Sixty Miles an Hour to Beat Motor Traffic

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 19, 13 April 1927, Page 8

Sixty Miles an Hour to Beat Motor Traffic

RAILWAYS CARRY ON THE FIGHT (From Our Resident Reporter.) WELLINGTON. To-day. New Zealand Is not alone in severe competition on the suburban railways, for Mr. D. Rodie. commercial manager of the New Zealand Railway Department, brings with him from Australia impressions of the struggle going on in three States to regain lost business. In South Australia the invasion of the motor is keenly felt, and the authorities are going to great lengths in placing buses on the road to recover passengers for the railways, while Victoria is making a determined bid for the recovery of the Geelong traffic which was taken from the railways some time ago. In addition to an hourly bus running 46 miles from Melbourne to Geelong, a train, called the “ Geelong flyer ” does the journey, including stops and interruptions, in one hour, the travelling time averaging 60 miles an hour. This is stated to be a success, and the railway is gradually regaining the confidence of the public and retrieving the passenger traffic from the motors. Australia generally, Mr. Rodie says, faces similar railway problems to ours, and although, in many places gates are the only level crossing safety provided, a system of ramps, now being adopted in New Zealand, is being installed in different parts. This is being found most efficacious. Neither subways nor overhead bridges interfere with traffic, while gates held motors up, and in thickly-populated areas the congestion is found to be great. “ Our traffic is growing,” said Mr. Rodie, “ and in many cases I was able to see tile methods adopted in Australia, and will be able to apply them in the Dominion to meet our own increasing services.” With Mr. Rodie came Mr. H. J. Wynee, signalling and electrical engineer, Mr. E. T. Spidy, deputy-chief mechanical engineer, and Mr. H. Valentine, chief accountant, all having been attending the annual conference of the Australasian Railway Officers. A conference is to be held in New Zealand next week.