RAILWAY EXTENSION

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 316, 1 October 1908, Page 7

RAILWAY EXTENSION

THE MIRAMAR PROJECT. NEWTOWN FACILITIES. ESTIMATES ASKED FOR. Interest is centring in tho proposal for the extension of, tho present railway line from Ta Aro to Miramar, a distance of only a mile and a half in a straight lino. Reference to tlio subject was made at a meeting on Monday afternoon of those interested in tho To Aro Railway Station. Mr. J. P. Luke said that there we're 2500 acres of land at Miramar and Hataitai which should be fed by a branch lino. Nowhere else in the world would they find so large au area of good land under such conditions not provided with a railway. Sir. C: J. Crawford, speaking of Mr. Luke's project for a line to Miramar, said he would go further, and advocate that a lino should be built through tho hill to tho land by Kilbirnie recreation ground. Such was needed for the goods traffic, let alone passengers. The following motion, proposed by Mr. Luke, and seconded hy Mr. Crawford, was carried unanimously: "That this meeting of citizens is* of the opinion that it is desirous in tho best interests of the city and southern portions of tlio district that a survey and report should be made with tlio express intention of extending the railway Miramar." In tho liopß. of gaining further particulars upon this important question," a Dominion representative called ■on Mr. C. J. Crawford, Mayor of. Miramar, yesterday afternoon.

• ' This may bo of interest," said Mr. Crawford as ho handed the reporter a statement .dealing' with the question. "Tho route of -tho: extension of the line from- To Aro is that advocated by Mr. J. P. Luke. I have added my views as to the site of a railway station at Evans Bay and a tunnel connection with Newtown. This I consider makes a comprehensive. scheme likely to meet with the approval of tho whole community." The Proposal Explained. The statement, giving reasons, route, etc.,was as follows:— "It is proposed to provide, so far aB room will permit, an up-to-date goods and reasonable passenger station at I<3 Aro for tho following' reasons:— " (1) That the configuration of the lands around Wellington compel industrial extensions southwards, and reasonable, railway facilities should therefore bo given to enable economical handling and carting of goods to be done. "(2) In the near future it will bo found that tho carting in connection with the city wharves will congest all the foreshore streets"; railway carting should therefore bo kept as much as possible off these streets. " (3) Tho saving of cartage of South "Wei* lmgton goods between Te Aro and Thorndon would not only mean a very considerabln monetary saving to consignees, but also to tho City Corporation in upkeop of streets. "As to further extensions, some peoplo suggest a route via Kent Torrace, the Basin Rosorve.- tho Wellington College grounds, thence by a tunnel to Kilbirnie. This suggestion for very obvious reasons has serious drawbacks. Tho difficulty in suggesting a route is to tap the large population at Newtown, but tho difficulties as to levels and heavy compensation to be paid would prevent an absolutely dircct servico for that suburb.

"Tho following scheme and route may or may not be endorsed by experts:— "Start slightly raising the railway at, say, Taranaki Street: this raising' and possibly a slight lowering of Clyde Quay would enable the line to cross that street by a bridge without interference with ordinary traffic; thence crossing Roxburgh Street in the same manner. 'After some cutting a tunnel, would start and goin<; south-eastwards, it would 'l)ass"donsiderably under the, present Mount Victoria tram tunnel and come out, but at a low- level, on the Town Belt towards the Chinamen's gardens at Kilbirnie; thence by tho bost route to a position now sea at the south of tho present Kilbirnio recreation ground, .where would bo a railway station. This would mean, say,.4o chains of tunnel and say in all one and a half miles of railway extension. ...

"To connect Newtown, provido a tram, vehicular and passenger tunnel similar to the Seatoun tunnel starting, say, in the vicinity of the junction of Constable Street and Owen or Hiropi Streets and coming out in a gully on the Town Belt to the westward of the Evans Bay Timber Company's premises, thence joining Vallance Street slightly to the southwards. The tunnel would take all through tram traffic thus saving enormously in haulago charges 011 the proposed Constable Street extension which would be incurred by going over the hill. ) . _ "This tunnel would be, saj;, twenty chains in length with; say, five chains of approach on the Kilbirme side. "Tho spoil from both schomes would be used for reclamation purposes, and a further elaboration be tho provision of wharves to serve Kilbirnie and Newtown on the Kilbirnio sido of Evai\s Bay. _ TJiis would give tho centre of Newtown shipping and railway facilities via a practically level road within less than a fifth of the distance that that locality has at present. "As to cost, the following will give some idea of what the tunnels will costSeatoun tram, vehicular, and pedestrian tunnel, approximately £1000 par chain; Mount Victoria tram tunnel, approximately £800 per chain; railway tunnels, Wellington district, approximately £660 per chain." Statement by Mr. Crawford. Speaking of the proposal; Mr. Crawford said:—"As to tho cost, I suggest' tlint-it is very well worth while getting the engineers to •work on that point, arid upon the schomo or schemes generally, so as toliave some decided scheme which can bo carried out when circumstances warrant, for something of tho sort will have to be done before very long. When estimates wero first prepared for a tramway for Miramar, nobody would listen, but that project lias been an accomplished fact and a success for quite a long time now. The Moulit Victoria tram tunnel cost approximately £800 per chain, and the Seatoun tram and vehicular tunnel, say, £1000 per chain. If estimates wero obtained, the public would bo surprised at tho smallness of the- total cost of all these works, and 1 do not suggest that the ■ railway should be'put down now, only that plans should be madeso that this part of tho schemo may be-carried out when required later. Further, I do not hold that the proposed railway would bo in competition with tho trams; they serve two different purposes. Auckland lias both a tram nnd a railway to Onehunga, and tho one docs not kill the other." t •'