BETTER TRAVELLING.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 252, 23 October 1924, Page 9

BETTER TRAVELLING.

IMPROVEMENT TO RAILWAYS. MAIN TRUNK COMFORTS. The Railway Department has belatedly decided to make some improvement for the comfort of travellers on the trunk lines, and some of them were announced by Mr. D. Brodie, the head of the commercial branch, at the conference yesterday dealing with tourist matters.

The improvement of the railways by the provision of more and better sleepiug carriages, sleepers for second-class passengers, parlour and observation cars on certain routes, special week-end excursion trains to tourist resorts, and better departmental publicity, was urged in a motion proposed by Mr. R. H. Marryatt. He did not think the narrow gauge would make this impossible. The fact was that travel in New Zealand was neither cheap nor comfortable. If the Railway Department could evolve some means whereby cheap travel would be remunerative to the Department, and at tbe same time encourage travel, a step would bave been made towards obtaining further funds for overseas publicity. Tourist encouragement, like charity, should begin at home. A limited "express to Rotorua on Friday night, returning on Monday morning, would be well patronised.

"The construction of some extra sleeping cars was under consideration," said Mr. D. Brodie. "The proposal was to build two four-berthers and five twoberthers. A more comfortable bed, a small wardrobe, rubber matting on corridor and compartment floors, a wash basin in each compartment, and improved sanitary facilities, were among the suggested improvements. It was also hoped to improve the ordinary passenger cars. Special week-end and tourist resort trains had already been introduced, and more would probably be run."