Railways Revenue And Expenditure Both Increased

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 37, 12 September 1949, Page 3

Railways Revenue And Expenditure Both Increased

A new high level in ' gross revenue was established by the New Zealand Government Railways this year, the total receipts - being £18,597,728. This amount exceeded last year’s record by £1,526,856, or 8.94 per cent. The greater portion of this additional revenue came from the increase in fares and freights, which operated throughout the whole year, as against only seven months of the previous year. Passenger revenue showed an increase over the previous year. Although Armed Service travel continued to decline, ordinary passenger traffic revenue showed a slight increase, brought about mainly by the increased fares. Season-ticket journeys and revenue showed marked increases. The actual increase in passenger revenue over the previous year amounted to £71,711. The steady upward trend in goods traffic that has taken place over the last few years continued during the present financial year. This is indicated in the increased revenue and in the increased tonnage hauled. The goods revenue has shown an increase of £1,260,385, or 12.02 per cent, reaching a new record of £11,747,129.

Expenditure Up, Too The gross expenditure for the year totalled £19,700,594, an increase of £1,989,697 or 11.23 per cent. The increase in wage costs amounted to £1,121,833. Increased man hours incurred in handling the increased traffic caused a rise in expenditure of £226,198, while the increased wages and concessions granted by the Railways ' Industrial Tribunal during the year had a substantial effect upon all avenues of expenditure. The remainder of the increase in expenditure is spread over a number of miscellaneous items, particularly fuel, stores and material, depreciation, and deferred maintenance.

The net loss on working was £1,102,866, which was recovered from the vote “Economic Stabilisation.”