RAILWAY RESTRICTIONS.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XLIX, Issue 13906, 6 November 1919, Page 3

RAILWAY RESTRICTIONS.

ROLLING STOCK IN GOOD ORDER. CURTAILMENT DUE TO LACK OF COAL. LACK OF FORESIGHT BY GENERAL MANAGER. (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, November 5. The Railway Commission's report was presented to the House of Representatives this morning. It states in regard to the rolling stock and engines:—An exhaustive inquiry and report of the condition of the rolling stock on the New Zealand railways in July. 1916. recorded in a parliamentary paper (D 4. 1917) show that it had been maintained in good and efficient order and condition. It has been found advantageous in making the- inquiry to adopt tins as a starting point for further inquiries as to the. condition of the rolling stock and engines on July 2, 1919. Reference to official data given in a return ('No. 15), adopted from the annual railway statements presented to Parliament, shows that during the past four years the train mileage run each year was :

Year ended March .11, 1913... 9,356,522Year ended March 31, 1917... 9,146,331 Year ended March 31, 191 ft... 7,468,646 Year ended March 31, 1919... 7,477,683 The last two years show a reduced mileage of ronahlv, 2.000,000 below the mileages for 1916. The reduction in the train mileage was effected by the Railway Department curtailino; the time-tables to overcome difficulties arising through the loss of men from enlistment and also to save coal. The curtailment would also diminish the amount of repairs required in the future.

Since March 31. 1916. the following additions have been made: —In wagons, an increased carrying capacity of 9381 tons, equal to an increase of 5.09 per cent; in carriages, an increased seating capacity of 2854 passengers, equal to an increase of 4.61 per cent; in engines., an increase in tractive ower of 833.1961b. equal to an increase of 10.51 per cent. Tluse figures indiuuUthat, so far as capacity and power were concerned the stock and engines en •July 2, 1919. were capable of dealing vvitii a considerably greater amount of work than they were in the year ended March 31, 1916, and were far ahead of that required during a similar period immediately preceding .Tulv 2, 1919. For some years the Railway Department has been carrying on a programme for building stock and engines commensurate to meet expected extensions and increased traffic. As the war progressed it became desirable •to suspend this work, which was done gradually. Much material and many men ivhusi (released became available for maintenance work. Some of the parts and materials which were formerly procured from Great Britain have during the war period been obtained 'from America, and to a limited extent 'from private stocks. On the whole no serious difficulty has arisen from any deficiency. There has been a shortage of skilled mechanics at all the shops, especially at- Petone. and the shortage still continues.

M Tl. H. Jackson. who was the chief mechanical engineer of the> New Zealand railways for many years, retired, on 'March 31, 1919, arid was succeeded, hv Mr E. E. Gildon. The evidence of the latter and of the, engineers in charge of districts and of the workshops managers has been consistently to the effect that the rolling stock and engines have been properly maintained Jn good and efficient' condition. The general manager's evidence shows that no> difficulty has occcrred in working the railways on the reduced time-table during the past two years arising front defective rolling stock* or engines or a, shortage of staff. COAL SUPPLIES.

•The report includes returns giving nartieular? of the railway coal supplies from Anril. 1913, to .Tulv 2, 1919. About 260.000 tons of bituminous coal were obtained from the "West Coast and Australia, and about- 66.000 tons of brown coal were required per year for

the full years ended "March 31, 191 C and 1917, and somewhat less than this lor the reduced rime-table of 1918 audi 1919. Brown coal, which has only about two-thirds of the heating power of bituminous coal, and which deteriorates quickly, is not kept in stock, and is usually used for light traffic. Fast through trains ;md heavy work require bituminous coal. On October, 1913. the coal stock was 80.442 ions. The difficulties in obtaining coal began immediately after this, and as the war progressed the reserve, stock fell with some fluctuations until by July, 1919, only 9560 tons remained in stock, compelling the Raijway Dc partniem to suspend the ordinary timetable then in operation. The present officers consider that ihe stock of bituminous coal should not be less than 80.000 tons in normal times, but no written rule to this e,fleet seems to be made!

The difficulties in getting supplies began soon after the declaration of war. and during 1910 the deficiency became general throughout the country. A conference between the Minister of Munitions and Supplies, the Minister of Railways, the then General Manager of Railways, some of tile principal men of business, and shipping representatives was held on December 19. 191G, resulting in an Advisory Committee of six being formed, of which the then General Manager of Railways was one. After this, by a war regulation, dated' February 5. 1711. a committee of three, under the control of the Minister of Munitions and Supplies, called the Coal Trade Committee, was established. The Committee was advisory only. The Minister ot Munitions was administrator of coal regulations through the officers of his Department. , By a. regulation of August 28. 1917. the rationing of all coal supplies, including those for the railways, came under his control* This became effective 011 October 4, 1917. The Minister did not regulate the purchase of coal or the rate of freights. He obtained offers of freights, but ii> was left- to the General Manager of ,Railways to,accept or refuse- these offers. There was not enough coal coming forward to properly meet all the demands. In the distribution of coal the. available supplies lor the navy and for transports and shipping carrying troops and food supplies for the Imperial Government necessarily would rank first, and could not be limited. Supplies for the railways and the great producing industries, which are. mutually inseparable, would come next. The interests of the whole community were concerned in this order of distribution. On October 4. 1917, when the rationing of coal began under the Minister of Munitions, the Railway Department was required to render weekly returns of its stocks rind to give constant' notice of its requirements io the Minister of Munitions, and it did this regularly. The Munitions Department's duties regarding coal supplies were most onerous and complex. This question was largely governed by causes beyond the department's control or observation. The naval and military conditions in Europe, the control of tile available shipping by the Imperial authorities, the shortage of shipping throughout the world, the diminished importation from- Newcastle, and the diminished output from the West Coast mines all added to the difficulty of pursuing any definite plans. After the voluminous correspondence submitted to us, we can only conclude that the Coal Trade Committee and the Munitions Department gave most careful and painstaking attention to their Work. The Railway Department on several occasions refused offers 9f coal, sometimes because it was unsuitable and sometimes because it would not pay the higher freight charges necessary to get additional coal.

Note: On this point the following appears in the Commission's detailed reply to a question in the order of reference as to whether proper diligence and foresight were exercised hy the Railway Department in. obtaining conl supplies to meet its requirements. After October 4, 1917. the Minister of Munitions rationed the railways and other consumers. This conrse was

agreed to at the time liv the Railway Depart men t. It, in fact, lequested the Minister of Munitions to bring his powers into force, Im.m ;i ivsc it (considered it was not getting -a sufficient share oi the coal from the West Coast, mines. The Railway Department, continued to make its own purchases, but none of these efforts produced sufficient coal. Til the year ended March, 1918, the railways reduced the timp-tallies by about 2,000,000 niilos a year. The General Manager of Railways refused to pay the higher freights demanded by ocean steamers to make special trips to bring supplies to New Zealand, thus losing opportunities of supplementing tin? railway supplies. In the respect that the General .Manager refused to pay higher freights, wlncb were reasonable, we do not think that he showed proper foresight. The report concludes as follows: —The final episode -which seems to iiavo led to the railway collapse was the inlltlenza epidemic, commencing in NewZealand at the end of October, 1918. It not only directly affected the mining population, hilt, by the prolonged quarantine regulations which were imposed. first in New Zealand and immediately after in Australia, it dislocated local as well as the, overseas shipping to an unparalleled extent, and this difficulty continued to operate tip to the date that the ordinary time-table had to be suspended for want of coal supplies.