TRAFFIC CONFUSION

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21993, 27 December 1934, Page 11

TRAFFIC CONFUSION

WATERFRONT ROAD JAM OVER TWO HOURS' DELAY SOLID MASS OF VEHICLES • There was great confusion on the waterfront road for about two hours last night, when the worst traffic jam experienced iij Auckland developed over more than a mile of the highway, during the Auckland Harbour Hoard's display of fireworks oil' Point Resolution. Thousands of motor vehicles of all descriptions, ranging irom motoi-cjcles to heavy buses, became wedged into a solid mass extending from kerb to kerb, and even across the footpaths in places. Minor collisions occuired every other minute, and several people were hurt. A cyclist suffered a bioken arm, and St. John Ambulance Brigade members worked under extreme difficulties. Nobody was admitted to hospital. The united efforts of the police, tiaffic officers and volunteer helpers were barely sufficient to restore order. The impatience oi some drivers, who desneci to use the waterfront road as a through highway, and the obstinacy of others, who were determined to convert the road temporarily into a grandstand from which to see the fireworks, icsultcd in a continuous blaring of elec-. trie horns, the racing of engines and angry voices. The blazifig headlights of the* locked vehicles, reflected oft hundreds of panes of glass in the closed cars, added to the general confusion, blinding both motorists and those who were vainly trying to create some semblance of order. Signs of trouble in the traffic first became apparent when two streams of vehicles, one outward-bound from the city and the other travelling inward from the eastern suburbs, met near Point Resolution shortly after eight o'clock. Haphazard parking by many drivers who had come to see the display added to the difficulties of those trving to pass, and in an incredibly short" time the road became blocked. From every street leading to the waterfront road more traffic came. The congestion extended from the boatsheds in Mechanics' Bay to half a mile beyond Parnell Baths. A small police party from Queen's Wharf station, headed hy Sergeant B. Thompson, set to work to clear the footpath 011 the landward side. This was eventually accomplished with difficulty, and a stream of vehicles was set moving at a slow pace toward the city. Unfortunately, a similar scheme had been adopted further along the road, and the two streams met, both again being obliged to halt. An appeal for further police assistance resulted in Sergeant Boulton and 10 constables being sent from headquarters, and eventually the footpath was cleared and traffic commenced moving. Five large buses belonging to L. J. Keys, Limited, were caught in the jam, and a temporary service to Kohimarama and St. Heliers Bay was maintained with two vehicles, using the route' through Newmarket and Remuera.