TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 22 October 1927, Page 9

TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

CONTINUAL PROGRESS. IMPORTANT DOMINION SERVICE. When dealing With the Post and Telegraph constructional activities in the course of his annual statementpresented to the House of Representatives last night, the Minister for Public Works, the lion. K. S. Williams, made some interesting references to the manner in which the telephone system had grown during the year. He said: —

“The past year has been one of steady progress, both in the matter of providing greater facilities for intercommunication by telephone between various- parts of the Dominion and in extending the local' exchange systems. Some idea of the vast amount of developmental Avork Avhich is carried out inthe course of twelve months in connection AA’ith the Dominion’s telephone system may be gauged from the fact that the additions to plant during the year consisted -of 1,023 miles of pole line, 32 miles of single-duet line, 168 miles of cable containing 47,115 miles wire, 8.666 miles of bare aerial wire, 1,400 miles of covered Avire, 10,560 main and 2,830 extension telephones, together Avith a large number of im-proA-ements to plant, the extent of which cannot readily be illustrated by figures. “The ramifications of extra-high-tension poAA-er lines, AA-hich now extend to practically every part of th e Dominion, and Avhich in many cases paralled for long distances telephone and telegraph circuits, necessitated during the year the conversion of a number of toll lines! and telephone circuits to metallic-circuit working in order to eliminate inductive interference from p O AA-er lines. This, and the provision of additional protective devices to safeguard users of the telephone against injury from electric shocks and to protect * departmental apparatus, necessarily adds considerably to the cost of providing telephone services. “In connection AA’ith the extension of the local exchange systems, there has been added during the y’ear a total •of 10,560' neAV subscribers, Avhich, although not the largest number added in any one year, nevertheless represented a very substantial increase in the number of subscribers ’ stations and involved a great deal of new construction and extension work, both in the matter of outside plant and SAvitehing equipment. Deferred applications on hand for telephone service on March. 31 totalled 2; 286, of Avhic-h numbers 1,600 are at five large exchanges Avhere a. shortage of switching-apparatus is retarding development.”