CHEAPEST TRAMS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 186, 9 August 1927, Page 8

CHEAPEST TRAMS.

DUNEDIN FIRST. j FLAT CITY IS DEAREST. mvrs of nPEn.vnov I 'Tn Ounctlin was dearest, while I Wellington wn« cheapest ; wherea.-, in ( liri-dchurcli was dearest, while. Ihincdin was cheapest."—-Government j Statistician's summing up in comparing tramway fares of the Dominion's principal centres. In \e W Zealand nearly five millions is in electrical trainways. Years ngo it v.is (bought that, the f'hristchurch tramway service would be a better economic proposition than that of Wellington, «>r Auckland, or Dunedin, heeausn ( liristcbureh is regarded as flat and adaptable to the running of trailers. Rut today the f'hristchurch tramway passenger travels at. a relatively dear rate, because Christchurch has built, groat lengths of line, presumably in order to capture those people who wander out far and free to found their homes, unchecked by the untunnelled hills with which Wellington is familiar. Hern Is part of the secret of costs, as revealed by the lengths of tramway t;-.nin the four centres: — Single. Pontile. Miles. Chains. Miles Chains. A Hi It In in I I 11 :<l Wellington .... 1". O 11 o <*tirl*li'hurch ;>H .'l4 ir> to Diuieilln <• -•"» 10 ■""> (liristchurch's long chase after a single track business tells its own story. Much tho same story is told in the figures of density of population, which read, as in April, MKiti: Wellington r>.74, Auckland :: Ort, Dunedin 'J. 71, Christchurcli 1.45. rinse figures are not, however, to be taken as supplying the whole reason for Dunedin's better tramway results, as com pa red with Christchurch. On the other hand, according to the Government Statistician. Hunedin "has a relatively low density of population as a whole." Itut. Dunedin has been too canny to chase population where imputation does not exist in payable quantity, and the Dunedin authorities have succeeded in keeping their electrical tramway system relatively short, "serving the more densely populated and flat portion of the city." Thus the Dunedin tramway nut liori tics haxc spread their sales to catch the wind both ways. Also, Dunedin has been greatly aided by the early and \erV economical development of the Wuipori hydro-electric power system. The Dunedin Scots have made a financial success of hvdro electric power and tramwavs, though the hydro-electrical adventures of their neighbours the Southlanders seer*-to have been less fortunate.

Passenger* Per Car Mile. Tn further explanation this point the following quotation fi*tn the Local Authorities' Handbook (compiled in the Census and Statistics Office) is pertinent . — j "The number of pnssenger* carried j per car-mile is an excellent guide to the relative volume of traffic handled in the various undertaking*, hi the case of . Duncdin, where a relatively largo volume j of trallic is handled on six miles of siir:i.and eleven miles of double track, it is not Mirpi i-iny that the average passenger load per car-mile (13.34) is much higher than in any other undertaking. "Wellington follow* Duncdin with 10.72 passengers per car-mile, with Auckland (11.1)0) coming next. Christchurch, with it <*huge track mileago (38 single and |.» double) falls a long way below the other main centres with tI.HO, being just ahead of (lisborne, which shows 0.78. "Til considering the fares charged on the Christchurch trams, this fact should not bo lost sight of. It is axiomatic in connection with tramway fares that the volume of traflic is perhaps the principal determining factor." The following table, dealing with trallic revenue, operating costs, and capital charges per car-mile run, further indicates Dunedin'* superior position: — Per Car-mile Ran. Truffle Operating Capital Revenue. Costs. Chargea. «1. «1. «l. Auckland 21..1R 17. HO 4.-JIS Cla borne 1.1.77 14. .10 N.,'14 Nnpler -1 "i 7 1.1.72 M.4S New I'lymonth. . ls.oi ll.no It.illl Wiinmintil 1N.M.1 1.1.! M» 3.72 Wellington .... 24.70 IH.-'l> .1.42 Chrlnteluireh ... IH.3U 12.fit I.IH t >iit>llii 'J'l ~'i CM: 1 . .1.11 Inverenrvlll ... 17.51 13.01) 4.7H ,\v. for Dominion UI..KJ 15.U0 5.10 It, will bo seen that in some of the above cases trnttio revenue does not equal the other two charges. Although Dunedin handles the highest, relative volume of t rattle in New Zealand, the average cost of operation per car-mile m among the lowest, and the average net surplus per car-mile is approximately 4.80 d. "In point of revenue per ear-mile," remarks the Government, Statistician, "Wellington, with 24.70 d. cornea first, being just ahead of Dun edin, with 23..VM. Adverting to the volume of traflic in these cases, it would appear that relatively high fares have placed Wellington in the tirst position, while relatively low fares with a volume of traffic have been responsible for Dunedin'* high figure. The Auckland system, which follows Wellington and Duncdin in point of volume of traffic, comes next, in revenue per carmile (2l.r>Bdh while C'hristchurch wirli it* widespread system and relatively low volume of trait* showed 18.31*1 per car-mile. Napier, with an average of 0,4.1 passengers per car-mile, overshadows the other smaller system* as regards revenue per cur-mile, with 21.. r )7d. . . . Of the four chief systems, Christchurcli and Dunedin, with cost* per car-mile of I'i.tMd and 13.13 d respectively, are considerably below Auckland and Wellington. which show 17.<!0d and 18.29 d respectively. Capital Outlay Per Chain. Failure in Auckland to create depreciation and renewal funds for the year 1 lf»2."i-2rt discounts the value of the rela j lively light charge per car-mile in Auckland. Dunedin tramways are greatly helped bv their comparatively light capitalisation. the capital outlay per single chain of track in use lieing only fl.Ki in fhmcdin. £222 in Christchurcli, £2JX> in Auckland, and £317 in Wellington. The Government Statistician makes a special calculation to compare "the com-i Killed fares for all sections" in the principal centres, and produces the following table of resulting averages: — July, IHI4. March, 102« (I. il. Anehlsml 0'.i.l 1 ::fl Wnlllnßti n <> !>:: 1.i'.0 fhrlstehun h I.os 1.11 Dupedln Ms 1 j I tlnwi>lght»-il areriiK" 1.0-1 1.-IO "t»*? Government. Statistician concludes: AmL th * t 1,11 * Dunedin was >1 was chea|»est; k n* Christi-hurch was dear- \ was eheapeat." Well--1 uXu, u to the last-qv.u'. ,i m « »«t to th»w din , n ~hee r n>:s4.