CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAY.

Globe, Volume V, Issue 579, 27 April 1876, Page 3

CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAY.

To the Editor of the Globe, Sir, —While Dunedin, Wellington, and Auckland are thinking or introducing tramways, we see our city of the plains not only idle in so important a matter, but positively suffering a very heavy daily loss of time and money for want of this accommodation. The facts of the case are as follows The passengers coming from the North perform three parts of a circle round the centre of the city before they can transact their business, The passengers f'om the South perform a semi circle. To prevent this, all that is necessary is to bring a narrow gauge line in a curve at the back of the Adding’on Grand Junction Station o.i to the South belt, thence to Ilia junction of the Lincoln road, la chains,thence down the Lincoln read loTuam street, thirty chains, thence following the curves of the river reserves to the City Council yard, crossing every one of the city streets at very convenient angles, a distance of twenty chains —that is, a total distance of 8 -verity chains; the trains would thus arrive a Cathedral square before they could reach the present east city terminus, which latter is distant about ninety chains from the proposed point of departure, while the few passengers for Addington could be booked by a special carriage, which being dropped at that station would save about ten minutes ou the city trip inwards, besides the saving of a journey of half a mile from the Madras station to the square, say ten minutes, altogether, the saving would be twenty minutes on the inwards trip, and ten minutes on the outward trip, or half an hour to every passenger. No stop at Addington 10 minutes Half a mile in ... 10 do Half a mile out ... 10 do Half an hour saved ... 30 minutes Now, when you reckon this time on the tens of thousands of passengers who come in by this route, the calculation becomes very impressive. 100,000 passengers per year would save 50,000 hours of their lives. 1 day of work ... 8 hours I year of work ... 2,500 do 20 years’ of work ... 50,(00 do so that by carrying out my suggestions you will create twenty years of work. There is another side to the question. What an absurd, useless waste it is to carry people two miles, when seven-eighths of a mile would do. The expenditure could be easily proved equal to another twenty years’ work. In all forty years of work wasted—thrown away. There is another side to the question. The persons who have bought property at the north 3 and west ends of the town find their property decreased in value for want of a central station of near access to them. The depr elation in their property can easily be proved equal to another twenty years of work. In all sixty years of work wasted. There is another side to the question. The land reserved at Madras street will presently be found too small for the gigantic traffic that will centre there ; but this plan would shunt the larger part of the South traffic, on to the City Council yard terminus, while the North could tram the Papnnui road. There is another side to the question. That nasty open drain that runs past the whole frontage of the great public school of the district, that carries its turbid stream of tilth under the Hospita' windows (to refresh the patients, I suppose), that pollutes the river Avon, that, being full of watercress, helps to sow the Avon, and puts the authorities to a lot of expense. To the rescue! Mayor Hobbs and the Drainage Board I Give the right of tram, on condition that the railway shall cover in that stinking nuisance with a nice brick sewer to fall into the Team street sewer, and connect down that street with the outfall drain. Drains on the cheap ! Happy thought 1 What about the expense, my boy ? exclaims my impatient growler. Ex pensc—--30 chains drain at £SO £ISOO 70 chains rail at £SO 3500 Total expense ££ooo to be paid by the railway ; fare?, Gd ahead return ticket. Now of course the public know that I wrote the City Council, and offered to do all this ; the City Council as per letter which I hold inform me they have no power. I understood privately from two of the councillors that they highly approved of the plan. I proposed to get up a public meeting in the Lincoln road school to remove the nuisance from under its nose, but the committee ot (hat school differ from the rest of the school committees. Other committees permit pub lie and political meetings in the edifices to the great benefit of the district ; but never mind, let some public spirited man get up a petit oa to our worthy Mayor Hobbs for a public meeting. Some of our fine talkers, great at shutting up drains (like good Mr Ollivier and the Ferry road drain) might open out this question, and shut up that othe drain. So now having opened up this subject, I beg to conclude Yours, &c, J. W. TREADWELL.