IMPROVING RAILWAY REVENUE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 595, 25 August 1909, Page 9

IMPROVING RAILWAY REVENUE.

STATEMENT BY HON. J. A. MILLAR. I Speaking to a Dominion: reporter yesterday, the Hon.. J. A..Millar, Minister for Railways, stated that the railway, revenue for. the four months from April 1 to, July 24 shows an increase of ,£143,000. The increase had, he continued; been effected for an additional expenditure of JE73.000, or approximately'so per cent, of the inorease in revenue. It was worthy of note -also that the period covored-. was, the worst in the year. . Neither, the Main .Trunk nor the.Manawatu lines came into the, previous year's .figures. Mr. Millar went on to say that tho increase.'was .-.due-in a large measure to tho faot that there had been a remarkably good grain season in tlio so.uth", andjiartly to various economies which had been effected. It was his intention to make still further reductions in the matter of expenditure, but ho did not anticipate that;.the railways of Nev; Zealand could be worked at a cost of 50 per cent, of the earnings. Speaking approximately, the railways had,- in recent years, earned 8J per cent, on capital cost, and he did not see why the net return should not be brought up to at least 3i per cent. • "If,": added . Mr. Millar, ",we bring the.expenses down to G4 per cent, or B5 per cent, of the revenue that will then (on our anticipated revenue for the year) leavt pretty well ,one. million ' towards payment; of interest." -. . . '