WEEK END TRIPS.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 November 1915, Page 3

WEEK END TRIPS.

SUCCESS OF RAILWAY SCHEME. BECOMING MORE POPULAR IN TARANAKI. The system of issuing week-end concession tickets on the railways appears to lie meeting with success in many parts of the Dominion, and the concession is being freely availed of in Taranaki. A News representative was informed yesterday that when the scheme was first introduced on September 25 it "hung fire" for a while in Taranaki, but since then the number of tickets applied for increased every week, indicating that the scheme is growing in favor.

The scheme is yet in its experimental stages, and the summer will provide the true test. As far as Taranaki is concerned the concession should be taken advantage of very freely in the next few months, because New Plymouth is becoming more popular every summer as a holiday resort, and the facilities offered by the Railway Department will enable people "down the line" to spend a week-end at the seaside here much cheaper than was formerly possible. The following are the week-end fares from the towns named. Ist. 2nd. Class. Class. Wanganui to New Plymouth 19/fi 13/2 Aramoho „ ~ ' „ 19/- 12/9 iWaverley „ „ „ 13/9 9/3 Patea „ „ „ 12/2 8/2 Hawera „ „ „ 8/11 fi/Normanby „ „ „ 8/4 5/8 Eltham „ „ „ 6/9 4/7 Stratford „ „ „ 5/8 3/10 Midhirst „ „ „ 5/5 3/9 Between New Plymouth and Midhirst there is no reduction, as 5s 5d and 3s fld are the minimum fares. Week-end tickets arc available from Saturday morning to Monday night. In connection with excursion tickets, "A Traveller" writes:—"Kindly inform me, through the columns of your valuable paper, what are the conditions on which a week-end excursion ticket is issued. I travelled a week or two back from Lepperton to Ball Road, a distance of 51 miles, but the guard refused me the week-end ticket on the grounds that the mail train was not scheduled to stop at Ball Road, and therefore that I was liable to break my journey, which is not permissible. But I maintain that I was not breaking my journey, considering that I was going direct to Ball Road, as I don't think that there is any law to prevent me goinr' anywhere it suited me to go after T got to Ball Road, either by train or any other conveyance, provided I was prepared to pay for my passage, and also that I met the j train at Ball Road again on Monday on my return. On the other hand, I have travelled on the mail train to Ball Road on several trips before, and each and every time it did stop at this station. I want your opinion, Mr. Editor, on whether it was a proper stand for the guard to take."

This letter was referred to the stationmaster at New Plymouth, who stated that the south mail train only stops at Ball Road to pick up passengers for Aramoho and south of there, and does not stop to drop passengers from the north. Passengers wishing to go to Ball Road should travel by the second train, which will stop at Ball Road on request.