THE COST OF OUR RAILWAYS.

North Otago Times, 3 November 1906, Page 2

THE COST OF OUR RAILWAYS.

Jfoe Dte%- lcttet has been sent Sir.—Over £30,000 per mile 1« ti,„ lV be dealing wit til n<Sni Cle ? rwhich the Seddou and Waff Lw Ht-ration is responsible. U admuu " On the 31st of March, 1890, we had dill miles of working rXavs which on opened and unopened cost an average of £810? per mi e of open railway. l °' Five years later, in 1901, we Iml added to our railways 19« new mi ps and these cost £9502 per m le-an in' crease of £1495 per mile Five years later still. j n 190G we had added another 195 new mile's at an average cost of £30,087 per mile an increase m cost on the previous five years of £20,485 per mi e Let n.e repeat £30,087 per mtle was the price paid for every mile opened du. I|K the last five years. Sir Joseph Ward took charge of our railways in loJo.

H seems incredible that for an increased expenditure of £5,867.000 during five years all we have obtained of new railways is 195 miles. It is quite certain that during the last five years there has been nothing in the circumstances of the colony that could need or justify increasing the cost of constructing each mile of railway to nearly three and a quarter times as much as it cost during the previous five years. Please remember that all the figures I have here given are official figures taken from the" Railways Reports,'' and can be easily proved to be correct. '

There is no doubt that the real reason why there is no Railways Authorisation Bill to be introduced this session is that the Government has found out that it is impossible to go on constructing new lines at the enormous cost thev now entail. What is the reason of this vast increase In price? No doubt the price of labor and materials has risen, but not to three times the price of five years years ago. There ought to be some reply to this nuestion,