MANY PEOPLE TRAVEL

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 86, Issue 308, 31 December 1942, Page 4

MANY PEOPLE TRAVEL

HOLIDAY RAIL TRAFFIC In spite of travel restrictions and the fact that the few days after Christmas are usually comparatively light, long-distance rail travel is abnormally heavy. A strict control on the issue of permits for travel beyond the 100-mile limit is still being kept and most of the travellers are members of the Armed Forces. A railway official with many years of experience expressed the opinion yesterday that had conditions been normal during the present holiday period it. would have been the busiest Christmas and New Year in the history of the department. No special trains between New Ply-, mouth. Wanganui and Wellington have been arranged this season, but where possible the position is being met by the addition of extra cars to existing services. On the Main Trunk line certain specials have been run to cope with the exceptionally heavy traffic between Wellington and Auckland. The New Plymouth-Wellington expresses passing through Aramoho this week have been lengthy trains each day. On Monday, for example, the northbound express had 15 cars, two vans, and 760 passengers when it reached Aramoho. Two cars and a van were sent on to Wanganui, but the exnress had 600 people on board when it continued its northbound journey. Three engines were required for the Westmere “bank.” This was the heaviest train to pass through Aramoho this week. The express from New Plymouth to Wellington was also a heavy train yesterdav. It had 12 cars and two vans arriving at Aramoho. one car being for the convenience of passengers bound for Wanganui. The northbound New ’Plymouth exnress yesterday was also ,a lengthv train. I “We are still getting a continual | stream of annlications for permits to (travel beyond the 100 miles, but before the reouesfs are granted neonle ■must show good cause for wishing to (travel,” an official