New 'Phones For North, Whangarei Within Year

Northern Advocate, 7 May 1948, Page 5

New 'Phones For North, Whangarei Within Year

“EXTENSION of the underground telephone cable system between the Whangarei CPO and Kamo Springs Spa is in progress and the work should be completed in about a year’s time unless unforeseen difficulties are experienced,’’ said the telegraph engineer for Northland (Mr C. G. Pryor) at a Junior Chamber of Commerce luncheon yesterday.

“Thu extension will provide for new connections in the urban and rural districts on the north side of the town.

“I do appreciate the great need lor expansion in the present service, and I am fully aware of the large numbers on the waiting list for telephones." Mr Pryor added. "Many intending subscribers have not received the service they asked for some years ago.

“However, the policy of the Post and Telegraph is not one of laissez faire.

10-PARTY LINES “The Whangarei automatic telephone exchange was installed in 1931, and only one addition has since been made.

"No further extensions have been possible because of the war, and because all equipment must be impprted. “We are at present using, for borough residents, 10-party lines originally designed for those people living <;o far out that an individual phone would involve an exorbilana rent. “There will be no one happier than I when these party lines go.

“Besides internal exchange equipment. there has been a shortage of underground cables. “Each telephone requires two wires between it and the exchange, and the whole system is at present full to capacity. SWEDISH EQUIPMENT

“Exchange equipment from Sweden is due in the next few months, but this will take three or four months to install."

Turning to some of the difficulties experienced by subscribers when using their telephones, Mr Pryor said it was a constant cause- of. wonderment to him that such a complex system worked with so few failures. ' “To connect just one call, the current must travel through more than COO electrical contacts within the exchange. “When the subscriber picks up his receiver, a line-finder sweeps ovei the group of wires containing his line.

“When this finder “freezes" on to the line, the person using the phone hears a humming sound. WAIT BEFORE DIALLING

“In recent years, the subscriber may have found he has to wait some time before the humming sound commences.

“This is because the exchange is becoming increasingly busy, and the line-finder is engaged on another call “As soon as someone else hangs up, the finder is free to attend a new call.

“The subscriber may then dial a number, and the current goes through a complex series of contacts, and such a thing as a grain of dust on any of these could upset the system and give the wrong number, or no number at all.

“However, the percentage of calls which go wrong is extremely small. AUTOMATIC SELECTION “When the number has been dialled. a connector selects the correct wire, and the subscriber hears the ringing which announces a successful call.

“Any number of things can go wrong during the process, however, such as leakage of current in rainy weather caused by trees contacting the wires outside the house or building .”

Thanking Mr Pryor for his address, Mi P. Knight said that if people knew of the difficulties apd intricacies of the system and its installation, they would not be so impatient with the telegraph staff, nor with the policy of .the department.