The Evening Star WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 1922. Tramways Policy.

Evening Star, Issue 17925, 22 March 1922, Page 4

The Evening Star WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22, 1922.

Tramways Policy.

It is perhaps rather Lite in the clay to

criticise the balloon, loop for tramway purposes in Lower High street, seeing

that its construction is now under way. Our excuse is that construction provides us with the first intimation of what the plan really is. The same complaint lias been made by councillors. At the City Council meeting on March 4 Cr Taplcy complained that the committee responsible had given the council ns a whole no opportunity of approving the scheme. The frequency of statements of this nature seems to indicate that Town Hall methods are carrying rather to an extreme the principle of specialisation. Ratepayers regard councillors as a whole as being responsible to them; hut it is not altogether fair to hold responsible a councillor, not on some particular committee involved, who is unable to find out what that committee is doing until it is done beyond recall. This appears to be the position in regard to the High street loop. Probably it will answer its primary purpose of obviating shunting in the heart of the city area—a peculiarly obstructive and time-wasting process where the use of trailer cars is involved. Wc understand that the curve is of 53ft radius, as against curves of 47ft radius on the chief corners on the various routes. It should thus be negotiable easily enough ; but the sweep is much more cramped than modern practice aims at where space is available, in this case it is available, or could easily bo made so. Originally it was proposed to make use of Rattray street as well as High street in the layout of the loop. For some reason this was vetoed, and no encroachment on Rattray street was allowed. This seems to us a cramped policy hi more senses than one. The easier the curve the better for smooth, economical, and silent running. And it looks ns though the council was not looking beyond the immediate present. It is an archaic system which would make its tramway system sedulously avoid the wharves. Some day there will surely be need' for a line down Lower Rattray street, and the utilisation of part of that thoroughfare for this loop, proposed before the laying down of its surface in Trinidad asphalt, would have ultimately fitted in with that extension.

There is also real need for a shelter shed somewhere in the vicinity of the new loop. In providing amenities for passengers the Dunedin tramway system is noticeably behind those of other New Zealand centres. Oup most frequent boast in connection with our system seems to be in regard to the civility of its staff; but a polite reception aboard the car will not blindl a passenger to the fact that he has got his clothes unpleasantly wet in waiting for it. Councillors individually do not seem oblivious to the requirements of the public; but when it comes to providing them there appears to be some retarding influence i impossible to overcome. Economy may be the watchword nowadays, but when carried to the extreme lengths of parsimony it may prove to be false economy; and when the sendees of two engineers in different departments of the corporation are invoked on the same job there is surely no economy of effort in the matter of utilisation of the officials’ services and time. The value of the city electrical engineer to his own department is too great and tho calls on him by it are too many for him to have imposed on him work naturally falling within the scope of another department, This is simply inviting the results of overwork at a time when the approaching Waipori extensions demand tho undivided attention of the officer in question.