OUR RAILWAYS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 13 April 1939, Page 9

OUR RAILWAYS

(To the Editor.) Sir,—The steam train left Masterton at 6 p.m—on time, in beautiful weather—and reached Cross Creek, 28 miles distant, at 7.48 p.m. It required 15 minutes to change engines at “The Creek”—and so at 8.3 p.m. we were rolling upwards and onwards to the Capital. At 8.40 p.m. the train halted at Summit station. A further 15 minutes wait (engines change-over), then the train again sped on and finally arrived at Wellington at 10.33 p.m. (on time)—only 4 hours 33 minutes after departing from Masterton 66 miles away and at the extraordinary average speed of 14| miles per hour! You, sir, will ask, “But when did this happen—surely during last century?” Actually the date was April 6, 1939. Usually 3? hours are sufficient for this trip per steam train; and it would be interesting to 'learn the Railways Department’s reason for going slow (in reality!) during 'the Easter holidays. The “brakes were on,” definitely, between Masterton and Cross Creek: One hour 48 minutes to travel 28 miles on the flat Wairarapa Plains! It is realised, of course, that the Rimutaka Hill reduces the average mileage per hour, but surely the Railways Department adopted the wrong policy in slowing up the timetable during the holidays—about 50 minutes in the case under notice—instead of speeding up and attracting patronage. After the completion of the Rimutaka Tunnel can we expect the time for the journey to be reduced? And is it not now time, irrespective of the tunnel project, to ask for a revision of the present timetable, probably brought into operation when the line ’was first used.—I am, etc, N.Z.R. MARTYR. Masterton, April 12. The points raised in the above letter were referred by the actingstationmaster at Masterton, Mr A. W. Hearle, to the Train Running Office, Wellington, which replies as follow: — This train stopped at all stations between Masterton and Wellington, whereas the mail train has a limited number of stops. Furthermore, the train was scheduled so that reasonable crossings could be made at various stations with important opposing passenger trains. The schedule could have been accelerated between Masterton and Cross Creek, but this would have necessitated an unreasonable wait at both Featherston and Cross Creek to cross opposing passenger trains.