HUGE LOSSES.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20490, 8 March 1932, Page 4

HUGE LOSSES.

AUSTRALIAN RAILWAYS. NATURE OF SPECIAL ENQUIRY. Craoii odb. own coerespondekt.) SYDNEY, February 25. For tho first time since railway deficits have threatened ' the financial stability of Australia there has come an opportunity for a general overhaul of the railway system of the Commonwealth." The railways, because so many of them ha ve been purely political, constitute the greatest problem , in Australia to-day, and more than anything else are responsible for the firfhncial crash of all the Governments. ; In ten years the railways systems controlled by the Commonwealth and the States, have lost £43,000,000 and each month that loss is growing. New South Wales alone has made some effort to counteract the position by passing a drastic i Transport Act, but that Act has the fault of forcing the country bacK instead of forward. It .seems to most people ridiculous to force the people to use some form of transport which is not popular and which may not be in keeping with progress. Something more than that is necessary. It can be said for certain, that financial equilibrium is impossible until railway deficits are brought within reasonable bounds, jand it is not surprising, therefore, that the Premiers' Conference should have ordered a complete investigation. The Board of Enquiry will havo an independent chairman—an accountant of high standing—but it" seems unfortunate that it will be composed largely of tho railway commissioners themselves. The idea put before tho Premiers by the Commonwealth Transnort Department jvas that the Commonwealth should take over the whole of the assets and liabilities of the railway systems. This lins led to the commont: "To ask the railway commissioners to report on nuch a proposal is lilre asking politicians to report on the abolition of all Parliaments.". Whatever faults there may be in the constitution of the Board it is felt that valuable facts must be brought to light bv it. These might lend to an investigation on mora comprehensive lines undertaken by people who have no interest in the management of the railways or other forms of transport. It is held that the place of the commissioners is not in the judgment box but in the witness box, and the- Premiers have been taken to task in many' quarters for allowing the Commissioners to capture'the enquiry. The railway losses are stageering., E)or the year ended June 30th, 1930, .-the doficits aggregated £9 500,000. During the year ended June 30th la«t the losses aggregated £11,000,000. The capital invested in Australian railways amounts to £344.000,000. of which £100,000.000 was spent during the last ten years. Here are the proposals of the Transport Department upon which a special report will be prepared: V (1) Transfer of all assets and liabilities of State railways to jbhe Commonwealth.

(2) Creation of a national railways corporation to operate the railways under conditions that would safeguard ] Government finance, "and act as an. in,- 1 termediary between State ownership and direct f - . (3) Capitalisation of the 1 national t railway corporation in an amount based u'pon the present earning capacity of the railways, and transfer of the balance of exising .railway capital to a: "railway dead, asset fund,'', tone, liquidated over a period of years. The report expressed'the view that only by some such means could railway finance be stabilised, and some of the present burden of £9,000,0(50, a year upon the Stato Governments bb removed. Of course, the domination of the enquiry .by railway officials matins .that other forms of transjiort will receive scant consideration. . '