32
route would be eventually to connect the line along the East
route with Un Long by a branch line 8 miles long over fist coun-
try to that place from a station near Shek U Hue where also the
road from Sha Tau Kok runs into that route.
20.
While on the subject of anticipated traffic it
will be interesting to consider how far that derived from the New
Territories, including Sham Chun on the border, is likely to go
towards paying interest on cost of construction and running and
For this purpose 1/4 million people
maintenance expenses.
carried over 10 miles rather less than 1/2 the length of the
line by the East route and 50,000 tons of goods carried over ·20
miles appears from the data available to be a very moderate annual estimate of traffio. Third class fares at 3 cents per passenger per mile and an average goods rate of 30 cents per ton
per mile
though considerably higher than present launch and
Junk rates would considering the saving of time and the gain in
On this basis the convenience scarcely be considered excessive.
Put-
receipts would amount to $375,000 or say f37,500 per annum.
ting interest and sinking fund at 5% on £500,000 and running and maintenance expenses at $500 per mile the expenditure per annum
for the 21 miles of line by the East route would be $35,000.
On this calculation the line would pay without taking into consideration direct trade with any places in China beyond those which supply the Sham Chun market. In this rough calcula- tion 1st. and 2nd. class passenger traffic, cattle traffic, and additional traffic brought about by the development of new indus-
tries have been left out of consideration.
21.
Assuming the same cost of construction of a line
along the West route, the greater length being counterbalanced
by decreased length of tunnelling the running and maintenance expenses for the additional 12 1/2 miles of line would except in
SO