THE KING COUNTRY TRAINS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19962, 2 June 1928, Page 14

THE KING COUNTRY TRAINS.

Sir, —I believe that the Railway Department welcomes constructive suggestions for the improvement of train services, in its endeavour to stem the steadily-increas-ing loss of passenger traffic. May I briefly draw attention to a provincial train service (mixed goods and passengeis) which, to my certain knowledge, has not been materially improved in the last 20 years ? 1 refer to the afternoon and morning trains running between Frankton Junction and Taumarunui, which take five hours over this run of close on 100 miles, stopping at every station en route. A large number of passengers join and leave the trains at every important station, and it is to the need for improving both the internal comfort of the train and its speed, that I would draw attention. The ride, in winter time, is a cold, bleak one, and passengers, during a lengthy journey, are chilled to the bone before* arrival v at their destinations. No means of steam heating from the engines are provided, as a long line of goods waggons is hauled, and the engine is used for shunting wherever these latter are dropped. The carriages are old-fash-ioned, the second-class compartments being those dreary stretches of length that give a maximum of discomfort with a minimum of privacy. Very occasionally, a separately-seated second-class compartment will be attached, and this is a distinct improvement. One hesitates to refer to the invasion of these trains by pupils from the high schools in the larger centres, with the accompanying clamour, opening and shutting of windows, and running in and out of the compartment. One realises that these are young people full of life, and that this is their only opportunity, living as they do in remote country districts, of getting a secondary education. But surely some arrangement could be made to give them a separate compartment, so that adults might travel in relative quietness and comfort ? The lighting, too, is a matter that demands ai tent ion, as a bright and uniform light would, if fit to read by, do much to mitigate tlie monotony of the journey. A separate passenger ssrvice should be instituted on both the 1.45 p.m. from Frankton Junction and the 7.45 a.m. from Taumarunui : steam heating should be installed- the train speeds should be accelerated. so that the whole run could be done in, say, four hours; separate seats for each passenger should be provided in every compartment; and school children should bo restricted to one compartment. With these improvements the ride frcm Frankton Junction to Taumarunui would lose half its terrors. After all, passengers on these trains pay at exactly the same rate as travellers bv the big through expresses. And it, is the local and provincial .traffic that is being lost by the department, rather than that between Auckland and Wellington. But if the Railway Department replies that it cannot afford "to run these trains as separate goods and passenger services, then let it cease complaining if some passengers prefer to travel by service car, and others restrict their travelling to an absolute minimum. Recently we were told that the average lateness of all trains was only six minutes. This calculation cannot refer to the afternoon train from Frankton to Taumarunui, as since the Tauranga line was opened, with the late running of the connecting trains, the King Country train has run from 20 minutes to one hour behind time. Obviously this is a, matter that only needs adjustment. The time wasted in waiting at stations must be enormous, and a further suggestion is that'the late running of the train should be prominently posted up at the principal stations on the route run. Herbert W. Atkinson.