RAIL COMPETITION

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17133, 8 September 1926, Page 5

RAIL COMPETITION

. EFFECT ON SHIPPING MANY STEAMERS WITHDRAWN (Special lo the Herald '> U'CKLAXH. I his da;.. The develupinonl el it.-- .;:;:«• ; ■ r,...|„.n-iiiiif lor iho dot i.sioii o! the Northern Steam Ship Co. lo withdraw the Ngnpuhi from (he Auckkind-Oiieralii passenger service, a service which the i< ■:; ipall \ has maintained for over oO vears. ' The withdrawal has hecm fixed 'for September 24. The extension of the railwav .system in riew Zealand has re shed iii at least ton passenger steamers bring taken off th,. coastal trade. Prior to 1&08. the yeai the Alain Trunk line was completed, ! hree pa ;srn ;er steamers, tin- Roii il i. Takapuna, and Ngapuhi, were engaged ieadily in the Onchunga-Now Plymouth service. Tiie Ngapuhi ran onlv as lar

south us New Plymouth, hut the Rotoifi Hid Takapuna called also a! Wellington md Nelson. On the Eisl Coast there

were six steamers engaged in carrying passengers hetwe. u Auckland and Dunedin. and calling at way ports. The lluddarl Parker tV. and Union Companies each had two steamers in the Sydney-Auckland-Duma lin service, and in addition the Cnion Co, ran an East Coast passenger service between Auckland and Duncdin.

The quicker route hy the Main Trunk decreased the passenger service on the. West Coast, and resulted in lh<j Rotoiti and Takapuna being withdrawn. The Kast. Coast services continued for some vears, but eventually llui intercolonial steamers made Auckland the lei.aiinal port, and returned direct to Sydney without going south. Later the coastal passenger steamers were also withdrawn. Another trade nft acted by ihe railway was the Wellington Westport-Greymouth passenger service. A regular passenger steamer was engaged between those ports, but owing to the decrease in the number of passengers she was withdrawn and was replaced by the Komata, a collier with accommodation for only a fow passengers.