RAILWAY DEVIATION

Grey River Argus, 11 January 1944, Page 2

RAILWAY DEVIATION

turakina-okoia section. WANGANUI, Jan. 9. Because of a shortage of manpower, the completion of the railway deviation between Turakma and Okoia, on the main line from Wellington to Wanganui and Taranaki, is being delated. At present about 50 rpen are emploved, but it is stated that the work could absorb three times that number. The Turakina River has been bridged and preliminary work is in hand on a track which will give access to a tunnel between the Wangaehu and Turakina Rivers. Plant is also being assembled. The bridge over the Turakina is of the plate girder tvne and has four spans of 55 ft. each. The laying of the girders presented some unusual engineering problems. The next stage of the operations will be the provision of a temporary track over this bridge, after which no difficulty will be experienced in transporting materials to the southern portal of the first tunnel. The work is being carried out by the Works Department under the supervision of Mr. E. D. Kalaugher. A further phase in the operations will be the riveting of the lengthy bridge which will span the Wangaehu; River. A start will be made as soon as the required men are available. The bridge is of the through girder type and will contain six spans 'each 60ft. in length. It will be motmlted on five sets of concrete wh;ich are alreadv in position. Thengirders will be drawn across the bridge in successive stages. The longest tunnel on the l?i-mile deviation is that between the two rivers. It has a length of 104 chains and was pierced before the war, after which construction was temporarily suspended, mainly because of a shortao-e of manpower and material. This tunnel is of a type new to New Zealand. Built after the American practice, it has straight walls and a semi-circular top. The formations and roadbeds of the deviation have been completed, but the plate-laying has yet to begin