EAST COAST RAIL

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 6, Issue 89, 13 July 1943, Page 5

EAST COAST RAIL

SUPPORT FROM BUSINESSMEN MR W. SULLIVAN'S ADDRESS Following a very comprehensive address on the benefits which would accrue should 1 the Government agree to completing the railway link between the Gisborne and Taneatua railhead, the Whakatane Chamber of ' Commerce at a special meeting last Thursday decided also to Support the project and' to urge that it be included in the works to be undertaken in the national programme for rehabilitation. Mr C. F. Thomas, the president, said that the address, by Mr Sullivan was the outcome ol' a letter from the Gisborne Chamber of Commerce seeking support for the project. "If the. people of Gisborne had been consulted with regard to the recent link up with Wellington and asked to make their choice between that town and Auckland, I think 1 can say without doubt that the great majority of them Avoukl have, preferred the. northern line," said Mr Sullivan by way of He went on to say that tlie areas to the north of Gisborne were great cattle breeding grounds and the natural outlets for this class of stock were the Bay of Plenty and the Waikato. Here was land, lie said, just waiting development, by way of a railway route which would provide it with easy access.

Part of Network The. line he said had been .surveyed as far back as 1910 when it was laid, down in the rail expansion programme as part of the network for 'New Zealand. The whole intention was to run the line through to Gisborne without any further question. It was therefore up to the people in th/is area to see that the original intention was carried out. The Rehabilitation Scheme was the opportunity by which it could be done, though as yet no one had succeeded in discovering what the Government bad in mind for this work. The undertakings would in any case have to be major ones for anything from 50,000 to 80,000 men would be involved. With a war expenditure of 143 million last year and 148 million this, the. money should, be forthcoming and it was up to us to see that it was forthcoming. The Population Served The population which would, be served by the proposed route;, he estimated at 50,000. This figure, if given a reasonable chance could be doubled or trebled. People would be amazed at the. vast undeveloped areas on the East Coast. There were enormous tracts of country just waiting settlement and from that angle alone the Government should be prepared to take it over. The capital value involved was roughlj r about -Ha millions, and cattle shifted from the East Coast breeding grounds to the Bay and to the Wa-ikato last year totalled no less than 203,000 head. A Case for Settlement AVe. want to give this country of ours an agricultural bias, said Mr Sullivan. We want to settle our unpopulated areas, by taking no them the facilities of power, road and communication, encourage families to go on to the land by giving them every facility. Every local body and organisation of repute, in the Bay of Plenty Should therefore make a special effort to have the survey for the line made, in order to open up the vast undeveloped areas | of the East Coast, and with the idea of having the railway constructed j under the rehabilitation programme. It was going to be a wonderful national asset and which he personally Avould support without any hesitation whatsoever. * Wholehearted Support Mr W. R. Boon said the Harbour Board was in agreement with the suggestion and had already supported it. Messrs Canning, Di'llicar and Creeke also spoke in warm .support. On the motion of Messrs Canning and Creeke the meeting decided to lend the project its wholehearted support and to write to the Minister to that end urging that it be added to the first list for rehabilitation undertakings.