OUR RAILWAYS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 898, 18 August 1910, Page 2

OUR RAILWAYS.

f : ANNUAL STATEMENT. NET PROFIT OVER £1,000,000. FURTHER FACILITIES TO BE GRANTED. In presenting the Railways Statement to the House of Representatives yesterday the Hon. J. A. Millar' (Minister for Railways) ■ stated. that the year's operations', "when compared with those of the previous year, had on the whole been exceedingly satisfactory." The results (it was stated) might be summarised as under:— Year 1910. Year 1909. lota earnings 3,2-19,790 ' 2,929,520 -total expenditure ... 2,169,474 2,114,815 Net profit on work-

• ih2 '. JE1,050,316 . JESU.7U The net revenue, exceeded that of the'previous, year by i'285,6!15, and is equal to a return of 3.50 per cent.' on . the capital, d;25,513,-17U,.. invested in the open lines, and 3.58 on the total capi-. tal, ,£30,321,191, invested in opened and unopened lines.

. J-he passenger traffic'shows a gratifying increase, the number of ordinary.yassengers caj-ried being 11,141,1-12, an increase of GS3.S9B over the previous vear. Season tickets issued, numbered 159.371, ,un increase, of 6524. W'orkers continue to take advantage of the opportunity 'afforded- them by 'the workers' tickets to livo out in,the suburbs; 150,074 such tickets were" issued during the year, un increase of 2555 over last year. 803,833 passengers -travelled at holiday excursion fares, an increase of 73,b09 when compared with last year, and 115,405 passengers travelled at the school .and factory rates?

l'lie coaching and goods traffic show .substantia,! increases under each : of the headings., under- which the traffic is grouped, carriages, sheep, chaff, lime, etc.,. firewood and timber excepted. The traffic in the agricultural produce class for-(ho first time in the history of the railways totalled over a million tons. The large increase of a quarter of a 'million tons is'.accounted tor by the late harvest last year and the bountiful early" harvest in' the current year, which resulted in a-considerable portion of tho cereals grown in two seasons-being presented for carriage by rail during the financial year, just ended.. The decrease in the sheep traffic is mainly confined to the North Island, and is attributed to the advances in the wool market making it more profitable for stock-owners to '.old their bheep for the "clip than to dispose of them in a dull meat market.. vTho average >'. number of men employed during the.year was 12,224, against 12,505 for the previous year. During the year 2G6- members of the permanent staff resigned, 127 retired.on superannuation, 42 died, 128 were dismissed, and 503., en-' gaged. Twenty-two appeals were heard during tho, year, by • the Railway. Appeal Boards. Of these, four , wero upheld, seventeen dismissed, and in one case'the •punishment was mitigated.- . Eight members of the second division.wero promoted to the first divisiou. ,

The .rolling-stock, was augmented bv the addition of. four four-cylinder balanced compound tender engines, Class •'.%". weighing 94' tons in working trim, designed for tho North Island Main Trunk Line, and two heavy tank engines, built in the Railway Workshops'; also by eight four-cylinder balanced compound- tender engines, . weighing 72 tons in working trim, built under contract by Messrs. A. and 6. Price, Limited; 25 new- cars, 11 bogie brake-vans, and 1 Fell brake-van; 733 goods-wagons, and 500 new tarpaulins.

The whole of the railway equipment, consisting of, rolling-stock, "machinery', and appliances, track, bridges, buildings, and other structures has (it is stated) been maintained in a thoroughly efficient condition.- One hundred and thirteen miles ot. track were relaid during the yedr— .-e«htfftvo miles of main!'dine with 701b. rails, and thirty-one miles of branch line with 531b. steel rails taken out of the main,line. Ballast to the extent of 366,242 .cubic;-yards- was used in . track-mainten-ance, and 256,647 b sleepers were laid. As a result of inquiries made and data .obtained,',an order -has 'been'given for the construction of, two self-contained motor-cars, which will be built in theRailway. Workshops as-soon as the machinery required for generating the motive power of, the cars arrives. Plans aud specifications have been prepared for the building of a new. twin-fcrew - steel steamer, for tho lake Wakatipu service. The vessel is to be'.-built within the Dominion. Among the-results of working weTe the following:— • -n „ . 1909. 1910. Percentage of profit-to capi-- ' ' . tal invested 3.13 3,80 Percentage :of working expenses to earnings 72.19 G6.76 Net earnings per average •mile open „ : : ,£32o' ,£4OO The duplicated section of the Huti; railway between Ngahauranga. and Koiwarra has. been opened, and two tracks are now regularly used, daily by trains running between' Lower Hutt and Kai-' warra. It is .anticipated that the whole works—railway arid road—will be practically comploted during the coming financial year. " . Since- 196 locomotives, 042 passen-ger-carriages, IG3 brake-vans, and 8589 wagons have been added to the rollingstock equipment of the lines. Thesa additions have increased the tractive )jowerby 211 per cent., the passenger-seating accommodation by 174 per cent., wagoncarrying capacity by'lGti per cent., compared /with the' position in 1595. • Nine.hundred and ninety-six persons were, on Slarch 31, in the enjoyment of benefits, accruing' to them from the Government 1 Railways Superannuation Fund. The sum , involved represented . Van ' anuual -charge of ■£48,168 Sis. lid., and is payable in respect of 622 contributors who have retired voluntarily ■ on account, of being medically unfit, 140 .widows; .and 234 children, umkr the age of fourteen. The accumulated fund now "amounts Is.' Bd. Since, the inception of the fund on January 1, 1903, 107 bPMficaries. have died, 7 retired as medically unfit' recovered and resumed duh-. 14 widows ■ :remarried, 5. widows and 4'.. children under fourteen years of age died, and 77 children have ■ attained the age of - fourteen years; the annual .liability of the fund has thus been reduced by .£8329. . ' .'After referring to. the need for reducing grades, etc., on tho main lines (which is referred-to elsewhere), Mr. Millar concludes .with tho remark that he is fully -satisfied that the" prosperity manifested by "the results of last year's working-, of ,the lines would be continued, arid despite the.-, fact that no Easter, holiday traffic would be included in the returns for the current -year, he tstimatod the revenue at .£3,250,000, and the expenditure at ,£2,223,275. -