HOLIDAY TRAVEL

Evening Star, Issue 25634, 7 November 1945, Page 4

HOLIDAY TRAVEL

RAILWAY ARRAK6WNTS | ADDITIONAL SERVICES EXTENSION ACCORDING TO DEMAND (Special.) WELLINGTON, Nov. 7. The train arrangements for the Christmas and New Year holiday period were announced this morning by the Minister of Railways, the Hon. R. Semple. There will be additional trains, but the service will not be augmented greatly in the initial stages.' However, further trains will be provided according to the demand and the amount of coal available. Mr Semple referred to the assurances that had been given of substantial increases in the quantity of coal to be supplied to the department from now until Christmas and of further supplies to enable the department to cater for the heavy seasonal increase in goods traffic, starting -early in Jannary. In view of that, _he added, it had been considered desirable to give an indication of the department's projected programme to cater for holiday traffic. Mr Semple explained that, in view of certain unusual features connected with the holiday period this year, centring (principally round the fact xhat most industries would close down on Friday, December 21, the incidence of, travel was not likely to follow.the usual trend of heavy concentration on Christmas Eve, but would more likely be fairly heavy for several consecutive days ahead of Christmas. For that reason, it was not proposed initially to provide for a greatly augmented service, but the demand for travel facilities would be closely watched and trains additional to those mentioned below would be added, according to the development of the demand, provided, of course, the coal supplies permitted that being done. NORTH ISLAND. r As far as main trunk trains are concerned, six trains each way between Auckland and Wellington are planned for Friday, December 21, four for tW Saturday, three for the Sunday, and four for the 24th. The Limited expresses will resume their normal running on Monday, December 17, and run up to and including Monday, January 7. This means that l.etween I those dates there will be a Limited nightly, except on Saturdays. The only sleeping accommodation that will be provided on main trunk expresses will be two cars on f£ch Limited express on Mondays and Frk days. , The expresses on other principal routes —• Auckland-Opua, AucklandRotorua, Auckland-Taneatua, Welling-ton-New Plymouth, and Wellington-Napier-Gisborne—will run daily from December 17 to January 12, with additional relief trains on selected days for the holiday peat traffic. SOUTH ISLAND. In the South Island the 8.35 a.m. Christohurch-Invercargill express and the 7 a.m. Invorcargill-Lyttelton ex-, press will run daily from December 17 to January 12, being supplemented by the 9.10 a.m. Christchurch-Dunedin and the 8.45 a.m. Dunedin-Ghristchurch expresses. The 11.2 p.m. night express from Christchurch to Dunedin will run on December 20, 21, 23, and 24, and January 2,4, 6, and 11, and the 11.20 p.m. Dunedin-Christchurch express will run on December 20, 21, and 24, and January 2,3, 5, 10, and 12, in addition to the usual 6.30 p.m. InvercargillOliTistchnrch Sunday express. The 8.33 a.m. Dunedin-Invercargill and 1.25 p.m. Invercargill-Dunedin expresses and the 7.52 a.ra. DunedinCromwell and 9.10 a.m. Cromwell-Dun-edin trains will run daily from December 17 to January 12. Additional night trains will also be provided between Christchurch and Greymouth on selected days of the high-peak traffic. In so far as the Christchurch-Picton area is concerned, a daily through rail service will run-from December 17 to January 7, provided construction work on'the present.unopened section between Oaro and Kaikoura is completed and that this section. is available for through traffic. Should the Oaro-Kai-koura- section not be open for traffic, passengers will be conveyed- between these two points by road service, as at present, RESERVATION PERIOD. , To enable intending passengers to conclude their accommodation arrangements as early as possible, it has been decided to accept, as from Monday, November 12, applications for. the reservation %i seats on express and relief trains up to one calendar month ahead of the travel date. The present arrangement whereby, two days' grace is allowed passengers applying at stations other than a seat allotting station will continue. The effect of the above is that a passenger may apply, say, at Wellington for a seat from Wellington to Auckland "one calendar month ahead of the travel date, but the application for a reservation for a similar journey may be made at a country station one month and two days ahead of travel date, although the latter application will not receive priority over the Wellington application when seats are being allotted. This extension of time (to a month) for booking will apply to all travel up to and including January 12. For journeys to be made on January 13 and thereafter the reserving period will be reduced! to that at present in force—namely, one week ahead for applications made at seatallotting stations, and nine days ahead for applications made at non-allotting,! stations. In other words, the earliest application for a seat for travel on January 13 will be receivable at allotting stations on January 6, and at nonallotting stations on January 4.