Manawatu Railway.

Manawatu Herald, 19 April 1902, Page 2

Manawatu Railway.

ACTION BY THE GOVERNMENT.

In accordance with a decision of Cabinet, notice to the agreement between the Government and the Wellington-Manawatu Bailway Company in six months'time has been served upon the Company by the Minister for Railways. The effect of this action will be that the company, at the expiration of the period specified, will not be able to run trains or vehicles between Longburn and Palmerston North or between its Thorndon station and the Government lines at this end. Sir Joseph Ward, when seen by a “Timas” reporter last night, explained why action had been taken by the Government. Ho said ; “ The company seemed to think it was better for them to keep their line. The Government were prepared to take it over at what we believed to be the full price. The company entertained a different opinion as to our offer. In these circumstances we considered it was our duty to the colony to obtain for our own railways our through traffic which is now going over the company’s line. We have decided to convert a number of our most powerful engines and place them in commission at the Summit in addition to the engines already there, in order to cope with the increased traffic which will then pass over our line into Wellington. There is nothing that is intended to be hostile in what the Government are doing. We are merely, in view of the decision of the company, doing our best to obtain our own traffic for 1 our own lines. Six months’ notice has been given in order that the company may have time to mr’xe arrangements.—N.Z. Times.

Mr Kirkcaldie, chairman of the Manawatu Company, says that he is not alarmed at the action of the Government terminating the agreement with the company. Interviewed on Thursday Mr Kirkcaldie assumed that the Government would not attempt to interfere with the present passenger and mail service, but would keep up the connection from Longburn in this respect as heretofore. The decision mainly affected the carriage of goods, particularly frozen meat, produce, merchandise, and coal. The company had been accustomed to pay to the Government all terminal haulage charges on such goods, so it was not losing anything in this respect under the agreement* It was impossible \to say to what extent the company would be affected until it was known to what lengths the Government was prepared to go. Personally, Mr Kirkcaldie doubted whether in view of past experience the Government rolling stock could cope with any increased traffic such as was apparently anticipated, but he thought that the saving in time effected by sending goods by the company’s line would prove a factor that consignees would consider when faced with the question of which line to patronise.