RAILWAY POLICY.

Hokitika Guardian, 24 December 1923, Page 1

RAILWAY POLICY.

THE FREIGHT SCHEDPLE. WELLINGTON. Dec. 21. The lion .1. (L Coates, Minister of Railways, who has let Wellington for a holiday at his home in the Jlargaville district, intends to resume his very active ministerial work on January 7th, when lie will commence an extensive tour of the North Auckland country from V liangnrei northwards. He proposes to return to Wellington at the end of the month, and to complete his inspection ot the South Island early in February, visiting Otago and Southland. When this tour is

complete, the Minister will be in a position to Irame tor the working 1 ailways a policy of improvement on lines similar to that which he has successfully managed in connection with public works. lie will set out necessary improvements in a. programme, and (oneentrate on it until the whole list is finished. This will mean the dropping of less important matters, but, a more definite acfTievement in the long

Associated with ibis programme is the rovision of the basis of railway finance, the freight schedule. At present ii is u complicated maze '>l rates which arc subject to two percentage additions, and to some subtractions as a result of concessions g' Vl 'U since the war. This tariff has been modified, and in the new year will lie considered in the light of the year's receipts under various headings. Ihc policy ol the iariff revision will ho settled, and a niimher of representative railways users consulted regarding the proposals which the .Minister will make m the way of removing anomalies, and if possible, giving some concessions. The plans of the Minister are likely t„ 1,0 complicated somewhat hy the demand which has just been made hr ihe Amalgamated Society of Kailway Servants for a reversion to the scale of wages in operation before the seivieo was affected hy the Public Kxpemliture Adjustment Act. Two "cuts'' were made in the men’s wages, mid their representatives contend that they are worse off iiimneiftHy to-day than before the war. and that had the war not occurred, there were indications that in 101 I the railway-men would have received an increase ol a shilling a day. The basic wage of the second divsion railway-men to-day :s £■> P’" 10d per week. The Miniter. in reply to the rci|iiests. Stated that his hist duty‘is to the country—to get good results and to give the country the benefit of thorn. Ho recognised that it would he impossible to secure good results unless the service was keen, interested in the process, i> :• a„ v.'d the men to await the completion of his survey of the railways in rebiuniy. when lie would give the "’ages pueslion his careful attention. < cr.-mi-allv,” he added, referring to r i«- toil - four hour week in operation on the railways, "I cannot help thniK'iig h.i the sliortor week lias a tremeiuou effect on the returns we are expected to show at the end ol the yea!. an department has much '"" hours than any other .lop-u Uiteiit m the public service. . . It is « u , discuss between ourselves when 1 am reiulv to do it.