MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY DISASTER.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2172, 10 June 1914, Page 8

MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY DISASTER.

Bir,***ld -yours of •Jttno 3, "A Balfour Official" aceuSi.es me of- not -knowing wliai i was writing about, Weil, -sir, I- havo 119 wish ;to" labour - t.ho jxMiit whether ho, o.r : I. 'Unoiv most of ralin.iy signalling, I t>li6v;lel lic.ro remind .ISj.W tl.afc: I was an'aro o'f the apparatus in most : signal boxes for adjusting !lw cttnt-rAllm.fi: signal?. ■ I..jhbwtj also remind ' 'A Railway OflVial" ilnl\ in my expOTiencG of n good number 01 years of- -"rft.itw i &3';' I rtorldtr^ > I never -liaVfl board the same excuse, nben an accident; tool; place, ot fold con.tra.ct.iii 5 tiu» wires controlliniT. signals. I tjiiite well ranspm'ber two afcclfteiits, _ .of i.b.ft- !i-k*s nature, of Urn rcconi acHdciifc on tho Mem Tmnk line, but there wore 110 fatal results. Oiio vas -effused ■ by: a driver taking a signal that was partly oft Tint duwrnoci uent 011L-oil any nwre ei-Vgines;.- Tlie 1 have pariimiiar kno'wledpo of, as I happened to be tiring out of the locomotives,- and if. was 011 a single lino such as tho MSiiii Trunk line One nam going oast vml llie other west We had the 1101110 signal to into tho station, and, as grtoc! litnli wolilfl ha to it, fl© wrooolrar of all fouling crossings when t'ne other train ititsb'M pa~sfo-lis. Thfe tt'sß Cilits.c<J by riie driver losing: sight of his "dis- :' tint signal':' .in -a- -Jfafev-wd fa-niti: a li'a.d steaming ciipine,- .and heavy train, apt! also- a ; be- w$ on bis "home signal"- before l;c !;.n.e.w -wjiero ho #as. . The driver, hsviWfr ft- fcfiod: record,'got off with a fortnight'.?, suspension. . ' . .. ; ; ■ ' v ■ I want- fo rewind ''A Rjuluav Official" . (hat. t'mde.r Hoard of Trade i ; lfbs'> drivers : - are warned to 11 cat ail. signals no_t. coming properly off as "ganger signals.".

Is this done. in New Zealand? Snroly 1 "A Kiiihvay Onij.-ial"" will admit, thai there must, be some nay of eoum-eraet-iiig the faros oi : liaiuro iii • : c6ji.t : f'a!jii,tg signals itful .lrcci/ing them reliable. Qno winders how it h tiirro «'rij iiKb.ro. aecidciits ii'i busy centres in Brit sin, ■wheto then; ant hi'mdrods ol sigiijals. How is it thai aeciYknts a« rcduced vj a minimum at thoso places ? Tbcne signals ore examined, and all fririijji jwiiits oiled regularly by ft competent signal-filter. iSiircij tte.'ro should b'o> someone hero, at ■each station sviio should «ee to the .signals, owl keep tiheiii, in working order. This t>h<.iulu 1)6 dono in (lift day time. Also these signals should be worked regukrfy seeing t-.hc::e are only a few trains Jiawflg ea|«B 'statioii.B daily. I qvrita .acli.nii vmir cor- { reSpoirdeitt's contention that "it is possible. draw a Wor without lowering the signal properly," but any competent sigualiniai'i. would know at once that by tho draw )io gave oii iho lever that his signal was not perhaps off. To remedy this, the ttsimi practice that I have 80tf.ii was to shut. on tho sig'nrf sharply and pull it- ofi! sharply again. This has gciieraHy the? desired c.ffqet. This iippVies more particularly to "distant signals" \vh.icii arc placed furi.he.i out from i.lio stations. I. was sorry to soo that lr A Kailwnv Ofiieial" ha?' seen his way to declare that the examinations havo saved two lhjßjeeilt hieit imn A serious .charfje.. I should have thought i.hat one in I>if position would havfi refrained from stating lits opinion. I did not blame nilv bu%. fj-Ora whS-l; frp seo there will iia'vo to bo something better tJlvau the haphazard sj'.s.tfifn observed at the present tamo. Even "A Railway Official'' will admit ibfii a chaiißO is wanted,— I am, cic., THOS M. MILLIGAN. Juno 4, Ifil.'t,