MODERN TRANSPORT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25514, 19 April 1944, Page 6

MODERN TRANSPORT

PLACE OF THE RAILWAYS SAWYERS’ BAY-WAITATI TUNNEL “ It will be necessary for us to see that the railways, so far as Dunedin is concerned, are placed on a basis which will enable them to cope with any form of modern transport that may arise after the war,” said Mr M. Connelly M.L.C., in an address yesterday to members of the council of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce on the proposal to construct a tunnel from Sawyers’ Bay to Waitati. Because of the nature of the line, loads were restricted at present, Mr Connelly said, and if additional tonnage had to be hauled an extia engine was used, thus adding to the cost. This position could be met after the war by driving a tunnel from Sawyers' Bay tc Waitati. On the present lay-out there was considerable wear and tear of rolling stock, and the timing o. trains always became more difficult when grades were encountered such as that at Mihiwaka. These difficulties could be. overcome if trains were run on fairly level tracks and if some of the curves were eliminated. Mr Connelly said he estimated that possibly 300 men or more,could be employed on the construction of the tunnel for three years or more. He expressed the hope that all the public bodies in Dunedin would co-operate in endeavouring to have the tunnel constructed, as it would be an important factor in the social and economic life of the people of Dunedin. It had been mentioned' that it might be necessary also to construct another tunnel between Evansdale and Merton and to make some adjustments further north. Speaking of speed tests which had been made in Britain recently, Mr Connelly said that a railcar had attained a speed of 143 miles an hour and a steam train a speed of 113 miles an hour. The gauge was much larger in Britain than it was in New Zealand, and such high rates of speed could not be expected on the New Zealand tracks. A railcar had attained a speed of more than 70 miles an hour in New Zealand, however, and he believed that if the Sawyers’ Bay-Waitati tunnel were completed it would bd possible for a railcar to travel from Dunedin to Christchurch in five hours, eliminating all unnecessary stops. The tunnel would also effect a saving of 50 to 55 minutes in the time taken by a steam train between Dunedin and Christchurch.

Proposals had been made regarding the construction of a harbour bridge in Auckland, a tunnel through the Rimutakas, and the tunnel road in Christchurch, he said, and the people of Dunedin should not be left behind. He suggested that the chamber might advise the Minister of Railways that it approved of the project and might ask him to meet a deputation on the subject when next he visited Dunedin. Mr Connelly was accorded a vote of thanks for his address.