NORTHERN RAILWAYS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLII, Issue 216, 11 September 1911, Page 5

NORTHERN RAILWAYS.

DEMANDS OP THE PROVINCE. SATISFACTORY YEAR'S PROGRESS. PROTEST AGAINST GISBORNEN A PIER CONNECTION. AUCKLAND LEAGUE'S ANNUAL REPORT. A meeting of the Council of the Auckland Railways League was held this afternoon to consider the report, as prepared by the chairman, for the year just ended. In the course of the annual report, the chairman (Mr. G. L. Peacocke) states that at the last annual meeting of the Leaugie, held on August 18, 1910, a resolution was passed asking the Government to place on the Estimates votes for railway construction in ,th-d Auckland Provincial district amounting in all to £350,000, apportioned as follows: For the North Auckland Main Trunk line and the. Whangarei-Kaikohe extension, £150,000; East Coast, £100,000; Stratford-Ongaruc, £IOO,OOO. When the Public Works statement was brought down on November 16, the aggregate sum set down against these lines was just the amount asked 'for. NORTHERN MAIN TRUNK. For this line the vote last year was £IOO,OOO, as against £BO,OOO the previous year, of which amount £59,299 was expended. Good progress had been made with the exteVdon of this lino during the last 12 months. The latest section open to traffic was that to Te Hana station, 72h miles from Auckland. Beyond this point, most of the work had been completed as far as Kaiwaka. Rails and sleepers had now been laid almost up. to Ro3S Hill tunnel, which was expected to be finished about the end of September, by which time the rails would be laid into Ivaiwaka Beyond Kaiwaka the work was 'being pushed on to Young's Point, and for some distance along the northern bank of the Otamatea. The contract for the 01 amatea bridge was in hand. The lino should be open to traffic as far as Kaiwaka by the end of next summer. During thp recess a Royal Commission inquired into the question of route North of McCarroll's Gap. The League's chairman (Mr. Peacocke), in giving evidence before, the Commission, strongly opposed the adoption of any course that would delay the pushing on of the main trunk line to connect as soon as possible with Kaikohe, and ultimately with Mangonui, and protested against a linking up with the WhangaTei-Kawakawa line as a satisfactory substitute for the main line to open up the centre of the North Auckland peninsula. The Commission had since reported against the construction of the. suggested branch line as a substitute for the long promised main line, " u ich, on their recommendation, will'go west of the Tangihua Range. It was desirable that the extension of the main line northwards should be authorised 'by Parliament from McCarroll's Gap to Maungakahia, and the general route decided, as soon as possible. Doubtless a branch line to Whangarei would be constructed at some future time. KAWAKAWArGRAHAMTOWN. For this line a vote of £05,000 was taken, and it was satisfactory to be able to report that this very useful railway had been completed and handed over to the Railway Department. A through t-rafe. was now running three times per week. A branch line to connect Kaikohe, on the main trunk line route, with the Kawakawa-Grahamtown : line, had been actively pushed on during the past year, £40,000 having been voted for this work. The construction of this branch line had long been advocated by the League in the interests of settlers in the iar North. KAIIIU VALLEY EXTENSION. An extension, 2 miles 20 chains in length, from the old Kailiu Valley terminus to Waima, for which £ 15,000 was voted, is now well forward, and the new section would probably be open for traffic shortly. EAST COAST MAIN TRUNK.

This line, to connect Auckland with Gisborne, via Waihi and Tauranga, is one of the most important public works in the North Isalnd. A vote of £IOO,OOO was asked for by the League last year, and a resolution was passed at the annual meeting, urging the starting of the work at the Waihi end as soon as possible. £IIO,OOO was voted for this line, namely, £BO,OOO for the Gisborne to Motu sectionfi £25,000 for the TaurangaPaengaroa section, and £SOOO to commence work from Ginborn* 1 towards Napier. No money was provided or authorisation made, for the extension of the line from the Waihi end. This the League's council regarded as a great mistake, as it delayed the linking-up of Tauranga and the other East Coast settlements and the magnificent Bay of Plenty district with Auckland. Moreover, "Waihi, being a mining community, and a consuming centre for farm produce of every kind, would afford a good local market for the farmers of the East Coast. The League's council, therefore, regarded it as of far more importance in the interests of the whole Dominion that the railway should be pushed on without delay from the Waihi end, than that any work should be begun upon the Gisborne-Napier line. 'lhe supposed great importance, according to the Minister of Public Works, " of completing railway conection between Auckland and Wellington by the East Coast route" was not apparent to the Auckland Council in view of the direct commmunication already existing by the North Island Main Trunk line. It was desirable that the expenditure of public money upon the Gisborne-Napier connection should be postponed until Auckland was connected wiith Gisborne, or at least until the line from the Gisborne end .reached Motu, and from the Waihi end reached Opotiki. The 6ucce3s of the Parliamentary tour of the East Coast route, inaugurated by the Council, was also commented upon. STRATFORD —ONGARUE LINE. As a link between Taranaki and Auckland, the Stra'tford-Ongarue connection with the North Island Main Trunk should be supported as heartily by Taranaki as by Auckland. Last year the Council had asked for a vote of £IOO,000, and a resolution was carried in favour of starting work at both ends. The amount asked was voted, and some 'time ago the Minister for Public Works publicly stated that he was in favour ol commencing work at the Ongarue end within 12 months, so that there should now be little delay in. giving railway connection to the settlers hi the Ohura

Valley. From the Stratford cud. satisfactory progress is now being made towards Wliangamomona. Passing reference was also made in the report to the outcome of the negotiations respecting the duplication of the Parnell tunnel. £450,000 ASKED FOR THIS YEAR. "Your Council think that the League should continue its established policy of urging upon Parliament and the Government the importance of certain main lines of railway concentrating their efforts upon the advocacy of these lines until they are completed," added Mr. Peacocke. "It is far better for the Auckland district and fcr the Dominion as a whole that whatever money is available for railway extension in this province should be spent upon the expeditious prosecution of the North Island Main Trunk, the East Coast Auckland to GisLorne, and the Ongarue-Stratford connection, so that these lines may be brought into profitable working at the earliest possible period, than that the construction of branch lines should be undertaken oefore the main lines, to which they will act as feeders, are brought to an -advanced stage of completion. After that, such important works as the loop line from Paeroa to some point on the main line near Pokeno, a branch line to Waiuku and another to Kawliia, should be energetically taken in hand as legitimate business propositions, as works which will materially promote prosperous settlement and increase the working profits of oar general railway system. In the meantime we propose to pass resolutions asking for the following allocations for the ensuing financial year:— North Auckland: Main Trunk, including 'Kaikohe connection with Kawa Kawa-Grahamstown line, £200.000. East Coast Auckland-Gisborne line, £ l/jO.OOC. Ongarue-Stratford connection, £IOO,000. The longer these lines remain unfinished to a paying point, the more the country lose in interest on the money already spent in partial construction. THE REPORT DISCUSSED. Mr Jas. Stewart said that a start had been made with the lluntly-Raglan line. Three miles of line had been authorised, as well as a railway bridge across the river. Mr. Bell: Is it not to be just a short line to reach coal seams on the other side of the river? Mr Stewart: I think : t will mean ultimately taking this line on through the rich Waingaro Valley. Mr. Thos. Ooates said he thought the report a full and comprehensive one, and considered that the progress made on the Aucklanu provincial railways was a matter for general satisfaction. The report was generally approved and adopted on the'motion of Messrs. Peacocke and Bel']. The annual meeting will be held on Wednesday, 20th, and the chairman remarked that he hoped there would be a good attendance of the public and of delegates from afii'liated railway leagues.