PAEROA-POKENO LINE.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIV, Issue 4539, 14 March 1923, Page 4

PAEROA-POKENO LINE.

NEED FOR AGITATION. The chairman of the Auckland Railways and Development League suggested that the Paeroa Borough Council should sustain a ceaseless and determined effort to obtain the early construction of the Eastland Main. Trunk line,, as the future line to Rotorua, via Hauraki Plains, Paeroa, Te Aroha, and Morrinsville, as saving in time, money, and distance to Thames, Paeroa, Waihi, and Te Aroha. It was advocated that the distance to Morrinsville, via Paeroa-Pokeno Main Trunk was about the same as via Frankton Junction, but that the deviation from Auckland to Rotorua would relieve the coming congestion of traffic a,t Frankton, and, from a tourist route point of view, would pass through far better country than could be 'seen from Pokeno to Morrinsville via the present, route. In the fact of the large sums of money being squandered on non-payable ' lines, i ; t would be a great advantage to this flourishing district if there was a modicum of expenditure on the proposed new tourist route, which should be a payable proposition from the start, and would mean 40 miles of “sand-papering’ ’construction that 'should be rapidly and economically carried put. The League urged the Council to view the Government's apathy with concern in this important line construction, as it should view political lines constructed on unpayable branches to the detriment of the flourishing Eastland tourist and farming district line, and authorised a fev. years since, taking the place of lines authorised 40 years ago. The PaeroaPokeno connection was a comparatively recent authorisation, and that should be an added inducement to carry cut —as in other places—a vigorous railway construction policy. On the motion of Cr. Marshall it to decided to confer with the Chamber of Commerce, and that a special endeavour should be made tp again “launch a bombardment” at the Minister with a view to hastening the construction of this very important WO’fli.