RATANA SMASH

Evening Post, Volume CXXV, Issue 144, 21 June 1938, Page 6

RATANA SMASH

INQUIRY RESUMED

EXPERT CROSS-EXAMINED

The inquiry into the Ratana derailment was resumed yesterday, when the cross-examination of the technical witnesses for the Railway Department was Commenced.

The Board of Inquiry consists of Sir Francis Frazer (chairman) and Messrs. H. L. Cole and F. W. Furkert.

Mr. H. F. O'Leary, K.C., with Mi F, W. Aickin, railway law officer, an representing the Railway Departmenl and Mr. G. G. Watson, the Engim Drivers' Association and the driver o the train, Mr. E. Percival. Mr. F. J Foot is appearing for the relatives o ihe late Mrs. E. S. Lewis and Mrs Ssme Webb, two of the passengers md Mr. N. T. Gillespie for the rela ives of the late Mrs. Hazel D. Tullock mother passenger on the train. The first witness was Mr. A. fc Vansbrough, who was cross-exammet >y Mr. Watson. A speed board, kv aid, was designed to remind a drive hat he was coming into a restrict* peed area, and speed boards shoulc ie efficiently and accurately placed n general the only indications to i iriver as to his position were th' peed boards and the mile po9ts. Tni nile posts on this trip were not 01 he driver's side of the engine. The: lad not been altered in position sina he Tawa Flat deviation was put int< jperatlon, though this had taken tw< niles off the distance, but this had no >een necessary, as the mile posts wen nerely to fix any locality in the casi >f the need for repairs, etc. He gav< he mile post distances between Wei ington and Palmerston North an< 'almerston North and Ratana com >ined as 127 miles 15 chains, but em jhasised that neither the mile pos listanoes nor the working time-tabl< iistances necessarily represented th< ictual distances. It would only intro luce confusion in the Departmenta •ecords if pegs .were continually be ng shifted to accord . with sligh :hanges in the exact length of th< ine. If a driver could not see th< nile pegs at night, as in this instance le could have told his position as be ng midway between two speed re itriction points (which he quoted), ant f not from that he could have rebec m his knowledge of the road. If thi iriver had not been on this road fo: >ight years,' and he had no othe: neans of ascertaining his position, hi :ould do so by consulting the work ng time-table. He would not agree with the sug jestion that the driver might havi jeen misled by the fact that the mU< post distances did not ■ represent thi ictual distances, because the drive; vould not have ascertained his posi ion in that way. • Do you agree, that a driver shoulc earn to drive by landmarks, couplet vith his experience of the track?In' my opinion he should use every hing that helps him in any way SCriowledge of landmarks would b< m advantage. The witness was cross-examined re warding the Spiller formula for cal •ulating speed at which an ; engim vould climb the rail, On a curve o i.4 chains radius this speed was 31 niles per hour. At that speed then vas the chance of a wheel breaking t was maintained by Spiller, but i ilower speed should be safe. The evi ience in the present case was that th< rain did not mount the rail, but tha t overturned. His evidence already jiveh was to show that it overturned: it a speed of approximately 50 mile! )er hour. Spiller's formula, If it ap jlied to this accident, would show hat a train should be mounting th« •ails at 35 miles per hour. Spiller'* ormula was the first serious 1 attetaipl o determine what a critical speed vas, and had therefore been largely lsed in various railway services ; ir ixing the authorised speeds on curves, Che speeds adopted by the New Zeaand Railways had been on more conlervative speeds than those derived rom Spiller's formula. It was thirty rears since Spiller's formula had been svolved, and modern practice tended o fix speeds more from the formula or overturning the engine on its iprings. , Mr, Wansbrough was questioned at ength on the question of the angles if incidence of rails and tyres, the efect of wear and tear on these, and in other technical matters. His crossixaminatioh will be resumed today.

The board adjourned at 4.50 p.m. until 10,30 today. . . :