NIGHTCAPS RAILWAY

Southland Times, Issue 19172, 16 February 1924, Page 7

NIGHTCAPS RAILWAY

THE THREATENED CLOSURE. RESIDENTS APPROACH MINISTER. The fear that the town of Nightcaps is shortly to lose the benefits of direct railway communication with Invercargill and intervening stations through the possible closure of the short section of railway line between Waitio and Nightcaps owned by the Nightcaps Coal Company, was voiced at a large and representative deputation of townspeople to the Minster of Railways, Hon. J. G. Coates, yesterday morning. Mr Donald Sinclair, Senr., Clerk to the Town Board,, in placing the views of the local residents Delore the Minister emphasised the fact that they hoped the line would be kept open for traffic purposes. The line had been in use for a period of over forty years and had largely been responsible for the settlement of a large portion of the district. During the whole' of that time ample revenue had been provided and now that the Nightcaps Company had more or less ceased work in its mines, it was feared that the line would be lifted and the people left high and dry without railway conveniences of any sort. Not only would such a course be a great hardship to the residents but would also mean a serious Joss to them financially as the majority of them had bought the freehold of their property and had placed all their savings into providing homes for themselves and families. Business premises of a fairly substantial nature had also been erected in the town and to cut off the railway services would not only be detrimental to the district but a retrograde step. Not only were they prepared to support the ordinary traffic but they were also willing to pay a differential rate to make up any loss that might result through the line being kept open for traffic. By agreeing to that proposal the residents had shown their earnestness in the matter. That being so they were anxious that the Government should undertake the purchase of the line from the Company and that there should be no suggestion of closing it until such time as it had been clearly shown that there was no prospect of further coal supplies coming out over the line to make it the payable preposition that it had been in the past. Messrs William Handyside, Jas. Johnston, J. J. Crahipton and John Slapp, Junr., all strongly endorsed the views expressed by Mr Sinclair.

Mr J. C. Thomson, member for the district, stated that he believed the Department was against the taking over of the line for the reason that they believed it would not pay. There was no justification for such an opinion and he would say unhesitatingly that the Company’s offer of £6OOO for the three miles of line involved was a very reasonable one. Mr Coates said that the various speakers had put the position very fairly and therefore he had no intention of contesting the points made though he believed they had left the way open for him to rub it home. In the first place he had to make absolutely certain that the line was a payable one and that it would not be a case of purchasing a “pup.” He did not propose to go into the figures that day but after personally inspecting the section of line in question he would carefully consider the whole question in all its bearings. He did not propose to do anything drastic regarding a discontinuance of the service. He had got to be fair to the country as a whole and that being so they need have no fear about a hearty decision being arrived at. The chairman, Mr J. Purdue, then called for three cheers for Mr Coates and after these haad been giv/n in a hearty manner by all present the meeting closed.