Rail services to the West Coast

Press, 1 July 1978, Page 12

Rail services to the West Coast

Sir, — Further to recent articles in your paper on rail services between Christchurch and Greymouth, I notice that some new guards vans appear to contain limited seating and wonder if more consideration could be given to providing passenger accommodation in modified guards vans on through goods’ trains. As most vans now in use seem to have gas heating facilities, it should be quite possible to equip at least some vans with more passenger seating. Some alterations to train operation may be necessary, particularly to minimise delays because of locomotive changes through the Otira tunnel. However, such action would surely be a worth-while, lowcost means of maintaining a flexible rail passenger service to and from the Coast.— Yours, etc., lAN HOOKER. June 23, 1978. [The district traffic manager in Christchurch for New Zealand Railways (Mr D. M. Patchett) replies: “For many years the department ran mixed trains or goods trains with carriages attached. Experience has shown in modem times the transport requirements of goods and passengers, are not compatible. people just would not travel’On mixed trains previously. and there is no reason to believe thev will now. Although goods trains are scheduled to run on a regular basis and to depart at specified times, these timetables are often changed to allow trains to run earlier or later, or even be cancelled. This facility would not be available if passengers were conveyed on goods trains and the department may even be committed to running a train on the off-chance that one or two passengers may be offering”]