The Dominion FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1907. THE TRAMWAYS BILL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 14, 11 October 1907, Page 4

The Dominion FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1907. THE TRAMWAYS BILL.

It is to be hoped that the aiithorjties...who .control the various tramway systems of New Zealand will not relax their scrutiny and criticism of the Tramways Act Amendment Bill now before Parliament. The Bill, despite its important character, was not anticipated by the public or the tramways authorities, nor was it the response to any request for State interference with- the existing system. The surprise with which the municipal authorities observed its appearance quickly developed into alarm and hostility when a .perusal of its .provisions exposed the unwelcome.nature of its immediate, effects, and the drastic policy to which it must lead, and of which there is every reason to believe it is the,first stop. Summarised to.the briefest terms, the Bill proposes to give the Public Works Department a dominant voice" in almost every detail of tramway 'management. It is required that motormen shall have ' Government certificates, and shall

be subject to State that the promoters of any tram-' way shall, on demand, place carriages at the disposal of a State official for a practical test of motormen's qualifications; that a State inspector may at any time inspect a tramway and command, the carrying out of any alterations and repairs that ho may consider necessary; that the Public Works Department may inquire into any accident and mete out penalties; that the Governor may, byOrder-in-Council, make regulations for the inspection and licensing of carriages, and prescribe stopping places / destination signs, carriage capa'city, running methods, and any other rules and regulations whatever. , We need not summarise further, excepting to note a remarkable provision that the tramway authorities must supply whatever information the Minister may require as to the cost of working. What first calls for attention in~ this very serious proposal is the assumption of the Government 'either that the tramways authorities are not competent to manage their own affairs, or that they have no right to do so. A certain amount of advance in the direction of subjecting tramway systems to the same inspection as other mechanical systems is no doubt right arid desirable, but it cannot be contended that there is any necessity for even the less objectionable clauses of the Bill. In the opinion of the Dunedin traimyays manager, the Bill renders it possible to make regulations which would be disastrous to the service in that city, and-it is in any case obvious that the local control is best left to the people who know local conditions and who have no incentive to do anything except what the public interest demands. Upon _ the ground that it will cause positive inconvenience, therefore, the Bill must be condemned; but there is a graver objection still, namely, the undesirableness of any further eriroachment by the State upon local rights, i Mr. J. A. Flesher, a member of the Ohristchurch Tramways Board, deduced from the general tenOur of the Bill, and in particular from the clause requiring financial returns, that " the Government had its eyes, on the tramway systems of the country," and "might want the information to see whether it was worth its while to take them over." ; There is nothing fantastic in that view; indeed, it is the first thought that must occur to anyone who realises the seoure preliminary grip which the Bill will give to the Department. In this connection the Ohristchurch "Press" recalls a speech made by Sir Joseph Ward five years ago in advocacy of the State ownership of the tramways of the country, and suggests that the. germ of the present Bill is to be found in the- Premier's five-year-old suggestion. <Even ,if the Government has no conscious intention of suoh a character, the first measure of, State control must, in accordance with all experience, gradually grow towards nationalisation. How such an end will be regarded by the citizens of Wellington is .not open to much doubt.