“STAY AT HOME.”

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 16503, 2 August 1919, Page 6

“STAY AT HOME.”

DICTUM OF RAILWAY DEPARTMENT. HOW LATEST REGULATIONS WORK

■ Ope of the brightest and lightest scenes in the serio-comic drama which is being conducted by the Railway Department, on behalf of the New Zealand Government, occurred at New ilymouth on Eriday morning with the coming into force of the latest passenger regulations. The Railways Stage .Manager and Ills head sceno-shi)icis .uc very thorough and believe in giving proper attention to every even though parts of their ‘‘production may drag somewhat in consequences Tans it was that supplementary instructions — “How effectively to invito passengers to stay at homo wcie on Thursday sent out on their way to all stirtionmastcrs —at railway speed. A hose for Now Plymouth arc reported to have arrived at 'their destination some time before, midnight. Ihc result was seen next morning. The public, had been notified that tney would have to satisfy a railway offiem of urgent necessity before .they would be allowed to go on a platform or board a train; also that no tickets would be issued within fifteen minutes of a tram , departing time. The train was scheduled to leave at 7.13 a.m.; as matters turned out it left at 8 a.m., and the last passenger got Ids ticket about il-.iec seconds before that time.

PERMITS AS WELL AS TICKETS. (

The reason was that every passenger harl to havo a permit as well as a ticket, and the. issuing of them wa> an onerous task that could not be bustled through. Instructions to t)(is eficet and many neatly-printed and nundiered permit forms were what had aTrivcd_ at the station about bed-time the night before. The forms set out. among oilier details, that “On presentation of this permit, together with requisite passenger ticket, the bearer, (apace for name), may be permitted to travel by train from station to station on ” At the foot were conditions safeguarding the department against responsibility should the fortunate proprietor of the permit be left bcliind when tiic train went. The stationmaster and bis staff handled the situation with smiling faces and tactful manner. People did not know about the permits, and a number of intending passengers who had procured tickets the previous day wore surprised when refused- admission to the platform and told to take their places in the queue before the ticket window. The oral examination of each would-be passenger by the ticket and permit clerk proved a tedious proceeding and, although most of those present had come speciallv early, the waiting-room was still full a quarter of an hem- before train time, and not many passengers bad been passed through the door to the longed-for goal. Some of the forty or fifty applicants had to wait over half an hoiir before their turn came. Everybody appeared to see the humorous side of the performance. In the meantime the, engine hitched to the waiting trucks and carriages Was not snorting more loudly than was the official charged with the duty of seeing that the train commenced its journey at the proper time. NO PASSENGERS REJECTED.' Apparently not one of the intending passengers was refused the necessary permit'to travel. They must all have had weighty reasons to breathe into the confidential ear of the issuing clerk. Jinny appeared to bo “returning home.” Others bad business reasons for desiring to travel, and one of the few ladies who applied was going for a holiday; but hers was an essential case because she “hud to have her holiday now and must go home.” Three carriages and about fifteen trucks constituted the. train. One of the carriages was empty, but the explanation for its presence was said to be that it had to he taken back to some other station which claimed it. Books of blank permits were to be seen everywhere by the observant traveller. Every guard l on the trains seem, cd to have a supply. The theory of the new system presumably was that a person found on board! without the essential slip of paper should be gently ejected, but the less disturbing course was to supply one. I'll is latest device of the Railway Department promises to be effective in cutting passenger traffic to the minimum, because the process that has to bo gone through is too tedious to be undergone unless ono is forced to it by circumstances. LESS BOTHER THIS MORNING. This morning the train was able to leave at the proper time, with its three carriages just comfortably filled. The reason for this pleasant change was that most of the New Plymouth people who desired to travel had secured their tickets and permits , yesterday, and so wore able to pass through to the platform without delay. The majority of the people who arrived by the Rarawa did not go south 1 by the train, and the issuing of permits to the few who did was carried out with expedition.