ORIENTAL BAY

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12092, 20 March 1925, Page 5

ORIENTAL BAY

IEPUTATItN Tl COUNCIL TRACKLESS TRAMS. ’BUSES, OR TRAMSf BITUMEN ROAD WANTED. The tramways committee reported to the City Council last night that it had fully considered tne position regarding •the Oriental Bay tramway route, and ithe suggested proposal that the exist- | ing tramway track should be abolished land a trackless or an ordinary ’bus service inaugurated. The' committee [were strongly of the opinion that the ! best course to adopt would ho to reconstruct the existing track, and recommended that this work be put in hand forthwith.

Councillor T. Forsyth introduced to the City Council a deputation of Oriental Bay and Roseneath residents protesting against the dust nuisance in Clyde quay and Oriental Bay, and urging that the roadway should be paved throughout in bitumen and trackless trams, or motor-’buses, put on, instead of the City Council relaying at great expense the existing tramlines. Mr J. J. McGrath presented a petition to this effect, signed since the previous afternoon, by_ 201 residents* He spoke in strong teims of the intolerable character of the dust nuisance in the district. , ~ Mr R. W. Burbidge (president of the Roseneath and Mount Victoria Progressive Association) and Mr F. W* Moore (president of the Roseneath and Oriental Bay Ratepayers’ Association') supported. t Mr Burbidge said that there was a constant stream of motor traffic round the parade, ’ and that the prevailing north-westerly wind blew the resulting dust into the houses in what ought ta be the finest residential area m Wellington and suburbs. Mr McGrath, replying to a question, said that the trams were very noisy, and he believed that moßt of the residents would faAiur a motor-’bus service. 1 “ROSENEATH. THE STORMY PETREL.” The Mayor, in "s2ld that Roseneath seemed to be the stormy petrel so far as the council was concerned. They were already lighting the council in the law courts on one big question, and now they were raising this still bigger question of the substitution of trackless trams or ’buses in place of the existing tramway service< That was a matter that would need to be gone into exhaustively by the council ,s experts • and in the meantime the council was faced by the difficulty that the •tramlines were beooming worn out and dangerohs. He recognised that the [ dust nuisance was a very great one. • The issue of ’bus and tram wgs quite a I different question; lor they could have i the whole of the roau bitumemsed even [if the existing tramlines were relaid. The council had got down on its loan i schedule the bitumenismg of the whole |of the road from Courtenay place to Ithe Oriental Bay tram terminus; and I if the loan was carried the work would Ihe put in hand. . . : Mr McGrath: And supposing the loan iis not carried? ... The Mayor: Then the council will have to consider, what funds it can allocate out of revenue for the work. A SPECIAL MEETING. Councillor J. Aston moved that the consideration of the matter he deferred to a special meeting. It was a big policy question as between trams, 'buses, and trackless cars, and. the council could not decide it that night, i Councillor A. VV. Parton said that. Ithe tramways committee had had a de-t tailed report on me subject from, the I tramways engineer, but this had not ibeen supplied to councillors generally. He thought that they should all have the report before they were asked to decide the issue. • . ■ • The Mayor said that.he was quite prepared to leave t-he- question to a special meeting of the council. Councillor A. L. Monteith - said that the council did not want to have no policy—-to be “as free from feathers as a frog”—in regard to this matter. It should thoroughly consider it and adopt a policy. .... After some further discussion, in which Councillors Mitchell, Forsrth, and Chapman took part, it was decided to deal with the matter at a special meeting of the council on Thursday night next.