PUBLIC WORKS POLICY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18356, 23 March 1923, Page 12

PUBLIC WORKS POLICY.

RAILWAYS AND ROADS.

TRANSPORT FOR DISTRICT.

DEPARTMENT'S ACTIVITIES.

The expenditure on railway construction < i the Tauranga district during the cur- < snt financial year will be 11215,000 In ' jund figures. This is the official estimate, ! s incidentally mentioned by the Minister ( )r Public Works, Hon. J. G. Coates, at 'auranga last week. In view of the im- i ortance of transport facilities for a great istrict that has long been handicapped ' y lack of railways and good roads, some etails of departmental activities in the j istrict should be of special interest to | rve people of Tauranga and its fertile iriterland. ' On the section of new railway, from Paihi eastward, the expenditure on con- 1 truction is estimated at £56,1)00 for the urrent financial year j on thi> Tauranga iction westward, £10,000; while £8500 , as been provided for the Mount branch, lie estimated expenditure on the section rom Tauranga eastward, upon which con- i iderable progress has been made, is 1 133,000. Thse sums give a. total of , 207,500, but it is anticipated by officials f the department that other items in onnection with railway works In the disrict will increase the total expenditure his year to the sum mentioned by the Minister —£215,000. Tauranga Harbour Bridge. The estimated cost of the bridge across be Tauranga Harbour, thus bringing the ail way right along the waterfront opposite me of the principal streets of: the attracive towna vexatious local decision that till arouses controversy—is . £70,000, this .mount excluding the cost of the embanknent in front of the Strand. The erecion of the bridge should be completed rith the .train, running into Tauranga rithin a year. This achievement will giv o Tauranga the benefits of 60 miles of ailway at a cost of approximately There were 562 men employed during ,he year, and the length of line contracted was between 19 and 20 miles. On :he Waihi end. which is an exceptionally mportant work so far as Tauranga is concerned, since completion of that portion would give the residents in the district direct railway communication with Auckland and the rest of the North Island, a great deal of solid engineering work has yet to be done. It is hoped t< jomplete the task in three years, and if that should be accomplished, it will be a notable achievement for the department. The Contract System. The engineering service for the rapid construction of tncf Waihi-Tauranga line has been completed, and specifications for the work are being drafted in Wellington.* It «m explained by Mr. Coates at Tauranga that it was proposed to call contracts tor the work with a view to seeing whether it could be don© in one section or in three sections. There is some very heavy country to excavate along the section, and the cost in some parts has amounted to £25,000 a mile. Other portions fortunately are not so heavy, and will be done for a good deal 1e33. In the words of the Minister, "time is the essence of the contract, because there is so much money lying idle." It has been found that where from 50 to 100 men have taken a contract, the department finding all the plant and material, and the men paying interest and depreciation, the system worked out satisfactorily. If the department should be unable to let the work by contract or a series of contracts, it will tackle it wjfh the plant available, and run it through, as is hoped, in three years. Improvement of Roads.

The Tauranga district is ill-served in the matter of roads. There are many highways which on occasions are honoured with the name of "summer roads," but after two days' rain the distinction deteriorates to an unprintable designation. Fifteen miles an hour by express motorcar is really "going some." Some improvement of the execrable tracks in the Tauranga district is to be effected this yoar. The estimated expenditure on roads by the . Public Works Department is £50,000. The total expenditure on relief works throughout New Zealand this financial year will, probably amount to £40,000. Of this total the allocation for Tauranga will be approximately £10,000,, showing to what a large extent Tauranga works have been treated as works to be dealt with on a concentration policy. The department will continue its progrossivo methods in respect of public works. There are five steam shovels in operation on railway construction in the Tauranga district, and more are now being transferred to expedite the work.