NEW RAILWAY STATION

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22240, 3 November 1937, Page 16

NEW RAILWAY STATION

WORK FOR COMING YEAR

REORGANISING CITY YARDS

MAJOR DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

rtfrom Our Parliamentary Reporter.]

WELLINGTON, November 2.

Progress in the building of a new railway station for Christchurch. and with reorganisation of the railway yards at Ctflristehurch, are given a prominent place in a list of major development works to be done by the Railways Department in the coming year. Electrification of lines, elimination of level crossings, and the completion of several deviations are other major works set out by the Minister for Railways, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, in his statement presented lo the House of Representatives to-day. "The coming year will see an impressive development of railway services generally," the Minister said. "Construction works of many kinds throughout the Dominion, particularly in the provision of rolling stock requirements, have been delayed during the last year through inability to obtain materials from abroad, but the Now Zealand orders are now coming to hand more satisfactorily, and during the current financial year the following major improvements will be well on Ihe way to completion:—

Electrification of the WellingtonJohnsonville line.

Electrification of the North Island main line section, from Wellington via the Tawa Flat deviation, to Paekakariki.

Air-conditioning in the ordinary and sleeping cars of express trains throughout the Dominion. ,

Completion of several deviations to effect smoother running for trains and reduction of operating costs. Progress with Christchurch new station and yard- reorganisation at that centre.

Elimination of a number of the more dangerous level-crossings and other cirorls to increase public safety, including completion of the important ramp for an alternative road outlet between Wellington and the Hutt Valley.

A large increase in the number of passenger cars and goods and livestock waggons available for service to enable the traffic offering to be handled with greater satisfaction tc shippers and producers during the coming busy season. Further development of the automatic train-control signalling system to make centralised train control more effective."