East Coast Railway.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLV, Issue 20, 17 May 1911, Page 4

East Coast Railway.

The proposal has been made by Mr. J. H. Gunson, chairman of the Railways Committee of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, that a public meeting should be held to protest against what he has termed the evident intention of the Government to neglect Auckland railways, and particularly against the action of the Government in ignoring the claims of Auckland with regard to the East Coast railway by establishing a branch of the Public Works office at Napier, and vigorously prosecuting the line from that end, thus ultimately linking up Gisborne with Wellington before communication with Auckland is established. With this proposal and statement the member for Bay of Plenty, Mr. W. D. S. Macdonald, who is at present in Auckland, certainly does not agree. Few people have a more intimate knowledge of the East Coast route, and the country it penetrates than the junior Government whip. Speaking to a “Star” representative last week Mr. Macdonald said that, personally, he was most interested in the early establishment of communication between Auckland and Gisborne, but he thought the Auckland Chamber of Commerce would lay itself open to ridicule by taking up such an attitude as that suggested by one of its members. The Government was this year spending more money on the East Coast railway than in any previous year, and was pushing the construction of the line on as rapidly as ever it could. To say that no attempt to link up Gisborne with Napier saould be made until communication with Auckland was first established, was simply ridiculous. The Government did not build railways for any one particular town, but for the Dominion as a whole, and Auckland would only make itself a laughing stock if it suggested that the Government should pursue such a shortsighted policy as the construction of the East Coast railway only between Gisborne and Auckland. Construction work was being pushed on with commendable rapidity at the Gisborne and Tauranga ends, and the Government was pursuing a really active policy. The settlers between Gisborne and Napier had been crying out for a railway for 20 years: yet Auckland declared they should wait at least another IO years lx fore any attempt was made to give them what they wanted. At present the line extended north from Gisborne for 42 miles, to Matawai. From Tauranga to Paengaroa 23 miles of formation work had been completed. That left 110 miles to link up via Opotiki. To the latter place construction would be easy. The 40 miles between Opotiki and Motu would be most difficult of aM. From Gisborne to Napier the distance to link up would be about 120 miles, and in his opinion communication would be established simultaneously between Napier and Gisborne, and Gisborne and Auckland. in 10 years’ time. Auckland had nothin? to be afraid of bv the commencement of the Napier-Gisborne connection. On this, he believed, a start would be made this winter at the Gisborne end. In the meantime the East Coast line to Opotiki con’d be pushed on from Te Puke over, easy country twice as fast, anl twice as inexpensive to work as that Gisborne and Napier, so that Auckland wool! be in touch with the whole of the Ear of Plenty Ion? before the steel rails had been laid between Napier and Gisborne. So long a® the C- rem-r-’rt actively proceeded with the work north of G : sborne. Mr. Macdonald It fail It - thegiwnils Tor anv objection to a start being ma le south of that place.