Derelict carriages

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33094, 8 December 1972, Page 12

Derelict carriages

Sir, —With an ever-increas-ing awareness of the environment, I would like to inquire from the Railways Department why it is deemed necessary for six derelict passenger carriages to be deposited on a siding north of Rangiora. The nearby area is used for housing, and an outlook on obsolete carriages with broken windows is no environmental asset. Surely some scrap value from the sale of these carriages, and numerous others across the country, could be obtained.— Yours, etc., R.W.S. November 24. 1972. [Mr A. D. Campbell, district traffic manager of Railways, replies: “The department regularly reviews on a continuing basis the remaining useful life of all vehicles which, because of age or condition, may be reaching the stage where they are no longer economic to maintain. Some are condemned and disposed of, while others with sound underframes and running gear but defective bodies are held for conversion to other uses, mainly as service vehicles for departmental use. The six carriages stored on a siding at Rangiora fall within the latter category and will be converted when workshops capacity is available to deal with them. Storage of such vehicles presents a problem because of the need to keep them clear of track-work regularly required for normal operations. They are vulnerable to vandalism to some extent wherever they are stored, but to a much greater degree if held in out-of-the-way places where some surveillance is not possible. It is recognised that storage in an area open

to public view is perhaps less than desirable, and this will be dealt with just as soon as opportunity permits/’]