MAIN TRUNK LINE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 142, 10 March 1908, Page 8

MAIN TRUNK LINE.

SLOW PROCRESS WITH MAKATOTE , VIADUCT. INTERVIEW WITH' MR. BLOW. The Makatoto Viaduct, which & being-con? structcd on tho route: of the Northern Main Trunk Railway by Messrs. Anderson and Co., of Christchurch, will be,the largest..work of its kijicl in tho Dominion. Apparently-it is proving quito largo enough to satisfy.< tho contractors,' for -.its' construction is in a ; very backward state,' 1 and. if faster progress is riot made tho Public Works Department will bo soon affected in its construction of tho line. Mr. H:' J. H. Blow, Under-Secretary , for Public Works, who has just returned by way of the' Main Trunk line from a visit to Gisborrie and the north of Auckland, told a Dominion " representative • yesterday : that; generally speaking, work , was going ahead tairly satisfactorily on the line, but that he had expected to" seo greater progress'niado with tno Makatoto' Yiaduct._ Trio'."contract for this work, ho stated, is nearly 'nine months behind time, and there are four spans, each of 100 feet, yet ; to be fixed. The girders for one of these are ready, however, and are to be placed in. position this'week. It.is evident, said Mr. Blow, that .theicon-, tractors are throwing back the completion of their work into the winter, and the Department's finishing work will bo thrown-back into tho winter also. The work of manufacturing in connection with tho viaduct is now completed, and. only,the workof erection remains to bo done. On that work it is impossible, to employ a great number of haricb.' ' ' * ' " ...

The contractors for,tho viaduct recount all sorts of difficulties, which they consider to liavo been unavoidable, to explain tho delay. Though this work will bo slightly larger than the'Makohino Viaduct, which, was coirstructcd by the Public' Works Department, the _ spans' are not so long. In the. Makohino Viaduct there are two spans 247 feet in length, while the longest; span in tho'. Makatote Viaduct' 'measures only 100 feet. It is that the increased difficulty of erection with, such works is more than proportionate to tho increased length of span. Mr. Blow states that ,the Makatote Viaduct should bo finished by July or August, which will leave the Department about four mouths in which to complete the Main Trunk lino before Christmas. .Dnless extraordina'rily bad weather is experienced in tho winter it is still quite possible to complete tho connection by that timoT The delay with tho viaduct is scarcely. retarding the Department's progress as yet, though there is no encouragement to proceed more quickly, but as soon as the Department's work reaches this point there will bo delay. : \ 1 Messrs. Anderson and .Co. are contractors for a second viaduct at Maunganui-o-te-Ao, a milo beyond Makatote, but this can easily bo finished- beforo tho larger work. Their contract also includes' tho ' Maungaturuturu Bridge', which is now well in hand, and should be finished in another month. Tho Department's own work is in a very forward state. The rails are laid for 2i miles beyond Waimarino, and tho next section of li miles to Erua will bo completed within a month, diminishing tho coach journey to 14 miles. The rails could ea-sily-reach the Makatoto Viaduct,' a milo beyond Erua, within another month. It is not probablo that the viaduct will be completed by that time. • The Department has about 1200 mon employed, on the construction of' the-lino,.