Railway Opened to Garden Suburb

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 55, 27 May 1927, Page 8

Railway Opened to Garden Suburb

HUTT VALLEY SCHEME A TRIUMPH IN FORESIGHT

rom Our Resident Reporter) WELLINGTON, Thursday.

B Y pulling a lever and drivi„. a locomotive through a white ribbon stretched across the new Hutt Valley branch railway, the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. j G. Coates, marked the official completion of a developmental work unique in the history of the Dominion—the construction of , railway on the betterment pr i n . ci pie.

The function also served to record the foresight and enterprise of v. W. T, Strand, Mayor of Lower Hut ' who several years ago secured option, over the land which now comprises one of the most prosperous gardesuburbs in New Zealand, with indus”! trial and residential facilities on equalled.

The opening of the new line a gala event for the district, for it provided the inauguration of an effi! cient transport system throughout the early-settled portions of the valley The line represents a net exper,diture of £134,125, for the completed double line which will eventually li n - 5 up with the main YVairarapa line aSilverstream.

Mr. Coates said, at the opening, that the success achieved gave rise to regret that a number of other branch lines could not be constructed under such favourable conditions. The ti’st sod of the railway was turned a little over two years ago.

Mr. Coates visualised the valley lj a year or two as a beautifully-planned and accomplished garden suburb with fast and frequent modern transport service to and from the city.

“I think I am perfectly safe.” ha said, "in claiming that the original aim of the scheme has been fully accomplished, that is, apart from the value of such a modern residential settlement for the City of Wellington, the betterment on the purchase price of the land will be sufficient to pay the cost of construction. Of the sections offered to the general public only about 20 remain unselected. It la not yet 12 months since the first sections were offered to the public, but already approximately 600 have beep disposed of.”

Mr. Coates added that the next thing to be asked for would be the electrification of the line. There wai no money for this at present, and while the Government had no money nothing could be done. As soon ai finance was available, however, the work of electrification would be gone on with.