the mine in the mornings, and once loaded they departed for the port under gravity at 13:15.
The distance was expected to be covered in 45 minutes to Third House, with a further 1 hour and 30 minutes to the Alton Street depot.
Any trip conducted in less than the allotted time could lead to the dismissal of the brakeman for speeding.
On 23 March 1862 the capacity of the line was increased with the arrival of an additional 25 wagons.

In late 1862 Fitzgibbon had to tell the directors in London that the ore was not available in such abundance as was first thought.
It was no longer profitable to continue to mine the chromite, and after transporting around 1,400 tonnes (1,378 long tons; 1,543 short tons) of the ore mining operations were suspended from early 1863.
Thereafter, the company relied on sales of firewood, timber, flagstones and road gravel from its own land, and revenue from the passenger "city bus" (a horse-dawn tram) to meet their overheads.
This generated only around £1,300 per year, approximately a quarter from the passenger operation.

However, by mid-1863 the chromite market showed signs of improvement, allowing the company to sell 1,400 tonnes (1,378 long tons; 1,543 short tons) of ore and receive forward orders for an additional 2,100 tonnes (2,067 long tons; 2,315 short tons) either stored in England or en route from Nelson.
In order to stabilise the demand for its ore, the company purchased a controlling stake in Connah's Quay Chemical Company, a dye manufacturer due to be established in North Wales.

Confident in the security of the market for chromite, the company resumed mining on Wooded Peak later that year.
With the departure of Hacket, the company sought to hire someone with mining experience to support the Nelson management team, and accordingly appointed an experienced mining engineer by the name of Joseph Cock from Tavistock in Devon as the new manager.

The company had also developed some new sources of revenue, including lime from a kiln built at Wooded Peak, gravel for use on the roads, and the leasing of wagons to local merchants for the transport of inbound goods from the port to Nelson.

Traffic increased on the line to levels not seen for some time when the mining resumed.
During 1863 the mines produced 595 tonnes (586 long tons; 656 short tons) of ore for export, over half of which was exported in November.
Congestion at the port was such that permission was obtained from the Board of Works to install a loop siding on Haven Road at Auckland Point, though it is not known if this work was completed.
Other small safety improvements were also made.
The tramway's act of parliament prohibited the use of locomotives within the city limits. This was no real problem for the company, as they had always intended to work the line with horses and rely on gravity for descending ore wagons. The horses averaged 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) when pulling empty wagons up the incline to the mines, where they were unhitched and returned to First House on Brook Street. Once the wagons were full, they descended to Nelson in pairs under the control of a brakeman.
Trials were undertaken to determine safe working procedures for descending wagons. It was soon discovered that as the line had over 700 corners ranging from 20 to 200 metres (22 to 219 yards) radius, descending speeds in excess of 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) meant an unacceptable risk of derailment. At the bottom of the incline the wagons usually retained sufficient momentum to continue unaided to the corner of Hardy and Rutherford Streets. The wagons were then hauled by horses at up to 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h) through the city to the port where the ore was later shipped to England from the Provincial Government owned wharf.
In February 1862 the company prohibited the carriage of any persons in the wagons on the line as the entire capacity of the 20 wagons was required for the transport of the ore. Horses hauled the empty wagons up to the mine in the mornings, and once loaded they departed for the port under gravity at 13:15. The distance was expected to be covered in 45 minutes to Third House, with a further 1 hour and 30 minutes to the Alton Street depot. Any trip conducted in less than the allotted time could lead to the dismissal of the brakeman for speeding. On 23 March 1862 the capacity of the line was increased with the arrival of an additional 25 wagons.
In late 1862 Fitzgibbon had to tell the directors in London that the ore was not available in such abundance as was first thought. It was no longer profitable to continue to mine the chromite, and after transporting around 1,400 tonnes (1,378 long tons; 1,543 short tons) of the ore mining operations were suspended from early 1863. Thereafter, the company relied on sales of firewood, timber, flagstones and road gravel from its own land, and revenue from the passenger "city bus" (a horse-dawn tram) to meet their overheads. This generated only around £1,300 per year, approximately a quarter from the passenger operation.
However, by mid-1863 the chromite market showed signs of improvement, allowing the company to sell 1,400 tonnes (1,378 long tons; 1,543 short tons) of ore and receive forward orders for an additional 2,100 tonnes (2,067 long tons; 2,315 short tons) either stored in England or en route from Nelson. In order to stabilise the demand for its ore, the company purchased a controlling stake in Connah's Quay Chemical Company, a dye manufacturer due to be established in North Wales.
Confident in the security of the market for chromite, the company resumed mining on Wooded Peak later that year. With the departure of Hacket, the company sought to hire someone with mining experience to support the Nelson management team, and accordingly appointed an experienced mining engineer by the name of Joseph Cock from Tavistock in Devon as the new manager.
The company had also developed some new sources of revenue, including lime from a kiln built at Wooded Peak, gravel for use on the roads, and the leasing of wagons to local merchants for the transport of inbound goods from the port to Nelson.
Traffic increased on the line to levels not seen for some time when the mining resumed. During 1863 the mines produced 595 tonnes (586 long tons; 656 short tons) of ore for export, over half of which was exported in November. Congestion at the port was such that permission was obtained from the Board of Works to install a loop siding on Haven Road at Auckland Point, though it is not known if this work was completed. Other small safety improvements were also made.
Dun Mountain Railway