TRAVEL AND TRADE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19365, 1 July 1937, Page 6

TRAVEL AND TRADE

USE MADE OP RAILWAYS INCR 13 ASED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT POLICY (Per Press Association.) WAIROA, this day. “The work that the railways have been able to do for the public of New Zealand during the last year has been considerably greater than has been the case for many years, and clearly shows that the public is realising to an increasing extent many of the ways in which they can use their own great national transportation service for travel and trade,” said the Minister of Railways, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, at a function in Wairoa last evening. Mr. Sullivan said that last year there were 21,235,428 passenger journeys, an increase of 870,904 on the number of passengers carried by train in the previous year, and the goods tonnage amounted to 0,813,240 tons, an increase of 624,435 upon the tonnage carried in the previous year. The indications so far for the present financial year were that this improvement would be continued. A good record also had been put up by the Railway Department's road services, which during the financial year ended March 31 last carried 4,550,310 passengers, an increase of 1,313,847 over the figures for the previous year. Certain additional services were, of course, taken over and operated during thei year by the department. these indications of improvement gave every encouragement to the Government in its railway development policy and furnished a further reason for * adopting the department's £3,000,000 programme of new works, renewals and replacements for the current financial year. Included in this programme were the following major works required for necessaiy improvements in the North Island.— The duplication between Horotiu and Papakura, to complete the duplication of the Auckland-Frankton Junction section, £180,000; TuraldnaOkoia deviation, £18,000; Wellington station buildings and yard, £139,000: Palmerston North deviation, £100,000: new wagons and improvements to the existing wagon stock, £347,840; the provision of 12 multiple unit coaches for the Wellington-Johnsonville line, £107,500. , Other large items of expenditure in which the North Island would participate included £IIO,OOO for bridge strengthening and £41,000 for passenger cars, in addition to £90,000 for locomotives, including 20 new class K engines for the North Island, rheic were also track renewals to cost £230 000, and an amount of £118,710 for workshops, buildings and plant.