The Waiuku Railway.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 250, 24 November 1914, Page 3

The Waiuku Railway.

! TO THE EDITOR.]

Sir,—ln yrur i°sue of Friday last, under the heading of "Ihe Waiuku Railway - ' appears a letter from James Roubton, enquiring why thtf people of Waiuku, as jrepresented by their Chamber of Commerce ard Kail way League,, are opposing the wish of the Pukekohe people to have the terminus at Pukekohe. I will leave the people of Waiuku to answer on behalf of their Chamber of Commerce and thii: Railway Leapu-", but as olhtr [la es along the line are interested to a cijn:iJerable extent—my own district of Mauku for cne and as we are quite in accord with tfce p. ople of Waiuku with regard to the terminus, 1 to say, ia answer to Mr Koulslon, that the uaera of the liiie from our district, whose main port and market are ultimately Auckland, do rot tee why they sliculd be put to the extra cost and delay for haulage of both goods and passengers that the rjn from the junction of tha branch line at Paerata to Pukekohe and back would entail. To be made pay this extra coet of haulage (two miles to Pukekoha arc! two miles back) appears to them quite unresonable: if it ii suggested that the extra haulage Ehould be dene at the expense of the Railway Department it would on Ihe face of it be a wasta of public money. To add it to the working expenses of our line would be playing into the hands of these who frim political and other reasons have stood opposed to it and unfair to the district providing the traffic; and all this without any gain save the pleasure afforded the people of Pukekhe town in having the terminus at Pukekohe. If at any time during the past thirty years the people of Pukekoha had taken as much interest in supporting our efforts to have the Waiuku branch railway constructed as they now evince in urging Pukekohe as the terminus the users of the line would be inclined to give their wishes more consideration. Seeing, however, that during the long time we have been battling for this railway the people of Pukekohe, feeling their interests menaced by its construction, instead of affording us their support, took every opportunity of decrying it, they should not consider it strange, now that the line is an accomplished fact, that tha promoters of the railway are not enthusiastic in penalising themselves to meet the wishes of the people of Pukekohe.—l am, etc.,

JOSEPH HENRY, President Mauku Branch Waiuku Railway League.