BUSY RAILWAYS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22687, 27 March 1937, Page 12

BUSY RAILWAYS

OVER 12.800 TRAVEL TRAFFIC FOR TWO DAYS HEAVY EXODUS FROM CITY Phenomenally heavy Easter railway traffic to and from Auckland, totalling over 12,800 passengers, and representilly a fair increase on last year's figures, has been handled during the past two days. Long, loaded expresses and relief trains utilised all available rolling stock in Auckland, from which the exodus totalled about 7250 holidayniakers, mostly for Wellivgtou and Kotorua. Visitors to the city from north and south numbered about 5000. Easter is always a busier time for the railways than the Christmas and New Year holidays, because of the concentration of holiday traffic over a much shorter period. The rush began on Thursday afternoon, increasing to great proportions in the evening, then subsiding until the arrival of packed trains from the South yesterday. Railway officials reported that the station had seldom ever appeared busier than during these hours, although all arrangements ran smoothly, and the great volume of passengers was handled without a hitch. Oil account of the heavy traffic on the main trunk line, some of the southern trains arrived yesterday up to an hour late. Heavy Outward Trains Of the total of 5100 outward travellers on Thursday, 2560 left by six trains for Wellington, and 920 filled two extended trains for Kotorua. Four extra cars were required to accommodate all persons with tickets for Kotorua on the late night- train, but only one could be provided, and the train departed with holidayniakers standing several deep in all i.'i carriages. Another large train, carrying .320 persons, was despatched for Tauranga, 410 more went to New Plymouth, 300 to Taneatua, .'520 to Opua and 210 to Whangarei. * Fewer and smaller trains were necessary to cope with yesterday's outward traffic, which totalled 2080 travellers. The ordinary Wellington expresses transported 610, and 560 were conveyed to Kotorua. The Taneatua and Whangarei expresses carried 480 and 100 passengers respectively. Many Wellington Visitors Inward trains on Thursday brought a total of 2140 visitors. There were 1010 passengers on board three expresses from Wellington, and 6SO on two trains from Kotorua. A complement of 400 came bv rail from Whangarei, and one of 320 from Taneatua. Five trains arrived from Wellington yesterday morning and afternoon, with a total list of ]O2O passengers. A special train front Opua reached Auckland in the morning with 320 on board, and the afternoon express from Kotorua brought 300. Expresses from Whangarei and Taneatua carried 320 and 240 passengers, the total for the day being 3160. Race trains for the Auckland Racing Club's meeting at Ellerslie will ensure another busy day for the railway authorities to-day, when the usual northern and southern expresses also will arrive and depart. A special express will leave for Whangarei at 5.45 p.m. to-morrow, and the New Plymouth train will run as a separate unit from the Wellington limited, leaving at 7.1S p.m.