TRAMWAY EFFICIENCY

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23803, 24 November 1942, Page 6

TRAMWAY EFFICIENCY

Sir,—l will give you two instances of how the Tramway Board caters for the public, this is usual every day: (1) The 7.35 a.m. No. 4 tram from the terminus, on arrival at Barrington street, which is the fifth stop, is not only full, but girls are already standing (no trailer). By the time it reaches Antigua street they are packed like herrings. (2) The No, 7 timed to leave the Square at six minutes past 5 p.m. is a beauty. Along comes a No. 7 with a trailer at 5.5 p.m. at Cashel street, with a notice on the side “Jerrold street only." Now this tram and trailer when leaving Cashel street usually has about 20 passengers all told. Four minutes after that has left, along comes No. 7 for terminus packed. To-night (Wednesday) I took the trouble to count the passengers standing when we left Cashel street. There were 15. When we left Tuam street there were 27 standing. When we left Moorhouse avenue there were 32 standing. All this was in a one-man tram. God help the poor passengers if an accident occurred.—Yours, etc., ONE OF THE POOR UNFORTUNATES. November 20. 1942. [A representative of the Tramway Board said yesterday that Christchurch compared favourably with any other centre in the Dominion at the present time. The board was making every effort to handle the traffic, but it had neither the rolling stock nor the staff to cope with the traffic at peak periods. Now the board had to transport practically the whole population of Christchurch whereas in the past it had to handle only a proportion. If the trams were not filled completely there would be many more complaints from people that there was room.]