OUR RAILWAYS: THE LAST TWELVE WEEKS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9179, 8 October 1888, Page 3

OUR RAILWAYS: THE LAST TWELVE WEEKS.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir,—For some time past the railway systems of Taranaki, Wanganui, Nelson, and Picton have all been worked at a loss. That is to say not only have they not contributed one penny of interest on the £1,810,000 they have cost the colony, bub in addition a sum of £519 has had to be expended during the last twelve weeks in order to keep them open. Together they measure 256 miles, and this is how they have been working for the period mentioned :— Passengers, decrease (fares) 14.053 or ID'S per cent. Tonnage, decrease (tons) .. 1,000 or S'2 „ Gross revenue, decrease- ... £2,377 or£l2 12s „ Net revenue, none whatever, but a dead loss of £519. Taking the whole railways of the colony for the twenty weeks reported of the current fin ncial year, and with the exception of calves (! !), chaff (!), and grain, every department of traffic exhibits a seric:;s falling off. Passenger traffic has decreased by 206,619, fares, and revenue by £21,293, the Treasurer's estimate being that we should obtain an increase of £45,000 during the year. The little Whangarei-Kamo line conies out in violent contrast to the above. During the same period of twelve weeks this i 3; what has been done there : Passengers, increase.. .. 972 fares, or 47*1 v Merchandise, increase .. 395 tons, or 54'0 '"' Minerals, increase .. .. 1:175 tons, or 60-8 % Total tonnage, increase .. 1777 tons, or 51-3 Cross revenue, increase £229 6 9.. £44 14 o'/ Expenditure, decretive £172 9 2 ['. £27 IS o°' Nee revenue, increase £275 5 8 which added to the amount saved in expenditure means that the colony gained £448 from this seven miles of railway, while on the 256 miles mentioned above, it absolutely lost £519 in addition to the whole of the interest on the outlay. It will be seen that at Whangarei every item of traffic has very largely increased, while expenditure has greatly decreased. There is nothing exceptional in the district to account for this. On the contrary, perhaps, hardly any district has suffered so much from the prevailing depression. The railway starts from the port— minor one passes through a town of not more than from 400 to 500 inhabitants, and ends at a small coal mine. There is clearly nothing here to account for the surprising results o-iven above. The improvement can only be due to better administration. On the other hand, we have the Whanganui system, starting from Wellington, passing through Foxton, Palmerston North,, Sandon, ..Halcombe, Marton, Whanganui, Hawera, Inglewood, and terminating in New Plymouth. From Wellington to Longburn the line belongs to the Manawatu Railway Company, but the connection with this line of course ought greatly to help the 215 miles of Government line; yet with all these great advantages, under the present system it cannot be made to pay working expenses. The fact is as clear as daylight that 256 miles of railway running through populous districts, bui worked on the Government; plan, have lost in revenue £12 12s per cent, while seven miles, having no large centre to run from, but worked on my plan, have, gained £44 14s per cent. If facts and figures like these will nob convince the Government and the public, then it appears to me that nothing will. In increase of revenue and decrease of expenditure, the Whavfjarei line now earns one hundred and seventy-two pounds and twelve shillings, where it formerly earned only one hundred pounds. The bare thought of our altered position, if such results were obtained from the whole of our lines, is enough to take one's breath away. I emphatically repeat my assertion that it can and ought to be clone, and I can also point to the fact that my statements as to what our railways could and would do for us have so far proved correct.l am, etc., Samuel Vaile. Auckland, sth October, 1888.