THE RAILWAYS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 497, 3 May 1909, Page 8

THE RAILWAYS.

EARNINGS AND CONCESSIONS. Turning now to our great national institution, railways, the result of; the operations for.the year ending. March i 31 last has been very satisfactory, bciiig approximately; : ..'. 'z . .Rovenue. • 1 . -1£ 1908-9 2,929,525 1907-8 2,761,937 Increase, ... - ... £167;588 : ■ Our passenger traffic, /which had : grown in a most remarkablo manner for niany vears past,; shows .an-increase of over 1700,000 passengers , for-the year, . the- number of tickets. issued . boing in roimd figuVca lUi millions, ?nd the total tonnage handled 'exceeding, that of 1908 by no less than 37,340 tons. Tho mileage of lino open for traffic;has been increased- by 170 miles. . This 1 lias v. been achieved by the linkiug-up of the two portions ; of Auckland-Wollingtou main arterial Vr'ailway of the North Island' and' tho acquisition by tho State of tho 81 miles of railway! lino built by the Wellington and : Manawatu Railway Company. The; State now: owns -\tho wholo of the important railway lines'in tho' Dominion. Alreiady tho wisdom of acqiiiriilg this lino has been amply demonstrated in tho practical working' of the traffic between Auckland and Wellington; Tho Government is .now able to divert a coneidorablo. portion of tho traffic, which formerly wemt over f h« Eimutaka incline, from tho Napier and Ncw\ Plymouth'sido to Wellington, to-''thevMana-wltu route ( aud thus oii'wt ■ a eatißidwable.

saving in the cost of hauling tho traffics over tho Rimutaka inclino. Tho Manawatu line was acquired on December 7, 1908... Ihe last section of the Main Trunk railway was completed and handed over by the Publio Works Department to tie working railways on February 15 last ; from wliioh date tho through express sorvioes between Wellington and' Auckland were inaugurated. , Tlio southern express between Christohuroh . and Inv.orcargill has been considerably acoelerated go . that mails and passengere now make tho journey, from Auckland to Invercargill In 48 hours, which includes the . time taken to make the sea ', journey, 175 miles. Since 1895 the Government has granted concessions in respect of railway; rftes embracing ordinary passenger faros, holiday excursion fares,. school parties, season tickets, com-' mutation tickets, live stock, store Btock, road metal, Now- Zealand fruit/ dairy produco, frozen meat,minerals, lime, firewood; ana chaff, besidos making numbers of concessions in respect to other articles ,of everyday uso too numerous to particularise. _ In accordance with the policy enunciated in 1896 that so far as r the railways were concerned whenever the net earnings therefrom exceeded 3 per cent, on the capital invested in tho construction of the lines concessions, should be made in faros, and'freights,, thereby giving tho users of the railways cheap transport' for themselves and the staple products of the Dominion. The value of the concessions made by the Government since resuming control of the railways has been: — , i: Reduction in faros and freights £985,000.' , Benefits accruing to agriculturists and pastoralists, arid included in abovo, £575,000. . . Concessions in ' pay and hours- of railway staff £724,000._ . '. ; 1 i ' ' : Cost of. additional train servioes, : many of 1 which have been laid on to give increased facilities' and convenience to tho people of tho Dominion, £1,000,000. . . ; .Total amount of concessions made by tho Government out. of . tho' revenue' in pursuance of its policy to use the railway as adjuncts to settlement, £2,709,000;. Notwithstanding .the amount of concessions indicated . above, the result ;of ." working tho 'railway system of the Dominion'during the last financial year has been very satisfactory, and the net return will again exceed the 3 '.per: cent, which; the. Government decided in 1896 the railways of tho Dominion should bo expected'to return.': The question of issuing to. steamer passengers, .who use the ferry, boats regularly trading .between .Wellington -and Lyttelton tickets for the rail journey Lyttolton: to' Christckurch has., been engaging the attention of; the Government for, a considerable time past.. : During the Christchurch Exhibition .'season an- arrangement 'for through' booking •! was in operation. .. The. many'. dim-! cujtios it presented,- however, made it; un'suitable to,ordinary roquiremenfei/ii' experimental issue of rail tickets .was,; Tntli tho concurrenco of .tlve Union', Steam Ship Company, undertaken by the' Department on board. the~ ferry' steamer during last Christmas and Easter holidays, J and as the result tho TJnionSteam Ship Company: has now intimated itsv willingness l to adopt the suggest tion made by the Railway Department,' and, oonsented; to undertake . at: its, 'Wellington office the salolof rail tickets for the journey between lyttelton and Christchureh. Tho lUTangejnent will commenoo iri. a' few days' time; and will, I have no doubt, provo to bo a; considerable public convenience,, and assist in somewhat reducing the time that elapsed between . the arrival, of the . forry steamer at ; Lyttoltonand the departure of the train for Christchuich. ■ Tho extent to which tho eon-1 venience is availed ,of by tho publicwill, however, determine its usefulness.