Opening up New Country.

Waikato Independent, Volume XVIII, Issue 1439, 25 April 1914, Page 3

Opening up New Country.

MATAMATA CONNECTION.

WITH a E'ST COAST RAILWAY,

„The President of the local Chamber of Commerce (Mr K. K. Court) has received a cooy of the petition whic’n it is intended to present to the Minister for Public Works favorirg the Matamata railway route to the East Coast. The arguments put forth appear reasonable and are not., cblorei in the rosy hues which so ! bften characterise petitions of this riature. The wording of the petition is as under;— We, the undersigned, most respectfully request you to have a trial survey made of a railway making connection between Matamata and laruanga. We urge that such a line will connect the East Coast with the existing railway system; the length of the line would he about 11 miles. An easy grade from Tauranga to ■Kaimai could be obtained. A short tunnel through the hills would secure an easy grade to the existing Rotorua line. Such a line as suggested would open uo a large tract of country, including considerable areas of Government land at present unoccupied but which would soon, given railway facilities, support large population. The railway would hot come into competition with water carriage, and would considerably shorten the distance between the East Coast and the Main Trunk system, thus ultimately saving many tnousaffii of pounds on construction, the construction of this line, your petitioners urge, could rot fail to largely increase passenger, stock and commercial traffic.”