EAST COAST RAILWAY

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume XXIX, Issue 8302, 26 April 1932, Page 2

EAST COAST RAILWAY

THE PAEROA-TANEATUA SECTION

POSSIBLE CLOSING DOWN

PERTURBATION AT WHAKATANE

The possibility of the closing down ' of the Paeroa-Taneatua section of the East Coast main trunk railway, | or portion of it, is perturbing residents in and about Whakatane and : the matter was discussed at a meeting of the County Council last weekend, when a letter was receive! from the general manager of Now Zealand Railways in reply to correspondence on the subject. This pointed out that the Railways Board had power to close lines which continued to operate under conditions that would result in the net revenue being insufficient to cover working expenses. The board, the letter proceeded, viewed this provision seriously. The financial result of the Taneaina line since its opening seriouslyraised a prima facie case for actio i under the section mentioned. The board, however, was loath to take final action until the people of, the district had had a full realisation of the position and had taken such fiction as they thought fit to give such business to the line as would enable the board to make a final decision on the basis of the best that could be expected from the district. “NOT A PAIR THING” The county chairman (Mr W. Reid) said the council had written In the board as a result of the decision of the last cor.ncil meeting re questing the board to visit the district and investigate matters before reaching a definite decision. Cr. A. leebles said he considered the board was not doing a fair thing in proposing to close the railway at a time of the greatest depression in the history of the country. In a number of other places served by water and road traffic the railway authorities had made a preferential tariff but had not done so in this case. When the line was first mooted an argument used in its favour was that when the Urewera country was opened up it would provide revenue for the line. Since that time nothing had been done to develop any of the large areas in the vicinity which could be brought into profitable occupation. He contended that land development should have been taken up vigorously long ago. It was the only solution of the present difficulty. Very few business people were making a profit at the present time, but were merely able to provide ior themselves and keep off the dole. SHORT-SIGHTED POLICY

Cr. C. Baird considered the board was adopting a short sighted policy. Very many business men were to-day just holding on in the hope of better times and the Railways Board should take a similar view of its affairs and not try to shut down the railway because there was a trade depression. If the people who were not making money thought that conditions would not improve they would not hold on. Cr. A. Peebles stated that the railway freight on flour to Taneatua was 25s a ton, whereas on sugar it wag £3 per ton. There was a different rate for every article—the department had a classified tariff for every letter in the alphabet—and nobody except possibly the officials themselves could tell why it was so. Cr. W. A. McCracken said he considered the Railways Board could not do justice to the position unless its members personally investigated the conditions existing in the district. They would not he justified in sitting in their office in Wellington and scrapping a line that had cost over £2 000,000 to constnict. It was resolved to again request the board to visit the district before taking any action detrimental to its interests.