OPINIONS OF PUBLIC MEN.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1178, 13 July 1911, Page 6

OPINIONS OF PUBLIC MEN.

HIGH-HANDED MEASURES.' MR. WRIGHT, M.l\, STRONGLY OBJECTS.

"I hear adverse comment from nil sides," said Jtr. B. A. Wright, M.P. for Wellington South, "in regard lo these proposed regulations of which we, as members of Parliament know absolutely nothing, and for the lifo of me I cannot imagine even tho Government supporters standing idly by and seeing regulations such as these given effect to without a vigorous protest being entered. It is a scandal that a Minister of the Crown should be permitted to issue such regulations without members of Parliament having any knowledge of what is proposed to bo done. It is on a par with,the many things which are done by the Governor-iii-Couacil, and is a deliberate .midermic-

ing of an<l trilling with the powers of Parliament. It is wrong that such proposed regulations should, bo issued as a confidential document without members, and the public, too, knowing exactly what tlwv mean.

if they are as ridiculously drastic as stated by the Acting-Mayor (Mr. John ■Smith), who, I assume, has carefully perused them, then it is tiino for action to bo taken to prevent tho public being ridden over rough-shod by such highhanded and ill-considered measures. The tramways in Wellington are not a moneymaking concern, but are an enormous convenienco to tho public generally. The system is a good one, and at present we have no assurance that it would be nearly so good under Government control.

"1 have the strongest objection to the Government controlling the tramways. They have not made it abundantly clear that they are able to manage the railways as they should ba managed, to eontemplato allowing them to steal a march on tho public in the manner which the Acting-Mayor infers is being done. "I think it would bo most improper if, by the issue of such fantastical regulations, the Government forced the hands of tho municipalities to yield up to them perfectly-equipped, smooth-working systems which the municipalities have installed and brought up to a high standard by years of study and experience. If any such move had been contemplated when the Tramways Act of last session went through, there would have been a month's stonewall on the bill." "MANIFESTLY PUERILE." OPINION OF MR. FISHER, M.P. ' "The man who drafted the proposed regulations," said Sir. F. M. B. Itsher, when approached for his opinion, "must have a considerable senso ot humour; lor it is self-evident that no human being could sit down and draft a more impossible set of regulations. In any case, t'lic AVellington City Council has very little to fear from the proposals because they are so unworkable that they cannot be put into operation. Take the suggestion of forming people into a queue, and suppose that tho person from the front is desirous of getting to a Miramar tram, but the seven people in front of him want an Island Bay tram. How is no to get into the Miramar tram when it comes along without dislodging tho people in front of him, who, of course, would have to join in then on the tail-end of the queue and wait their turn before they could get access to the cars? If every tram was bound for the same destination the queue system would be workable, but not under our conditions, and the suggestion is manifestly puerile.

