VAILE RAILWAY SYSTEM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 12661, 15 September 1904, Page 6

VAILE RAILWAY SYSTEM.

THE PROPOSED TRIAL. DISCUSSION IN PARLIAMENT. [by telegraph;.SPEClAL correspondent.]Wellington, Wednesday. The Railways Committee reported to the House to-day on the petition of Mr. Samuel Vaile for a trial of the stage system on the Government railways. The committee referred the mutter to the Government for j consideration. Mr. Massey moved, " That tho matter be referred back to the committee as an indication that the House is in favour of Mr. Vaile's system being given a trial." He said the repeated rejection of Mr. Vaile's system in New Zealand was an instance of a prophsfc havinar no honour in his own country, the system having been adopted and worked successfully in other countries. The stage system was now in operation on the tramways of the .colony, with the result that the passenger traffic on the trams had largely increased. Even the Minister for Railways had admitted that the adoption of the stage system on the railways would mean on enormous increase in the passenger traffic. Mr. Mander seconded Mr. Massey's amendment. Sir Joseph Ward said Mr. Vaile had been offered a trial on the Auckland railways if he gave a cash guarantee. He had no doubt the stage system would result in an enormous increase of traffic, but Mr. Vaile and his supporters refused to realise that an enormous increase of rolling stock would be required, and that it would cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to mak« the experiment. Then Mr. Vaile wished the trial confined to passengers, which meant disorganising the goods traffic. With regard to the adoption of the stage system on some of the metropolitan railways in England, that was due to the keen competition within the metropolitan area. They had to come down in. order to retain their traffic, whether it would pay or not. There wa3 a great deal to be said for Mr. Vaile's system, but the Railway Department, with large responsibilities on their (shoulders, could not make experiments of this kind, unless those who were to get the benefit of the extraordinary reduction of charges were prepared to give a guarantee. If the people would come in with a guarantee the Vaile system could be in operation over the whole of the Auckland railways within a. few months. Mr. Hemes said if the Railway Department wanted a guarantee they ought, in the event of the experiment resulting in a profit, to give the profit to the guarantors. Sir Joseph Ward said if a guarantee was given, and there was a profit, he would personally agree to return it. ' Mr. Hemes said that was the first- time he had hoard such a reasonable proposition coming from the Railway Department. Sir Joseph Ward, by his own words, had actually guaranteed the success of the experiment, yet he declined to try it. Mr. R. McKemrie held that the Vaile system was entirely unsuitable to New Zealand. The population was too small, and it would be almost' necessary for half the population of Auckland to keep travelling and doing nothing else to make the system pay. Mr. Mander supported Mr. Massey's proposal, and the debate was continued till half-past five by the Hon. J. MeGowan and Messrs. Sidey and Smith, with the same result as in previous years, that it was talked out, and the House had not an opportunity of expressing an opinion upon it. It is understood that the Railways Committee was pretty evenly divided on the question, a motion to recommend a trial of tho stage system being defeated by only one vote.