TRAMWAY REGULATIONS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15552, 9 March 1914, Page 8

TRAMWAY REGULATIONS

PROTEST FROM DUNEDIR.

SEATING SPACE QUESTION.

INCREASED WORKING COST.

[BY TELEGBAPH.— association.] Dun-ems, Saturday. A det/tation representing the City Council, consisting of the Mayor (Mr. W. Downie Stewart), Mr. Myers (a moral of the council), Mr. Lewin (town clerk), and Mr. Alexander (tramwavs manager), waited on the Hon. W. Fra'ser (Minister for Public Works) in regard to several matters affecting the City Corporation Tramways Company. Mr. Myers said the proposed legislation altering the seating space of cars from 14in to 16in, and the new regulation requiring an aisle in each car from end to end would mean a very serious increase in capital charges. It would mean at the very least that they would have to provide immediately something like £12,000. Then if the regulation asked for by the Tramcars Employees' Union that the standing capacity should be only 25 per cent, of the seating capacity, were adopted it would mean such an increase that the fares they were allowed to charge by Order-in-Conncil would not' be sufficient to pay anything like running expenses, and would compel them to establish a special rate for the deficierscv. Their principal request Was that they should not be ask<d to make the seating space loin for each passenger. Thn Minister said he realised the difficulty of altering cars to comply with the law passed last year. The law as to a passage through each car must be enforced. As for the 16in seating regulation, Auckland and Wellington were complying with it, and, though Christchurch protested, lie had heard nothine more from them since he had answered their protest. The deputation had put to him an aspect of the case which he found worthy of some consideration, but* he would have to confer with Government experts before answering it. It appeared to him that it would be difficult to give Ministers power to make the regulation applicable to one place and not to another. When he consulted the engineer-in-chief, that gentleman was very loth to depart from the 16-inch seating regulation.