THE ESTUARY

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20961, 15 September 1933, Page 14

THE ESTUARY

*0 THB MITOR on THE l'R« 9 - Sir—The successful crossing o rt'ir together with the safe Sumner Bai, to = , , h tc channe' navigation of the Hcatncou. bv the m.v. Ngahau gives food fox •no -thought when one realises t S ve Ss el could have just L easily * ™ or timber 0s a 50-ton several "provided a suitable landlns place was provided. t . The raa " c^^/ th e chief stumbling wortc™Sh piltns g ?u»deXThK be» oilered. structure would be small in comparison. to its usefulness, and its m:iintenance etc., could be easily coveied by dues'collected. I ask those and manufacturers who happen to read this, to study the matter. What a saving in time and expense to be able to ship and receive goods from a spot so near the city, and thus cut out the expense of railage and also delay, experienced at pre"eAs I have slated above, the expense would be very small— only the cost of a breastwork. Nothing need be done to the actual bar at present, but,! venture to say that it would not be long before further facilities would be demanded on all sides. What is really wanted is a complete layout for a modern harbour, one that can be gradually developed from a small beginnin? as the demand arises. A lot has been heard lately of the proposal to put through another tunnel to Lyttelton. A tunnel can quite easily be built (nothing easier), but when it is through, what then? It will cost a considerable sum and will have achieved nothing. It is when that tunnel is completed that the real expense will begin. At present there is not enough room in Lyttelton to "swing a cat." The only flat ground is a maze of railway lines. There is certainly no room for motor traffic. It would be quite impossible to take delivery of goods on the wharves; which, compared with modern wharves, can only be styled jetties. | Before the tunnel can be of any use I provision must be made for motor traffic to and from, and on to the wharves—wharves with modern sort-j ing sheds, such as in Wellington, and other up-to-date ports. I question if such wharves could be built successfully in Lyttelton, on account of the uncertain bottom, except at great expense. A wharf to carry a modern sorting shed requires no mean foundation.

However, to acquire room for all this, a good portion of the present basin, or inner harbour, would have to be reclaimed, and the harbour extended out, and away from, its present partially sheltered position. Then what about the range? Is it not bad enough now? Time and again it has been pointed out that it would cost far more to do all this than build a modern port in the Estuary, which port would be right at our city's door, and save the community thousands of pounds annually in freight and handling charges. Figures produced at the recent commission quoted a necessary tunnel rate (or levy) of 2s 3d a ton. Why, with modern Diesel trucks it would be cheaper to bring goods over the hill, via Sumner, even if access to the ship's side were given at Lyttelton. Let us see what can be done about a small landing place at Heathcote for a start.—Yoyrs, etc., COMMON SENSE. September 14, 1933. TO TBS EDITOR, OF THE PKE33. Sir,—Your correspondent "T.A.S." is not quite correct in his statement that nothing hag been done about Port Christchurch. A lot has been done in keeping its possibilities before the public. Responsible people, however, will have nothing to do with it. They know well enough that the estuary can be worked by coasters and much better than in days of yore, when power engines were unknown. The bar has anything from 10 to 12 feet of water on it at high water, and up to more than 30 feet near Shag Rock. I From Shag Rock to the confluence of ' the two rivers aS the "Cutting," near

the middle of the estuary, an average of 23 soundings shows a minute fraction less than nine feet, at low water, according to soundings officially recorded. What then is stopping navigation? Nothing but established custom elsewhere. Therefore a new set of men altogether will have to take the bull by the horns and erect a wharf, first at Redclifts and subsequently one on the foreshore of Christchurch near Heathcote bridge—a matter of a few hundred pounds. It is ridiculously easy and it is all that is required at present to induce boats carrying 250 tons to visit the estuary. This can be verified by applying at the right quarter. . When trade grows and it is neces=ary to provide for regular arrivals j and departures, it will be time to consider the construction of moles that will do away with the bar. The real fact is that if a whart is provided, certain skippers are only too willing to use it But why should responsible people conducting the larger trading interests be bothered with it—till t has grown a bit —and shown what it can do. —Yours, etc., d.W. September 14, .1933.