THE PROPOSED TRAIN SERVICE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XIX, Issue 2052, 6 December 1924, Page 5

THE PROPOSED TRAIN SERVICE.

INCONVENIENCE TO LOCAL RESIDENTS. REPRESENTATIONS TO MINISTER A close investigation into the matter of the proposed new express service on the Main Trunk line shows that this is going to be a serious inconvenience to residents of this district, whose business takes them to Auckland. The express that will stop at Te Kuiti will leave here about 9 p.m., and arrive at Auckland at midnight. The only available express for the return journey will leave Auckland at 7.55 am., and this means that anyone from here will have to spend two nights in Auckland in order to transact any business there. Mr J. C. Rolleston, M.P., has been in communication with the Minister of Railways on the matter, and has handed us the following correspondence on the matter. Mr Rolleston wires the Minister as follows: “Hon. J. G. Coates, Wellington.— Re proposed alterations Main Trunk expresses. Te Kuiti fanners and business men seriously affected if pi’oposals given effect to. Persons desirous of visiting Auckland for one day’s business, alterations will entail two nights’ lodgings at Auckland or Frankton and 38 hours from time of leaving Te Kuiti till return, as against 21 hours at present and no. lodging required. Am writing you on subject and trust full consideration will be given to necessity of stepping the ‘limited’ at Te Kuiti.” The following reply was received from the Hon, Mr Coates on the Ist inst: — “J. C. Rolleston, Esq., M.P., Te Kuiti—Your telegram received. Representations concerning stopping of ‘limited’ at Te Kuiti noted. Of course, Te Kuiti will not be affected unless present ordinary express timetables are altered, and there is no possibility of that until the holiday traffic is finished. Even if the ‘limited’ is stopped at Te Kuiti il is very doubtful that accommodation would be available on that train, as precedence must* be given to through and long distance passengers.” A letter was received from the Minister by Mr Rolleston as under: — “I am in receipt of your letter of the 30th ultimo, drawing attention on behalf of business men and farmers in the vicinity of Te Kuiti to the disabilities which they would suffer by the alteration to the ordinary Main Trunk express time-tables, and urging that the ‘limited’ expresses should stop at Te Kuiti. “As I pointed out in my telegram of yesterday, it is essential that long distance passengers should be given preference on the ‘limited’ expresses, and as the number of passenger coaches will be limited to nine, it is most probable that through and longdistance passengers will absorb the whole of the .accommodation. Apart from this, the time-tables have been worked out on the running now proposed with the stops already decided upon, and any departure from the policy laid down would create a.farreaching precedent and practically make it impossible to provide fast express services. You may rest assured, however, that when proposals are under consideration in connection with recasting of the time tables of the ordinary express trains, the representations made by you on behalf of Te Kuiti will have very full consideration. As I have already pointed out, that question will not be gone into until after the holiday season is over.”