EXTENSION OF TOURIST TICKETS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 967, 7 November 1910, Page 4

EXTENSION OF TOURIST TICKETS.

Sir,—l would like to point out 'to the public the injustice-of a-.regulation lately passed for operation re the extension of tourist-tickets; which I have failed to notice: - reforenco "to" in the Railway Time-tablo books to date. A friend of mine wished to have' his tourist ticket extended a week, and was informed the ticket could only bo extended to the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th of each ;month. , I,'madc;inquiry re this at a northern, office, and was informed such a regulation cdmo into operation recently, but' had' hot been made official. Tho old rule, "Tourist excursion tickets may be extended- for any period not exceeding four weeks on payment of an extension fee of £1 10s. per week, or portion of a week," was liberal in the extreme, but-to resort to a ruse of the sort mentioned by a supposed Liberar Government is contemptible to say tho least of it; it is another way of trying to tax the public

and tourists, and I enter this quiet protest with a viow to endeavour to prevent impositions of this kind. It is important the tourist traffic should bo encouraged in every possible way, and not hampered by' potty, mean regulations.''Trusting you will make inquiry concerning this regulation, and deal with it in'yom\ customary straightforward mannor,—l am, etc., EX-TOURIST. October 29, 1910. fFrom the Railway Department the information was obtained that tho old rule- governing tho extension of tourist tickets is still in force,' and-has not been ■ altered in. any way. Apparently our correspondent is under tho impression that an application made, for example, on the sixth of tho month, would involvo payment of £1 10s. in order to extend the period of a-tourist ticket for a single day. This is not the case; The payment stated, covers invariably a full seven days' extension, reckoned from the date of application. Tho official questioned could mako no suggestion as to how tho .misunderstanding had arisen, but from another source it was' learned that the Department lately issued, for the information of its officers, circulars illustrating the working of the extension scheme. These may possibly have misled some subordinate official.J