THE HUTT TRAMWAY SCHEME.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 952, 20 October 1910, Page 9

THE HUTT TRAMWAY SCHEME.

PROPOSAL REVIVED. ADDRESS BY MR, J. W. M'EWAN. ' A meeting of about thirty ratepayers was held in St. Augustine's Hall, Petono', last evening, to consider the question of raising a loan of ,£85,000 for tramway construction. The scheme was rejected at a poll of the ratepayers of the Hutt Valley. tramway district a few months ago, but; its friends are hopeful that after a further campaign publio opinion will be found to bo ripe for its. adoption.';

Mr. J. W. M'Ew'an (chairman of the Valley, Tramway Board) gave,. a general exposition of the proposal. He said.it was not fail' to' assume, as many people did, that' the tramways would not pay during, the first year or-two,-but .even if they did not, it did. not: follow, that, the board would levy a;'rate to make up the deficiency., The late they bad power to strike would be so small that in many, instances—where only lOd.'.or Is. would be, due—it would not pay,, to collect. Moreover, the cry.;of keeping .down . the.VTates, should not bo taken too seriously. The rates'in the borough ha'd decreased..a lit-; tie during the period for 1905.t0 the' present, and yet more. public utilities were j provided. Some people pointed'to the change, in regard to ..the new - Hutt .Road, as a reason for, .postponing, the tramway scheme, but he did not believe that the Government meant" to - bill -Petone -.for .£30,000, or anything likq- it.' .There' was no contract in (.ho matter, and the council never even saw, the Bill before' it was passed. -• Thpy could not be-,made to-pay a' huge sum .like that,, when they were; not in;.any way; parties to..,the. bargain;.They never- asked ;for; a m'otor-car;rQad. He thought when- the: whole thing '.wassquared up,they would-find ,-that:ketone's. contribution • would be about .£SOO a -year, instead of . as- at present.' The: proposed; trapjways would, help to. pay.. Petone's contribution towards' the, Hutt Road.-. . The bridge,at the east end,of .the town was also spoken of by some a3 ; a ne\v burden on the rates, but he believed it-would.not'cost;more than the estimate pf."JE4os'.',a year. ' Altogether;, the question of rates deter them from proceeding-with the tramway scheme. , : ' The board had estimated the. interest on the . proposed loan ,at per cent., but he knew-of .other local ; bodies which ; had got money for. less, and he saw: no reason why Pfstone. should- not borrow in .London: at i per cent.j'.as Gisborne had done. The speaker gave an estimate of the cost'of the various 'items of construction and plant, totalling or bout >£8000 for every mile of-track. ' This, was-an estimate-by experts/.'but'the Wanganui tramwayg-had cost. only,. .67500 per mile, !in(l ran-much more smoothly and quietly .'than the Wellington .trams.- •'■ In regard to' the . Government's ! proposed hydro-electric undertaking, of wliich ho approved, lie thought that, if the Government was able to offer the board electric -.current; at a/penny per Board of Trade, unit,-.there. ivould bb. no for objecting to; making, use of ! it as .far. as possible.., ;form ..of car proposed - wai. the storage-battery car,; manufactured by the Beach Company of : New York. .; The , trams •at , Wanganui .were almost entirely dependent upon .the people of the residential districts ,as passengers,'and he' was conviiiced; that,; as the cars 'at that town paid their way, there could be, no doubt, that 'trams in the Hutt Valley would pay.; The Wanganui system ' .was, .proposed ' to.; be . extended through Gonvillo to CastleclifF, and, certainly, if such - a scattered district;, was warranted' in - having' tramway through it, Petonc'i and Hutt would be justified in a similar undertaking. ' Wanganui had no asset, like Wellington as n, source' o'f 'tramway, revenue, through. visiters,'from the-city.'; :Many also Who.lived at Petoiie . and Hutt,:'and workedMn. the' city, (.would use the pais-;drily.-clThe-'shaker. quoted many figuros- relatipg' to the, working of trarnways 'in other places, and-then gave an estimate, of receiptsi'and expenditure for the Hutt Valley- scheme. - Taking the population of the district': as 14,00.0; and the amount spent on,car, rides<as 20s. per' head per annum,' and adding .£2OO for advertising on \the cars, etc.,. the receipts might be set down at;;v£l4,2oP. ' -The penditure was estimated at' i6l3,422,'ieavr ing a balance 0f.i778 on a year's working. These figures, he' felt sure; \V'ere on the safe side. ■ ...' •' ' '

'. Several- questions were' a'nsivered, and; Mr. ' ITEwan was .accorded,- a , vote, of thanks.