HEAVY TRAIN TRAFFIC.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18364, 3 April 1923, Page 6

HEAVY TRAIN TRAFFIC.

PROBABLE EASTER RECORD.

LAST EVENING'S EXPRESSES

ABOUT 1100 PASSENGERS.

The traffic at Auckland railway station last evening was exceptionally heavy, over 1100 passengers leaving by the two Main Trunk expresses, while the inward and outward suburban trains were also very large ones.

The first express, which got * away promptly to time, consisted of eight cars and one sleeper, and carried 350 passengers. As soon as the train left, the gates were opened for the second express, and for the next half-hour the scene on the platform was one of great activity. It was soon evident that the train would bo a very heavy one, and eight carriages, which were standing in readiness, were coupled up, making a total of 18 cars and two sleepers. The word soon flashed down the platform, "Plenty of room in front," and tho crowd surged toward the empty carriages, with the result that when tho train left, about a quarter of an hour late, it carried 750 comfortablyseated passengers. The traffic this Easter, both incoming and outgoing, has been unusually heavy, and tho returns will probably constitute a record. Special preparation was made by tho railway staff to cope with very heavy traffic, and the officials state that the arransfcmenfe have ■ worked so smoothly that no complaints have been received at headquarters. The arrangements for dealing with the suburban traffic have worked admirably, and no overcrowding, such as occurred at Christ-mas-time, has marred the holiday coming-and-going of suburban residents.