EVENING TRAIN WANTED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18942, 13 February 1925, Page 11

EVENING TRAIN WANTED

FRANKTON TO AUCKLAND. CONFERENCE AT IE AROHA. GOOD PROSPECT OF SUCCESS. [ST TELEGRAPH.—.-OWN CORfiESPOXDEXT.] IE AROHA. Thursday. A conference of Chambers- of Commerce representing districts interested in having an evening through train to Auckland was held at To Aroha Wednesday. Mr. U. E. D. Willcox, president of the Te Arolia Chamber, was in the chair, and Mr. If. Welsh, business ' agent for the railways, and Mr. C. E. Maemillan, member lor the district, were present. Before Mr; Welsh took part in the conference a discussion took place to enable delegates to arrive at common ground. A number of replies were read from chambers that had been invited to send delegates. The only replies not wholly favourable to the proposals by Te Aroha were from To Kuiti, To Awamutu, Paoroa, and Thames. The To Kuiti executive was of the opinion that that district was well served with trains, and To Awamutu, in view of the fact that the whole of the Main Trunk schedule was under review, did not wish to associate itself with the movement at this juncture, though recognising the desirability of an evening train. Thames was favourable to an evening through train to Auckland provided the Thames express did not leave at an earlier hour than at present. Pasroa, though represented at the conference, was not in sympathy with tho proposal until assurances were forthcoming that the proposal was commercially sound and that the institution of an evening through train would not be conditional upon the people giving up the use of the river steamer. The Auckland Commercial Travellers' , and Warehousemen's Association wrote, offering its assistance in carrying out any decision " re. tho wild cat train," by which | name the Thames express is known. To Avoid Delay at Prankton. The decision of tho conference was exj pressed in the following resolution "That this meeting of delegates, representing the Thames, Rotorua, Cambridge, Waihi, Tauranga, To Aroha, Morrinsville, Matamata, and Pneroa districts, urges upon the Railnay Department the* necessity of giving facilities for travelling to Auckland by an evening train, and also urges tho department to retain the present limited express. The object is to have tho timetables for the Rotorua and Thames evening trains so arranged that passengers on arrival at Frankton Junction will be able to travel right on to Auckland by a train that will arrive in the city the same evening." . . ... Mr. Welsh said tho question of additional train services was necessarily a. question of economics. No reason was given why they should expect an increase of business. It seemed to him however, that tho proposed train might assist the department in controlling certain opposition they now had to meet in tho steamers. A shipping company was carrying goods to Thames and only about five "per cent, of the freights for that town were carried by the department. Tho department had been urged by the Thames people to spend £40,000 on building engines at the Thames and it had been represented that it was the duty of the department to spend this money in order to give employment. If that was so, it was also tho duty of tho Thames people to give, their business to the railways. Mr. Walsh spoke of the many concessions given to She people by tho department for which it received little recognition, and said that if business people were going to give preference to carriage by water in order to save a shilling a ton the department would have to consider whether it should not spend its money where thero was a better prospect of a 'good return. If tho department granted the request now being made it had a right to expect better support from tho Thames people. A Reasonable Hope. Mr. Welsh assured the conference that their wishes would be placed before the department and said that they had a reasonable hope of a through train to Auckland being granted before very long. Several other matters were brought before Mr. Welsh. Mr. G. A. Andrews urged that information with regard to freights should bo given in a form which could bo more easily understood. The phis 20 or plus 50 made computation difficult, and he was satisfied that some goods were now going by steamer that could bo delivered cheaper by vail, Mr. R. Coulter referred to the. necessity for more publicity with regard to excursions and other train services, and to the inadequacy of the accommodation in the Frankton Junction waiting room. Mr. Macmillan, M.P., also spoke of the necessity for more advertising and said he had been pleased to see that the recent commission had stressed this. Mr. Welsh assured the conference that all the representations made would receive careful consideration.