THE RAILWAY SERVICE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23594, 2 September 1938, Page 13

THE RAILWAY SERVICE

TO THE EDITOR Sir. —As a passenger travelling by the through express from Oamaru to Invercargill to-day I must voice my strong disapproval of the treatment meted out to first class passengers from Oamaru to Dunedin. In order to enjoy a certain degree of comfort 1 booked my seats last Friday (note, last Friday) for myself, wife and two children—surely ample time for a decent reservation. Imagine my disgust when I found my seats were in an old converted carriage in which the seats were covered with dust and the lavatory basin in a filthy state If the Railways Department desires to use these carriages, let them be labelled “Third Class” and a third class fare charged The Government is not backward in ordering private enterprise to “put its house in order”: to my way of thinking it could safely practise what it preaches. While not altogether blaming the members of the Oamaru staff, who are always most courteous, still I certainly think the Oamaru travelling public should receive better treatment. Surely there are enough of the newer type oi first and second class carriages to equip a through express. On many occasions. I may mention i have had the utmost difficulty in procuring a seat at Oamaru. and 1 fail to see why a first and second class carriage of the latest type should not be held in reserve at Oamaru.—l am. etc., Travel by Air. Oamaru. August 30. [The matter to which the above letter refers was the subject of comment in the North Otago section of this paper on Wednesday last. The district traffic manager of railways, to whom the letter was referred, states that the first class carriage in which the complainant’s seats were reserved was a standard one fitted with seats of modern design and which afford comfortable travelling. The carriage was one of two of the

same class attached to the express service at Christchurch to supplement the normal service, the first class portion of which had been fully reserved prior to the receipt of the complainant’s application. The department has only a limited stock of the first class coupe carriages for equipping the Christchurch —Invercargill express service, and when these are all in use the service has to be supplemented with the standard type carriage used in this instance. It is the general practice to tidy up the express carriages while the train is standing at Oamaru. On this particular day the porter failed to reach the two front carriages owing to having met with some interruption in his work. Unfortunately he did not bring the matter under the notice of the station master, who, had he been apprised of the position, would have had the matter righted. It is pointed out that a certain amount of objection is met with from some passengers in that they are averse to cleaning and dusting taking place while they are occupants of the carriages.—Ed. O.D.T.J