RECORD TRAFFIC

Waikato Times, Volume 124, Issue 20737, 22 February 1939, Page 9

RECORD TRAFFIC

RAILWAYS VERY BUSY HEAVIEST IN HISTORY RUSH WITH GOODS AND STOCK With seven special trains, the staff working - long- hours and every available unit of rolling: stock in commission, the Frankton Junction railway experienced the busiest period in its long history in the transportation of general goods and stock during the week-end. The rush began to ease somewhat to-day and the transport authorities expect conditions to return to normal by the end of the week. With general goods reaching unusual tonnage and the store sheep market right at its peak the railway was kept constantly busy. The manner In which trains were handled and the abnormal volume of goods and stock handled was a triumph of organisation.

Three special goods trains were run from Frankton Junction to Auckland on Sunday, while a special was despatched to Putaruru to bring stock to Morrinsville and Frankton. Another special train from Te Awamutu handled a large volume of stock from that district, and a special brought sheep from Taneatua. Another special from Taneatua was r un yesterday. The majority of the store sheep transportation Is to Morrinsville, the principal selling centre for that class of stock in the province. More Sheep by Train Although the number of sheep coming into the Waikato from the East Coast is no larger than in other years, the number being trucked is apparently in excess of usual drafts, with the result that the railway has been pressed to cope with the. demands for trains. Whereas thousands of sheep are usually brought to the Waikato from the East Coast in droves on a tedious journey of about seven or eight weeks, the majority of East Coast vendors are this season reaching the Morrinsville market by the combined road and rail transportation. Sheep are loaded on motor trucks and from the coastal districts are transported to the rail head at Taneatua, where they arc transhipped to the railway for the journey to Morrinsville. Very few dreves have been seen on the road this year, which has been the first that motor transport has been used to any extent. A popular method of reaching the Waikato markets employed by many station-owners on the coast this season has been to consign sheep by the scows which sail around Cape Runaway tg Tauranga. from where the cargo ts loaded to trains for the final section of the journey to Morrinsville. Seventeen trips have been made- by the boat this season. 2400 sheep being carried on each trip. Mote.' Trucks Bogged /On Sunday 37 decker trucks of sheep were loaded out of Frankkton, the stock coming from the Hamilton district and as far away ns Raglan. It was a hard day for the railway staff engaged on the special trains With 560 lambs to catch a special train a fleet of motor trucks from Raglan was begged on the western side of the deviation and as a result operations at the station were delayed.

The ram fair held at Claudelands on Monday and yesterday brought 4000 rams before the auctioneer, and made further demands on the railway, and difficulty was experienced by the department in supplying sufficient waggons to cope with the fair on account of the particularly heavy traffic which has been experienced in the last few' days.

With gTeat activity in building in Hamilton and throughout the district, the tonnage of timber being carried by the railway is particularly heavy. Supplies for the State housing schemes have added to the amount of general goods being handled at Frankton.

The manure season is in progress, too. and accentuates the difficulties being experienced by the railway to place sufficient rolling stock on the lines. So acute has this insufficiency of trucks become that a great number of the store sheep which cannot be transported in decker trucks have to be carried in the high-sided trucks. The railway has experienced difficulty during the past week in fulfilling the requirements of the timbermillers at Putaruru and Mamaku, due to the extra trains necessary to cope with the heavy goods and stock traffic. For a similar reason the operations of the railway at the Iluntly mines have been difficult also.