Our Railway System.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXV, Issue 246, 16 November 1903, Page 2

Our Railway System.

Until the New Zealand Railway Department determines to face the cost and reconstructs its railway carriages so that it can lock the public in, lit will probably continue to kill people ns it killed an unfortunate man on Saturday, and to retain the reproach of being the second deadliest railway system on earth. We are aware that in this free country the democracy may resent being locked up ; it may prefer to run the risk of the sudden amputation of a limb to any restriction of its freedom, but the democracy iias put up with so many encroachments on its liberties in New Zealand of late that it would probably hear this one mpekjy. The great and chief drawbuck pf the systpm of jocking people up, which is good enough for Australia and the Old World, is tlmt in this country the prople do have a chance of getting out when the truins run into something, and they prefer a system which enables them to sit near the door with an eye on the engine to one which would not. Perhaps, if the Department insisted on a regulation which made it a serious offence for people to stand on the platforms of moving trains, and also provided platform gates, there would be fewer acridnets. The bulk of the fatalities to however, aro due to the absence of the lock-and-key ej'stem ot older countries, t -Truth