SUBURBAN TRAVELLERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20987, 25 September 1931, Page 10

SUBURBAN TRAVELLERS.

FARES ON THE RAILWAY. " WORKERS " AND OTHERS. UNDER A PENNY A MILE. Although llio new suburban railway fares will greatly benefit the "worker who reaches the city before 8 a.m., the office employee remains at some disadvantage, being called upon to pay about double the "worker's" fare, unless he elects to travel early. On the longer distances within the suburban zones it is necessary for the office employee to buy a- three-monthly or six* monthly season ticket in order to maintain this ratio. Tf he rides on a weekly ticket he mav be charged up to two and a-half times as much. Strictly speaking, the comparison should be made tho other way, the present workers' fares being a concession which must inevitably be granted at a loss, seeing that the charge in some cases is less than a farthing a mile. The 9 a.m. traveller pays in the neighbourhood of a halfpenny if he goes second-class on the best terms now obtainable. Table of Comparative Prices. With the lowering of fares, the 50-trip bearer ticket, which represented a very good concession, has been withdrawn. Ihe comparative prices of the available tickets, other than ordinary and season tickets, work out as in the following table:— ! "Worker's 12-Trip 12-Trip

Types of Tickets Compared. After a certain distance a three-monthly or six-monthly season ticket offers better terms than either form of 12-trip ticket. This is because season tickets, like workers' tickets, are priced relatively lower for increasing distances up to 20 miles. The six-monthly ticket becomes advantageous at 11 miles, when the cost works out at 6s 5d a week, compared with 6s 6d and 6s 7d respectively for bearer-tickets. The three-monthly ticket is the better bargain at about 15 miles, when it costs 7s 7d a week, compared with 7s 6d and 7s Hd. At 19 miles, the distance of Papakura, either kind of 12-trip ticket costs 10s 6d a week, whereas a six-monthly season ticket costs 8s 3d, a three-monthly 9s 2d, and a monthly 12s 7d. However, at nine miles, the distance of Otahuhu or New Lynn, a 12-trip ticket, costs 5s 6d or 5s 3d, and a season ticket 5s 9d, 6s 7d or 8s 6d, as the case may be. Question o! Speed in Services. The value of a season ticket, of course, cannot be calculated on a basis of two trips a day, since it may be used any number of times. The monthly season ticket is definitely not a good bargain for ; the ordinary suburban dweller, unless he i lives close enough, to use it regularly for j visiting the city in the evening. The office worker is inclined to grumble i at having to invest the price of three I or six months' fares in advance in order i to obtain the most favourable terms. However, it may be questioned whether travel at well under a penny a mile leaves much room for complaint on the score of expense. As regards the speed of the service, the department, holds that it has been brought to a maximum under present condjtions, and that' the only way to attain higher | speeds is to cut out stops or electrify tlie suburban system. Whether special types of steam locomotives could give better acceleration between stations is known only to the experts. EXTENDING TIME LIMIT. BUSINESS MEN'S SUGGESTION. A suggestion that the Railways Board should be asked to extend the time limit of railway suburban workers' tickets from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. was made at a meeting of the council of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce yesterday bv Mr. G. S. Poole, who said more workers would be attracted to the trains in preference to motor-bus services if the hours were altered. "I think we might point out that the hours of many factories, shops and businesses are not in accord with the horns fixed for the workers' tickets," said the president, Mr. A. M. Seaman. "A number of city firms do not open until after 8 o'clock." Mr. F. H. Leonard suggested that the question of feeder bus services should be brought before the notice of the board. In Otahuhu and Papatoetoe the majority of the people who came to the city daily lived about a mile from the railway stations, and the greater part of the suburban business was captured by tho motor-bus companies. The same state of affairs prevailed on the north line, and there was a need to co-ordinate motor-bus and railway services. As far as be knew, the question of developing feeder buses for the railways had never been seriously considered. Both questions were, referred to the transport and communications committee to frame a report for submission to the beard. FARES TO LYTTELTON. NO REDUCTION MADE. While railway fares have been reduced 20 per cent, and more, on practically all New Zealand lines, the fares on the Lyttelton line still remain the same—ls lid return first-class and Is 3d secondclass. Tho distance to Christchurch is soven miles. Residents of Lyttelton have expressed their disappointment at the omission of Lyttelton from the reduction.

Miles, weekly. weekly, bearer. f d 8 d E <1 A voiul ale- . . 7 2 <; 4 3 4 0 New Lynn . . o 3 0 5 6 5 3 Glen Eden . . 11 3 o 8 <; 8 7 Henderson . . 13 3 0 7 6 7 11 SwanBon . . 17 4 U 9 0 9 3 Ellerslie . . 5 1 6 3 3 2 9 Otahuhu . . 0 3 0 5 6 5 3 Papatoetoe . . 11 a 6 8 8 6 7 M an it re w a . • 15 3 0 S (i 0 3 Fapakura . . 19 4 0 10 G 10 G