RAILWAY MANAGEMENT.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVIII, Issue 18414, 21 May 1920, Page 5

RAILWAY MANAGEMENT.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —I am not a person given to airing my grievances in tho correspondence columns of a newspaper, but the gross mismanagement by the railway authorities in the handling of tho extraordinary railway traffic between Christchurch and Lyttelton last Saturday really calls for the most caustic oriticism. Surely the extra passenger traffic could have been foreseen and adequate arrangements made to cope with it. Three ticket boxes were placed outside the “ palisade ” to supply tickets to about 20,000 passengers. Tho crushing and pushing round these boxes was disgraceful, and many gave up the struggle in despair. The ticket issuers were anything but swift, and complaints of wrong change were frequent;. I myself was victimised in this way, notwithstanding that I drew tho ticket clerk’s attention to it, but as the rail way finances are in a notoriously bad way, I did not press the point, but pocketed tlio change and proceeded to get out of the crush. Getting out was nearly ns bad as getting the [ticket. But having procured a ticket did not mean getting on to a train or even into the station. Just as I mounted tho steps a door was pushed to and apparently bolted. The crush was almost as bad at first as getting a ticket, and afterwards it was much worse. After a tedious wait'of over half an hour, during which there were several false alarms, which meant more crushing from the rear, the door was finally opened- The opening of the door was the signal for an iiTesistible rush, during which women screamed, “ Mind the children 1” That children were not trampled underfoot was a miracle. I finally got into a carriage, which was filled to suffocation, and during the journey to Lyttelton I was, struck by the fact that we did not pass a single return train. Being stuffed in a full carriage, however, was not the worst. Before entering the tunnel I noticed that tho carriage was devoid of light I really don’t object Mo being fumigated with sulphur, so long as I am able to see that others are sharing my medicine, but I do object to being fumigated in the inky blackness of the Lyttelton tunnel._ Sir, I am not a supporter of theoanal. but I must confess that on the occasions when I have to use the Lyttelton train, the Railway Department generally does its best to convert me.—-I am, etc., LET THERE BE LIGHT. May 18.