ARTHUR’S PASS TUNNEL.

Hokitika Guardian, 13 April 1923, Page 4

ARTHUR’S PASS TUNNEL.

| Tllj<; OPENING DATE. J ( “Lvtt Jlton Tinier.) 1 ' OTIRA, April 11. a Although the date on which the ! | Otira tumid will lie actually o[>em'd • for through traffic between Canterbury □jj mid the We«t Coa-t is >riil uncertain. “ the work rein:miinr to ho done is being J pushed forward with the greatest ex--8 | perdition. On making further inquiries Jj | 10-dnv, a “Lyttelton Times'’ reporter Ha ! "as a hie to ohtnin fairly reliahle eviJ I tiei lee that it will he Juno at the earI Most hoforo any passenger trains are i ■ inn through the tunnel, hi regard to ra goods tradio it seems quite possible jj that a certain amount might he jj handled towards the end of the present i i month, or earlv in Mav. J the electrical work. fl , The delay in the competition ol the 'I j line has been caused principally by i the sloane-s of the electrical work, i s | whit-li is of such a nature that it rnn- ; not he lushed. The men employed by y i the English EleeLn’e Company in njii■n ; it<• (M• in with the : lootrioal work, are ’ f-'mt'X : 'l high pressure, and. in order Li to obtain the advantage of the line LI • '.teather. lliev workul right thron <h LI i tie- Ea-tcr holidays, and last .Sunday a- well-. 'l’o-day, gangs of men were j-.l ' engaged in installing the feeder wires k, i between this tunnel mouth and Olira Wj I station: hut up t" the present, a .start b-l I has not been made with the fixing of j=| j the trolly u ires at either Arthur’s Pass [“-I ior (Him. The trials of the locomotives h cannot he imdertnkon until the wiring is completed, and that will probably he about' three necks or a month. Afrj ter that, a month will probably elapse fl before any regular lradio will he taken [''j through the tunnel. □ j DELAY AT AUTIH RS PASS. |"I I While the Work' is well forward at LI j Otira. it is considerably behind at [J j .Arthur's Pa.-s. and some doubt is being rj ; expi’e-'sed as to uhether Arthur - Ihi's □ ! r.iil be ready in line, to take trains LI during June. 'I he opinion is freely Cl expressed that there is a likelihood ut L! the eleetrie loeomoi i ves taking the Ll train.- from Otira to the end of the GmLJ nel only at Arthur's Pass at first, and L 3 that steam Ineoniotives will handle the Ll j trains over the leitia I liiler of the eleeLj i tritied seeLmn at Arthur’s Pas-. That L| | opinion is based on the great amount (=1 l of work that remains to he done at Atrhur's Pass, which, it i- eimsiilered Ll ! eaniiot he imiiplet (I by June. ihe =j : main trolly wires in I lie tunnel are Lj j coll lleeti'i I 111 the elect riea I supply and pi I are being u-ed by the small Jell rev |~j I motors on Jll bin gang". Tin- lenipj | pnrary trolly wires have been di LJ i mantled and are being I'leared away, rjj and the Jed'my motors now. run through the tunnel only, and do not - come half way to Otira station, as Inr- & merly. it is stated that mm hof the i | delay at Arthur's Pas- has hreii due “I to trouble with the level-, and that ’ j the rails have been raised and lowerJ I t'd at several [daces, after having been 1 * 1 j.,j,| down. J i THE ELEC TRIO LOCOMOTIVES, it) | .The electric locomotive- were Insp-.-rt-'l 0(1 to-day to see that everything wie all light after the trip lr.nu Christa elnin li. and the battery let eiuoliv '. *1 aJumbo.' as it i. called by {lie eli-e-ii,eers. was taken into the main mini glue shod. “Jumbo" is very similar “ in appearance to lie "hipp t tr.ukJ that were u-ed in the war. It wit' il take about 101 l hours lor "Jumbos 19 ! 'oattery to he- Inly (.barged for the first “j time. nnd. after that, the proei-s e.t i a recharging "ill last ahi.at etc hour.-. =| Jt is expected that “Jumbo" will he [J ready for service within a inrtnight, a | and it will then do most ol the shunt- ■ • ing work at (Him. Ihe hatmiies are l. expected to las', a da.v before roll charging will he necessary. 'ji ("OTTACEK FOR WORKERS.

