TRAMWAY TRAFFIC. SOME PHENOMENAL FIGURES.

Evening Post, Volume LXXV, Issue 23, 28 January 1908, Page 7

TRAMWAY TRAFFIC. SOME PHENOMENAL FIGURES.

£2672 PROFIT FOR NINE -MONTHS. Peculiar interest attaches to the report on tho working of the city tramways, presented to last night's meeting of tho City Council Tramways Committee by Air. Stuart Richardson, electrical engineer to tho city it dealt, with the four-weekly period ending sth January last, and thus took account of tha extraordinary traffic of the holiday season, which far exceeded all previous records. In addition, a progress report was given of the receipts for the nine months of the financial year that have already elapsed, and it is satisfactory to be able to report that tho extra receipts of the holidays were no isolated instance, biit that the nine monthly period shows a decided expansion of traffic, and also of net to venue. The phenomenal proportion of the total population that patronises the Wellington tramways was commented apon in The Post a few months ago, when it was shown that Wellington citizens travel by tram to an extent that gives totals exceeding those of cities possessing a larger population than that of Wellington. The latest returns accentuate this fact, and it will be seen, by reference to the figures given in the paragraphs following that the day must be close at hand when the number of i passengers upon the Wellington tramways in a four-weekly period will total two millions. INCOME AND EXPENDITURE. The report shows that the tramway returns for the four weeks ended sth January totalled £11.131, and the expenditure (including £390 compensation on account of tho Brooklyn accident), £6478. There was thus an excess of revenue over working expenses amounting to £4653. The total revenue of the tramways for the period to sth January of the financial year, which ends 31st March next, is £92,216 11s 4d, and the expenditure totals £61,938 2s sd. The difference— £3o,27B 8s lid— is available for sinking funds, interest on loans, depreciation, and similar charges (estimated at £27,516), leaving a profit tp date of £2672 8s lid. DOES ANYBODY WALK? The total number of passengers carried on the city lines during the fourweekly period under review was 1 746,712, an increase of 339,473 over u.ie corresponding period of last year. In addition to these there were 62,376 passengers carried on the Karori line, 61,834 on the Miramar line, and 34,160 on the Seatoun lino. These additions raise the total number of passengers carried to 1,905,082. RUNNING RECORDS. The total mileage of runs made by the cars on all lines during the four weeks represented 161,704 miles. Of this number 150,205 miles were run on tho city lines, 5241 on lines, 4475 on Miramar lines, and 1783 on Seatoun lines. The figures for the city show an increase of nearly 25,000 miles over those for the corresponding period of the year preceding. Th/ere are no corresponding figures for Karori, Miramar, and Seatoun, as those lines were not then open for traffir. The traffic revenue from the city lines, per car mile run, shows a most satisfactory increase, the figures being 16.10 d and 14.11 d respectively, or an increase of 1.99 d. There was an unavoidable increase in the total working expenses per car mile, but the ratio of increase (.47d) left a substantial amount to profit from receipts, as shown above. The total Working expenses per car. milewere 9.43 d for the four weeks ended stb January, compared with 8.96 d for the equivalent period in 1906-7. The excess of revenue over working expenses per car mile was 6.91 d, an injerease of .10d over tho usual comparative period. HOLIDAY TRAFFIC. The monetary returns for carriage of passengers in the holiday week havo been published already. The numbers carried are now available. On Christmas Eve the total was close upon 100,000 — an extraordinary record indeed for a centre possessing a population of less than 70,000, including the inhabitants of contiguous localities outside the actual city boundaries. The figures are :—: — Christmas Eve, 99,078 passengers. Boxing Day, 83,171 passengers. All that week the figures were high, namely :—: — i 27th December, 69,275 passengers. 28th December, 75,721 passengers. 29th December, 34,449 passengers. 30th December, 59,192 passengers. New Year's Eve, 82,206 passengers. New dear's Day, 76,332 passengers. 2nd January, 67,803 passengers. 3rd January, 64,354 passengers. 4th January, 75,362 passengers. 5tH January, 31,868 passengers. SECTIONAL RETURNS. The biggest monetary returns were yielded by the Newtown section, which includes the Newtown car routes via Cuba-street and Courtenay-place and tho Government railway station ; also to Tinakori-road, when the Government station is not made the terminal point. On these trips 712,772 passengers were carried in the four weeks, and their fares totalled £2962 16s 7£d, giving average receipts per car mile of 19.99. The Island Bay section came next, as a revenue yielder. This section has tho following stages : Island Bay to Duppastreet, Duppa-street to Rintoul-street, Rintoul-sfcreet to Courtenay-place, Court-enay-place to the, Government railway station. On this route 528,769 passengers were carried, and their fares yielded £2008 19s ll^d, an average receipt per car mile run of 18.24. Next cama the sections divided up as city boundary to Kilbirnie Hotel, Kilbirnie Hotel to Courtenay-place, and Courtenay-placs to Government railway station. It yielded £1679 6s ILJd, contributed by 413,650 passengers, an average receipt per car mile of 17.84. There are five other divisions of the city service, and all of them showed profits. Oriental Bay section filled fourth place, partly on account of extraneous traffic derived from its city sections (Courtenay-place to Government railway station, and Government railway station to Thorndon). The revenue of this division totalled £934 5s l^d, the passengers carried 224,337, and the average receipts par car mile 13.35. A division that works ground largely covered by the Nowtown section is that termod Constable-street. Constablestreet to Courtenay-place, Courtenayplace to' Government railway station, and Government railway station to Manawatu railway station are the sections. The revenue from thess totalled £918 12s 7d, the passengers carried were 220,913, and the average receipts per car mile 12.64. Brooklyn division — viz., Brooklyn to Webb-street, Webb-street to Mannersstrcet, and Manners-street to Government station — carried 147,983 passengers, "yielded £552 14s 5d in fares^ and gave an average receipt per car mile of 12.11. On Wallace-street division — viz., Wal-lace-street to Manners-street, Mannersstreet to Government station, and Government station to Thovndon — 130,125 passengers were carried, fares totalled £542 16s Id, and the average receipts per car mile were 12.22. Aro-street gave the lowest figures all round. This division runs Aro-street to

Manners-street, Manners-street to Government' station, and Government station to Manawatu station. The average receipts per car mile were 11.84, tho passengers carried were 115,464, and the fares totalled £482 11s Bd. For purposes of the foregoing figures, tlje "passengers" are taken as one to each penny of revenue, though actually they average about one to each ljjd. On the penny per passenger reckoning there are 2,494,013 for all sections, during tha four- weekly period, which expressed in pounds yields £10,082 3s sd. The total car miles run gave a record of 150,205.