“IS THIS JOURNEY REALLY NECESSARY?”

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 80, 23 February 1945, Page 2

“IS THIS JOURNEY REALLY NECESSARY?”

MOST TRAVELLERS HAVE GENUINE REASONS Wellington. Feb. 23. Though there had been a great deal of talk and publicity about unnecessary rail travel, the majority of people using long-distance trains had genuine reasons for doing so, said an official of the Wellington railway station yesterday. Admittedly trains were carrying a large number of people travelling for pleasure. but these were chiefiy returned members of the forces who were entitled to a few weeks’ free travel with their families. Business men also occupied a fair number of seats on expresses, and people wishing to travel because of » bereavement were seldom refused. Express trains operating on the pregent restricted time-table were running comfortably filled and sometimes there were quite a uumber of spare seats available. There was an instance of this only this week when the South Island ferry steamer arrived too late to connect with the Napier express, leaving many empty seats for people from Wellington who had missed out on reservations. ... Booking arrangements at the W ellington station were operating most satisfactorily, it was stated. Complaints had been received from intending passengers who said they had not been given seats, yet had been only five or six back in the queue when the office opened. The reason for this, which few people seemed to realize, was that bookings for each train were not received solely from those in queues at the Wellington station. Immediately the booking office opened, reservations began to come in from other railway stations throughout the country and from tourist and travel booking offices in Wellington. Members of the station booking staff who could not be seen by the public were constantly employed in taking outside reservations. Difficulty would probably be experienced in reserving first-class seats as the number of first-class carriages bad been strictly limited since the coal-saving cut was begun. There were now no sleeping cars on the main trunk, and only one express to and from Auckland daily. The heaviest travel was ou this section.