j Ten ol the I’ort.v-tlirce collages a Inch i g ! are being erected at Otira by .Ale-i's “I j hove llrit-.. i oiitrnctor- - , of Port ( iialSj ; II" I'. for tin ll* e cl ll- I siilivnv -in Jj*. " ■v. P! i" ha in led over l o t'm Ihi bln a ! Work I '-eart nieiit oil Saturday, and ; M oO'h r-n. id that several ol 1 1" m ' -.it, nl 11" i "I! age- i . the Otira |'l'i - ■ A hi: 11 - nief" l ban a year ago 'it v. a lo\ nil v. nil call vo hush. v. hill had In , • ' I ell. d aml .'d'lenvanl- i.mnit. bhe , ll is 1 hit im- hi nd i - a mass nj : log- nnd >r, • I;iin ns mixed vit ii ■' boulders. A road ha-, b'.- n made hi ; Iw. en tlm r.i o rov, - or i. ullage--, hut it i "ill he some time H. f., a the land can : la- e1...a rod <>f the debris, 1 bore are I,no type-, ol hon-es. lid cai'n t> p " eoiisi-ls of live mom- and all possible i (unVL'iiienees, including e'ictric light, hot and odd water, and >ev, .r. They are designed to give a maximum of (omlurl at a rea~oni'.i)le cost, and there seems no douh't that when the sections are tided up and ieneed o!f the seUlenu'iit will have a pleasing appearance. Although all the houses are already wired, idle elertrieity "til not he available for some time. 'I lie po.'.cr lor lighting the township "ill eventually he provided by a small water power ■a icniej power h.'.iig oiil::ined tn;m (Hail ( reek, hill the scheme is im-oni-pleted. I a addition to Ihe ti n house-

j io Ik- over on Saturday. a furi!:;■ I' ten u ill be Ii;; ]<<li t I (;%’r the 10I- !<■ u it;«r Siitimlii.v, and tin. l remaimie;uit bin ill.nut -is week--. Tin- i outr;i ■- L .I,- are iil-ti erecting eight (ullages at i Arthur's Pas-. twelve ;a Springfield j which is to become an i:I:]i:il l: uI Mn- | t ion. ami or.'- at DariiiTd. 'flies.■ ;ii | Alhnr'.- Pass arc nearing completion j anil a -tart i- to on mad l ' v. i-.h lii" Sj j i-i n isli o' .1 house-; in ahmi three weeks. The ri:fr.':.!i.:ii'iil and dioii.j maun at (Mira. which have born cnvl--0(1 liy l.ovo Pros.. will Im the most up to-date in too Dominion. although it l< po-ilih tlity may prove 100 -infill I'm r: i|iiii'jnii’nts. The dining room trill seal ninety pe,- on-, ami the leii.■ enm! room v. ill ae< ominoila i e a large I'l'OtVll. 11l efllllUVlioll Willi tm' 111 11111 j ru.mis a tin roughly 11 {:-1o (late hostel te aci oinmnda to twelve girls. i- being erect (1. SIGXAT.LTXG SYSTF.AIS TliO electrical signalling .-y-u'm-tvliieh have been installed from Stiiitvnter. near Gravmouth. to Rollc-lou j .Iniieticu. trill he tested in a' mu ai week's time. Tlettveen Otira ami! Arthur’s Pass, the system known ;is I the electric interlocking signalling, habeen installefl, and oil the otln’r section of the lime tin' system is known as elect iJ, automatic .signalling. dim systems are de-vrihed as lining "inn! proof," iu I hat they can he operated hy almost anyone without ri-l; of m eideiit. With the interlocking -ystem the points cannot lie moved unle-s tin line is clear, and all failures signal danger. Should a portion of a. train break away on the up grade from Otira. the sy-tem will automatically signal danger and shift the points so j that the train will he diverted on to a i stop siding. I XA.MT. OK Til id TPXXKI,. The (piestiin of the name of the inline! is evoking some di-vussiou. ami opinion is divided between the names Arthur's Pass and Otira. Latterly the tunnel is mint Ireipienily referred to as the Otira Tunnel, although in 1!)!>S when Sir Joseph Ward tired the first . blast, it was called Arthur's Pass tunnel. after tile name of the pass over : the hills. 1 The opening ceremony is expected to t take place at Otira. where the official i ceremony in l!)TS was held. That would mean that the Canterhuy people j would either have to come over the lull or through the tunnel in order to he present. As the opening i- hardly like- I ly to take place until dune, the opinion s is being freely expressed that the U"v- a eminent should make an tarly anuouneement regarding the matter in view of tremendous importance of the line to tlie people of Canterbury and 1 Westland. 11