THE RAILAWAY COMMISSION REPORT.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2297, 28 July 1880, Page 2

THE RAILAWAY COMMISSION REPORT.

[By TEi.KmiAi’ii.]

Wem.ington, July 2G

After some introductory remarks, the Commissioners say : —Wo could not hope in the limited time which we considered ourselves at liberty to devote to tlxc purpose, to follow the entire route, and still less the various competing routes, of every projected line of railway in both islands, of which Hying surveys had been made ; but we hoped to gain, and we venture to believe that we have gained, by our personal observation sullicicnt knowledge of the general character of the various districts of the colony through which it is proposed to construct railways, to enable us not only more clearly to understand and more thoroughly appreciate the weight of evidence of the settlers in localities interested, and the information contained in their evidence and the reports of the colonial engineers and other olliccrs, than wo otherwise could have done, but also to justify us in forming, in the majority of cases, an independent opinion based upon that observation. At the outset of our investigations we wore met by the tact that the already constructed railways of New Zealand do not, as a whole, yield returns sulficieut to pay half the interest upon their cost, and wc felt it necessary before we could take upon ourselves the responsibility of recommending an extension of existing, or the construction of new lines, that wo should endeavor to learn the causes to which this unsatisfactory state of things was attributable, and the extent to which the causes may be prevented or the operations modified. One leading cause was sudlciently apparent, and can only be remedied by lime and the gradual progress of settlement, which the resources of the colony will undoubtedly secure. AVc refer to the making of railways in some parts of the colony far in advance of existing settlement, and consequently of an amount of traflic adequate to their support. In Great Britain the population to each mile of railway is PJIH, in the United [States it is >SOO, New South Wales, 1108, Victoria, 'J24, while in New Zealand we have only a population of J!i2 to each mile of railway already made. It should, however, he borne in mind, in consideration of these figures, that our exports per bead of the population aie much larger than those of the neighboring colonies, and that the country traversed by the railways of New Zealand is generally of a more fertile character than that served by the lines of Victoria and New (South Wales, and is therefore calculated to provide a greater amount of trallie per mile of railway, altongh more thinly peopled. From the evidence taken, and by our personal observation and experience upon almost every mile of railway now open for traflic in the colony, we are led to the conclusion that the present expenditure may bo largely diminished by converting many small and uuremunerative stations to Hag stations, by greatly reducing the train mileage on many lines, and smaller brandies especially, and by making the rates of wages more in accordance with those paid by private employers of labour in (he colony. All the heavy and almost all the paying traflic of the branch lines in purely agricultural and pastoral districts is confined to the grain and wool seasons, which arc almost concurrent, and during what may be termed the dull season, comprising about six mouths in each year, trains running during three or four days in each week would in our opinion meet the requirements of the trallie. Our recommendation in reference to trainmileage in short amounts to this ; that the running of trains should everywhere be reduced to a number that will actually pay. Wc have thus pointed out in brief terms the leading reforms by which, in our opinion, the current expenditure of our working railways can be safely reduced, apart from the question of reduction in the number and pay of officers employed in the .service. The receipts of revenue upon the working railways arc an element in the question of profit and loss. On comparing the railway tariff of New Zealand with those of the other Australian colonies, wc find that while the average of rates charged upon the Australian railways for haulage of wool and agricultural produce is somewhat lower than the rates on these commodities current in New Zealand, on the other hand the average Australian rate for minerals (a term which serves to include coal, building stones, hones, bricks, cfay, lime

and road metal) is higher than the New Zealand rate to the following - extent:— First 10 miles, HO percent, higher; from 10 to 50 miles, 0 per cent.; from 50 to 100 miles, 47 per cent. ; from 100 to 150 miles, 00 per cent. ; or taking coal itself the iirst 10 miles, 10 per cent, higher ; from 10 to 50 miles, il| per cent. ; from 50 to 100 miles, 05 per cent.; from 100 to 150, 08 per cent. With respect to timber, the evidence we have taken leads irresistibly to the conclusion that whenever that product is carried under the existing tariff for a distance exceeding 75 miles it is so carried at an absolute loss, and when at the same time the haulage is over heavy grades the cost to the colony amounts to 50s for every 20s received to the credit of the railway account. Having thus drawn attention to some of the main features of the tariff now in force on our railways, we refrain from going into further details, but desire to express our firm conviction that maintenance of uniform scales of charges applicable to every railway in every part of the colony, without regard to the amount of business to be done, cost of service performed, or amount and nature of the competition to bo overcome is absolutely incompatible with favourable Iraliie, We urge, therefore, most strongly the system of uniform tariffs should be abolished, and the railways

conducted upon commercial principles —ttiat is to say, by charging for each rate proportionate to the cost of that particular service upon that particular line, varied from time to time as competition shall increase or diminish. Wo arc of opinion that the constructed railways of New Zealand should not continue to be as at prescut under the management of commissioners, subject to the control of the Public AA r orks Minister, aud we recommend that in. place of that system a Board be appointed, consisting of men of knowledge and business habits, free from political influence, and having as nearly as may be the same status and holding the same powers and exercising the same functions as a Board of Directors of the English railway companies. The following recommendations refer to this district: —

Allmry-Fairlie Creek.—This is also in course of construction. The section already opened is one of the most prolitable in the colony, and the extension will pass through an agricultural district which will rapidly become settled. The Crown land served comprises 54,000 acres agricultural and 1,000,000 open pastoral land, in addition to 210,000 acres freehold agricultural ami 100,000 acres freehold pastoral land. Fairlio Creek —Burke’s Pass. —The extension to Fairlie Creek will suflicicntly servo the agricultural country to the entrance of the Bass. The further extension will be of little value unless continued through the Pass into the Mackenzie country. At present the progress of settlement in that district does not justify the expenditure. AVaimatc Branch Extension to AAbuhoa ALillcy.—This could be worked at a very small increase on the cost of the present service, and the quality and quantity of land served, with the advanced stage of settlement in the district, induce us to recommend its construction as soon as possible. A survey has been already made at the cost of (lie residents, and a site promised free of charge.

Cave to St. Andrews. —This district is already provided for by the mainline and the Albury branch. Ooalgatc to Temuka. —This is generally known as the Canterbury interior main lino. Its construction would entail heavy expenditure in bridging the Selywn, J’akaia, and four branches of the Ashburton, Hinds, llangitata.Orari, and minor streams. The traffic in our opinion, would not be ample in proportion to the cost of the work and the districts through which it would pass are already to a great extent served by the existing branch lines. The further development of these districts would be more economically and ellicicnlly promoted by the formation of other branch lines, and the extension of existing ones, as the expenditure becomes warranted by the progress of settlement iu the back country.