VERY GOOD EVENING

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 26, 30 July 1937, Page 11

VERY GOOD EVENING

TRAFFIC MEN OFF THE ROAD

TALK BY CITY ENGINEER

Last, evening the' thirty-five members of the City Traffic Office entertained the City Engineer,. Mr. K. E. Luke, the' Mayor,; Mr.' T. C. A. Hislop, Councillor M. F. Luckie, chairman of the bylaws committee of the City Council, Councillor WV Duncan, and officers from other departments of the council service at an informal evening in the Palm Lounge of the Hotel St. George, the, chair being taken by, the Mayor. They did it extremely well, for if traffic inspectors look hard men on the street, they do open up at such a social function. Moreover, they did if last night, without any practice, for, as the' Mayor 'remarked, though the traffic men,had'done a great deal for. other people in the way of entertainment, and had raised no less' than £2000 for various good causes, without making any fuss about it—without even telling the public what they were doing—they had not previously arranged an evening for themselves and others in the city service interested in their work. . ■ '.

No one has yet heard a traffic inspector burst into song while on point duty, yet they must do it somewhere, for a very pleasant programme of musical and other numbers was sandwiched in between talks and discussions. Items were given'by Messrs. T. Broughton, senior inspector, R. Collins,.W. Pellew, T." Jeffreys,, and X.. Thurkettle, at the piano." "The'one member of the staff who obviously has had lots of street practice was Mr. A. J. Cooke, chief city pavement artist, but last night he did not work with white paint, but made fun of various people present with coloured chalks on a blackboard. A neat touch was given by Mr. L. F. Moss, who touched up the cards of supper placings with miniature cartoons illustrating -traffic rules and how they should not-be used. Mr.'Luke was supposed to be limited to half an hour in his talk on ' Australian traffic control systems, but time ran on far past that limit, and was continued further when he answered a number of questions; Incidentally, Mr. Luke, while ' disclaiming any desire to flatter, said that he returned to Wellington with the pleasurable thought that he had not seen anywhere in Australia any traffic control organisation whose uniform and good appearance on the streets were the- equal of those of the Wellington traffic' department. . ;

Among officers from other departments present were Mr. E. P. Norman, Town Clerk, Mr. M. Cable, General Manager of the Tramways and Electricity Departments, Mr. E. McKillop, Deputy City Engineer, Mr. M.- J. Casey,. Mr. F. Malcolm, superintendent tramway overhead and. light signals, and Mr. A. R. Cooper, City Solicitor's Office.