EAST COAST RAILWAY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 76, Issue 287, 5 December 1933, Page 6

EAST COAST RAILWAY

ESTIMATE OF COST ' SATISFACTORY RESULTS REPORTS IN READINESS. [Per Press Association. 1 HASTINGS, Dec. 3. The southern section of the East Coast railway committee recently appointed to investigate the possibilities of taking over and completing the rail way abandoned by the Government will meet to consider exhaustive reports prepared by various authorities to-mor-row. The following are the main points in the reports dealing with the southern section:—• The Government has already spent £2.829,400 on the line between Napier and Waikokopu. The committee’s aim is to prevent the waste of that iiuge amount. Acording to a report prepared by Mr. Trevor Smith. Public Works Department district engineer at Wairoa, the estimated cost of completing the consi ructional work from Waikokopu to Napier at a sufficient standard to procide the safe and speedy running of trains, passengers and goods, is £98,000. A sum of £12.700 may be needed for other work, making a total of £llO.OOO. r l’o those figures must be added £BO.OOO for rolling stock, including two Diesel rail-cars and two Diesel trailers. The engineer’s rough estimate of revenue annually excluding passenger traffic, is £38,000. The estimate 1 operating costs, including depreciation ;.i.d inaintenace is £37,000. The Public Works estimate I<‘r the completition of the !i-.c was £340,783. This provide! for th-. 1 erection of complete station aceomon dation an I for running a much mor? extensive pawn ger service. I’ho estimated feeder value is set down ar £5400. A further repuit. compiled after investigation into '■> jre.'.t ial revenue. s greater than that estimated by the « r. gireer. This repo:-’, /’cals with, th-* [comparative aspects of road and rail (transport and the great development of [value along the line of potential productivity of the at present undeveloped I land. I The committee considers that the | results already achieved are very satisfactory. and feels that the outcome of [its investigations, which have been ex [tremclv thorough, are most cncourag- ■ MR. THORNTON'S REPORT. ( Per Press Assortation. 1 GISBORNE, Nov. 4. i The report on the Gisborne-Waiku [kopu section of the East Coast rail.way. compiled by Mr. Thornton, district engineer, will shortly be released i for publication, together with another [report on the productivity and prospective development of the respective districts served by the line.