Greymouth Evening Star. THURSDAY, JUNE 17, 1943. RAILWAYS REPORT.

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 June 1943, Page 4

Greymouth Evening Star. THURSDAY, JUNE 17, 1943. RAILWAYS REPORT.

‘’J'AXP AYERS will share Mr. Semple’s gratification that the railways net revenue for the year was record-making, but there is “a fly in the ointment.” Much of what the taxpayers gained from the increased railway takings came from their own pockets to pay for war expenses, servicemen’s travelling and the developments following the road traffic restrictions due to tyres and oil shortage. Everything has combined to thrust business on to the railways, to an embarrassing extent, so much so that the Department has had to urge many would-be passengers not to travel, and to limit the facilities for journeys. Generally, the annual report does not warrant detailed comment, because of the unusual circumstances. It is the duty to be appreciative rathe*!' than critical.

The Minister's tribute to the Department’s employees was well-deserved. The extraordinary demands on the railways could not have been met but for the cooperation of the staff, of all grades and types of service. The General Manager (Mr. E. Casey) intimates that “in view of the ever-increasing volume of traffic which the railways are being called upon to carry and having regard to the seriously depleted staff, it is clear that measures to ease the situation will have to be given very serious consideration in the immediate future. There appear to be only two alternatives, either the staff, particularly on the operating side, must be augmented or severe restrictions in railway services will have to be imposed.” Protests against the excessive strain on railway employees have been made by branches of the E.F.C.A., alarm being expressed at the effect of over-long working shifts, irregular meals, insufficient sleep and inadequate leave. It is not in the interests of public safety that railwaymen should be subjected to prolonged endurance tests, and it is to be hoped that a satisfactory relief scheme will soon be in operation. As for the more direct war effort, it is stated that-as at March 31 the number of railway employees serving with the armed forces totalled 6,876. Of these, 78 have been posted missing and 214 are known to be prisoners of Avar. The number of railwaymen who have made the supreme sacrifice in the present war totals 168.

By a coincidence, about the same time as Mr. Semple was presenting the Railways statement to Parliament, Sir Ernest Davis was speaking at Auckland about post-war transport problems, urging the appointment by the Government of a committee to consider ways and means of best meeting the new conditions. That something of this preparatory nature is desirable is obvious. The development of aerial transport will seriously affect railways, and shipping, and it would be Aviso to avoid “rafferty rule.” Aerial conveyances will not for many years, if ever, displace railways and ships from dominance where normal transport is concerned, but must be regarded as important competitors for passenger and goods traffic. Some degree of Government control of transport facilities seems unavoidable, but should be restricted so as not to check, unduly, private enterprise and initiative. State monopoly of railways is no unmixed blessing, as New Zealand knows too well.