SOME GRIEVANCES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 305, 18 September 1920, Page 7

SOME GRIEVANCES

WELLINGTON SUBURBAN

SERVICES

"It would tak» more .than four speeches of.seven minutes kch to state all my grievances against the Railway Department" said' Mr. W.'H. Field (Otakf), in the House of Representatives last, evening The member ?:oceedod to urge that,' as the erection of a new railway station in Wellington'would not be completed for several years, the Department should arrange to bring all the passenger trains to Lambton Station.' He was sura the Change could be miide if the officials were' in earnest \ in tho attempt. .' ' _The Railway Department,' .said Sir., Field, was strangling tho Mandwatu lino with a. very poor, service.... It .was no reply to say, that a certain. number of crams travelled <n the, lino each day. The 'through espressos .had to use the line, but they ran one way in the, morning and the ..other, way in the evening. A person could not travel from Wellington beyond Paekakariki arid back without spending.:a full day .on the trip. People from beyond Paekakariki could not reach" Wellington'.until middoy,- and they had to leave again. at. .4.13 . p.rii. Would the Department at least stop ono of. tho Auckland t-ains at- Otaki? .- .

Mr. Ssuith: There are too: many stoppages now.

Another grievance, said-Mr. Field, ,wasthe .refusal to allow suburban services beyond Johnson vill.e. The suburban rates ought- to be extended to Paekalrariki. so that cifcv peopleoight live there, and at intervening points. If.- the Minister would compare the train services into and o.ul: of .Wellington >'i'.K' the services' provided in other: centres,, he would realise, that improvements vere required. -An early train into the city from Oi'aki was an urgent need. He had been told officially that such a. train would cost .£12,000 a year. He would suggest' that the train should bo tried one day a week. Mr. Massey xsplied''that-lie would liko the trains to gp to Lambtori Station, but the engineers had fold him that the arrangement • was not practicable,. and that at best it wouldb? highly expensive. Revision of the iime-tablo under present, conditions could not ,be underlako.il, though they-might be desirable,in some cases. . The shortage of coal made it. impossible to put' on extra trains in any part of New Zealand, He could not tell when the. coal'supplies would improve. All he could say to members was: "Keepbelieving." ThcHrains wouldbe mode available some time. '