GENERAL ITEMS

Evening Star, Issue 19785, 8 February 1928, Page 5

GENERAL ITEMS

HEW ZEALAND LAMES EXHIBITED IN ENGLAND EXPERTS MUCH IMPRESSED. LONDON, February 7. (Received February 8, at noon.) Lambs from the Royal Show at Christchurch, exhibited at Smithfield, attracted much attention. Experts were highly pleased with the quality, condition, and appearance of the lambs. The judges awarded the first prize to pen No. 1,106, second to pen No. 1,105, and third to pen No. 1,111. ROAD TRAFFIC BUSES SUPERSEDE TRAMS ENGLISH ENGINEER’S VIEWS. SYDNEY, February 8. (Received February 8, at 11.35 a.m.) Mr R. W. Gunter, consulting engineer to the London General Omnibus Company, who arrived in Sydney from Auckland by the Mararaa, says: “ Buses will eventually supersede trams. All fixed rail systems in the world arc faced with ruination by bus competition, and unless some form of co-operation and co-ordination is reached tramway finances will become ehaotip.’’ Mr Gunter frankly admitted the impracticability of scrapping the entire tramway service, but, with the inevitability of buses dominating the roads, something had to be done. His suggestion to tho New Zealand Government was, ho thought, tho only one—that for the present the tramway system must be regarded as the backbone of the transport system, with buses operating as feeders to the general system, and the establishing of a sinking fund, so that eventually the trams could be re placed with standardised buses. For this some form of central control was essential. Dual control was fatal.

Another suggestion was tho penal fare, where buses were obliged to charge a minimum faro in excess of the tram fare, a portion of which would bo banded over to the trams. It was found that this penal fare did not deter buses from operating.