"Unc of the regulitions says there must bo on (ho front of eacli car a number displaced. showing how many people are entitled to get' into the car" But how is ihe conductor t'o know how many peoplG are going to get out of the car at the stopping-place? Ho would have to tako a census at between each stopping-place! _ "At the same time (here is no disguising the fact that Wellington wants more trams; that the over-crowding here is shocking; and that the complaints about the construction of the cars are not without foundation. To use a car, as is frequently the case carrying twice as rnany passengers as it should, subjecting its passengers to great inconvenience, endangering the billet's of the conductors who are liable to bo sacked if they fail to collect a tare —theso conditions ought to bo altered by the municipality without any interference from the Government. I have got' into a tram for the purpose of going to Island Bay, and my desire to see out of the windows en route has been absolutely prevented by'the fact that I have had nothing in front of niv eyes nll'tbo way but the seam of tie back ot a coat of one of the excess passengers niul no business to bo allowed ou tho. car. On rush occasions, liko football matches, and Opposition meetings, I can understand reasonable over-crowding being permitted, but under normal service conditions the public, has a right - to expect that it will get a comfortable rido for its faTe; and a good deal of tho interference which is so much resented is due to the fact that t'lie municipalities are neglccting their obligations to tho public, and in many to their employees. No ono would resent Government interference, and especially such eStieme proposals as tiro made, more than k" l '' - 1 ceTtai nly think that the City Council has done a great ueal to bring the matter upon itself." COUNCILLORS INTERVIEWED. "TAKEN 'BY THE THROAT." "It means that tho municipalities aro taken by the throat," said Councillor G. Shirtcliffe, when asked what he thought of tho new regulations. "Practically, if theso regulations crime into force,' tho Wellington tramway service will have to bo reorganised at a tremendous capital outlay, and I think the working regulations are simply impracticable. I don't think it is possible to conform to theso regulations, and I am of opinion that the strongest possible combined protest ought to be made by the municipalities concerned. If the regulations arc enforced, the management of the services will practically be taken away from tho municipalities. -Moreover, the rolling-stock would inevitably have to be very largely increased, the working staff would have to bo increased, and a substantial increase in fares would ho made absolutely necessary. The service could not possibly be run, under the new regulations, with the present fares." I don't think it is possible for a conductor, at rush hours, to put up, on the front of a car, figures showing how many seats are available. Conductors could not find tho time to do it; they have enough to do at present, and a special man would have to ho employed to look after the figures alone." "Out of All Rea&on." Dr. Cameron, the next councillor questioned, stated that ho had not seen tho regulations as n whole, but that from what had appeared in the press, they seemed to him absolutely impossible. No doubt they would occasion a big outcry, for they seemed to bo out of all Teason. Councillor D. Jl'Laren, M.P., said he had not seen the regulations. If, however, their purport had been correctly indicated iii the newspapers, they would greatly hamper the tramway service, and he would strongly oppose their adoption. More than this he declined to say until he hr.d seen tho regulations in full.

"1 think it is a piece of impertinence on tho part of the Government," said Councillor J. Trevor, speaking of the general trend of the proposed regulations. Ho added that evidently the 1 Government wanted to prevent the local bodies having any say at all in running their own tramways, and that a proper control of tramways would be impossible, so long as they were subject in this way to tho interference of the Government. "I am afraid," remarked Councillor Trevor, "that there will be contention right through between tho City Council and the Government. It seems to me that the setting up of the new Appeal Board has taken away tho power from file corporation of exorcising a reasonable control'over its own affairs." The onlv attitude to be assumed towards tho proposed regulations, Councillor Trevor concluded, was one of uncompromising hostility.

What About Excursion Trains? Councillor G. Frost said he could only form one impression about the draft regulations: they represented an unwarranted interference with local bodies by tho Government. This interference, to say the least, was in no way necessary. The local bodies, guided by their experts, wero quite as competent as the Government to deal with tramway affairs, and, sinco tho local bodies were responsible in the matter of finance, they ought surely to be permitted to control and manage their own tramways. As to overcrowding, people certainly preferred being crowded in tramcars to being left behind. In Wellington, cxcessivo overcrowding was occasioned chiefly by the fact that, on wet mornings and evenings, everybody wanted to ride on the trams, including those who ordinarily walked. Even on wet days, excessive overcrowding was confined to certain hours, and as things stood it was absolutely impossible that tho corporation should provide cars and a staff to copo with iho traffic on these comparatively infrequent occasions. Necessarily it would mean providing special cars anil extra men to work them. Under the existing agreement with its tramway employees the corporation was only permitted to 'employ them on broken shifts to a very lim--11•od extent and in tho demands of the men for a. new agreement, now under consideration. this liberty was still ' further reslricted. The Government, Councillor Vrojt. added, did not apply such regulations in regard to orjicroftdins on.itt

railways. At holiday times excursionists travelling on the Government trains were packed like cattle into trucks. The corporation in Wellington never carried tilings to this length. Tramway passengers did not object to being crowded on special occasions so long as they could get home. The people of Brooklyn, indeed, would bo glad to see a little more crowding allowed on their tramway than was permitted at present.