ELECTRICITY FOR TRANSPORT.

Putaruru Press, Volume II, Issue 46, 4 September 1924, Page 2

ELECTRICITY FOR TRANSPORT.

ON RAILWAY AND ROAD. Storage Battery Vehicles. Will Arapuni Make Them General. With the now extensive electricity reticulation system in the Waikato under the various power boards, and with the prospect of more than ample power for all purposes being available on the completion of the Arapuni hydro-electrical scheme, thoughts are turning towards the utilisation of electrical energy as the motive power for transport on railway and road in Jieu of steam and petrol, where electricity would give the most economical and satisfactory service. In this connection it is interesting to note that the New Zealand Co-op. Dairy Co. already employs an electrical locomotive for shunting purposes at Frankton, and a fleet of electrical road trucks for the collecting and conveyance of milk to the Waitoa dried milk factory.

In the case of the latter, it is claimed that a saving of several thousand pounds sterling per annum *is effected as against the use of petrol-driven ti ucks. These electrical trucks are powered by storage batteries, which can be charged from special stations off the ordinary electricity reticulation lines. If storagebattery vehicles are charged when the load on the reticulation lines is at a minimum, say at night, the consumption of power in this way is a decided advantage to the power board concerned. But it is stated that in the transport of passengers and light loads over the railways storage-battery cars, specially designed for the purpose, could immediately prove of great advantage in the Waikato. At present the ll bugbear ” on the railways from the passengers’ point of view is the “ mixed ” train—goods and passengers—more often described as

wild cats.” Travelling by these trains is a slow, uncomfortable and wearying business owing to the longwaits at various stations to allow of shunting* operations. On the Rotorua and Thames lines they at present provide the official connections with the Auckland and Wellington main 'trunk expresses, and are the only -means of avoiding a half-day wait at Frankton. However, it is claimed that if storage-battery cars, for passengers and their luggage only, were dispatched to lfotorua and Thames immediately alter the arrival of the express from Auckland at niglit they could reach their destination in, say, three hours’ time, and, also, leaving Rotorua and Thames about G. 30 p.m. each evening could arrive in Frankton about 9.30 p.m., in time to connect with the express to Wellington 1 and later with the express to Auckland. The advantage ©f this on the Rotorua line, for example, would be a saving in travelling time for passengers of nearly three hours.

In Canada, authorities state, this form of catering for passengers on branch lines is becoming very popular and has proved quite successful. Cars are designed lor the purpose and lines for which they are required. They may be staffed by a driver and conductor or a driver only, and they can run over 100 miles on one charging. It is thus pointed out that with electric power lines now extending 'the Rotorua u/nd Thames .railways practically for their full length, the Government might do very well to experiment with storage-battery cars on these branches, and, if the system proves successful, extend it to other branch lines throughout the Dominion.

In the case of the Rotorua line, the power board’s mains extend only to Putaruru, but the Government is this spring erecting another line from Arapuni to Rotorua, which will follow the railway from 'within a few miles of Putaruru, and this would complete a particularly good system there, while, if the batteries of the cars are charged in the early hours of the morning, when there is little or r.o load required for the lighting- or industrial purposes, the cost of the power would in reality amount to next to nothing.