Q 5
Ballast.
In my estimate I placed the rates for ballast very high compared with Railways in other Eastern countries in anticipation of excessive prices due to combination. My estimate for the top ballast is $6.00 per hundred cubic feet. I hope to get it broken for less than this amount. Small quantities have been broken at $3.50 per hundred cubic feet but no large contract can be let at this rate as whenever a large quantity is mentioned the contractors raise the rates.
At the commencement of the work I went into the question of the advisability of using mechanical stone crushers. There were several in use in the Colony at that time in the Naval Yard Extension Works and at Quarry Bay. The conclusion arrived at from information given me was that stone crushers only pay when time is an object, and that they are no cheaper if the collection of large quantities of ballast can be spread over a long period of time.
A contract was let for sleepers (Australian) which was cheaper than the Estimate though the present low Exchange will not make the saving as much as it might have been. About 25 cents per sleeper will be saved making a total of $15,000. A contract has also been let for the rails but in the absence of any details it is impossible to say if there will be any saving under this heading.
Stations and Buildings.
The expenditure
Very little has been done during the year under this heading. shown was incurred on Taipo Jetty. A sum of $15,000 for a length of 330 feet was allowed in the Estimate for this, but this sum will be exceeded by about $7,000 as it has been decided to run the jetty out into much deeper water than was at first thought necessary, being an extension of 290 feet. There will now be ten feet of water at Low Water Spring Tide. The passenger traffic to Sha U Chung is expected to be good and this jetty will accommodate large launches.
It has been decided to make two flag stations which are not allowed for in the original Estimate. One of these is close to Taipo New Market and should prove to be very much frequented. The other is to be at Lofu on the British side of the frontier river.
It is proposed to treat these flag stations as experiments and to put up only a cheap temporary building. If the receipts warrant it, a more permanent building can easily be built afterwards with sidings, etc., for passing trains.
For reasons of economy it has been decided to have only very low platforms at Shatin, Taipo and Fan Ling Stations. High platforms necessitating expensive foundations are costly and as a rule represent the heaviest item in a station estimate. The carriage stock is being designed so as to be easily entered from both the high terminal and the low wayside station platform. The saving thus made will I hope balance the extra cost of the Taipo Jetty and the two new flag stations.
Under the sub-head "Workshops" no expenditure has been incurred up to date. It has however been practically decided to erect a small workshop in Kowloon to keep the Rolling Stock of the British Section in repair. The total cost of this shop with its tools and plant, etc., will be about $120,000.
Plant.
C.
There was some expenditure under the sub-head Construction during the year, a good deal of two foot gauge trainway and trucks was purchased as well as metre gauge stock for construction of the tunnel.
An indent has gone home for some of the permanent Rolling Stock for the line. One locomotive has been ordered and one more will be ordered shortly but it is not expected that payment will be made for these before 1910.
The underframes for eight carriages are on order. It has been decided to build the wooden superstructure locally and take advantage of the cheap labour and timber.
Eighteen waggons have also been ordered, twelve of which are of the long bogie type and six short ones. It is proposed shortly to order thirty more short trucks and a couple of goods brake vans.
General Charges.
The Expenditure under General Charges was in excess of that estimated for at the beginning of the year. The excess is under salaries only, there being a decrease under other minor heads. It was not found possible to reduce the Engineering Staff as soon as it
Q 5
Ballast.
In my estimate I placed the rates for ballast very high compared with Railways in other Eastern countries in anticipation of excessive prices due to combination. My estimate for the top ballast is $6.00 per hundred cubic feet. I hope to get it broken for less than this amount. Small quantities have been broken at $3.50 per hundred cubic feet but no large contract can be let at this rate as whenever a large quantity is mentioned the cou- tractors raise the rates.
At the commencement of the work I went into the question of the advisability of using mechanical stone crushers. There were several in use in the Colony at that time in the Naval Yard Extension Works and at Quarry Bay. The conclusion arrived at fron information given me was that stone crushers only pay when time is an object, and that they are no cheaper if the collection of large quantities of ballast can be spread over a long period of time.
A contract was let for sleepers (Australian) which was cheaper than the Estimate though the present low Exchange will not make the saving as much as it might have been. About 25 cents per sleeper will be saved making a total of $15,000. ~A contract has also been let for the rails but in the absence of any details it is impossible to say if there will be any saving under this heading.
Stations and Buildings.
The expenditure
Very little has been done during the year under this heading. shown was incurred on Taipo Jetty. A sum of $15,000 for a length of 330 feet was allowed in the Estimate for this, but this sum will be exceeded by about $7,000 as it has been decided to run the jetty out into much deeper water than was at first thought necessary, being an extension of 290 feet. There will now be ten feet of water at Low Water Spring Tide. The passenger traffic to Sha U Chung is expected to be good and this jetty will accommodate large launches.
It has been decided to make two flag stations which are not allowed for in the original Estimate. One of these is close to Taipo New Market and should prove to be very much frequented. The other is to be at Lofu on the British side of the frontier river.
It is proposed to treat these flag stations as experiments and to put up only a cheap temporary building. If the receipts warrant it, a more permanent building can easily be built afterwards with sidings, etc., for passing trains.
For reasons of economy it has been decided to have only very low platforms at Shatin, Taipo and Fan Ling Stations. High platforms necessitating expensive foundations are costly and as a rule represent the heaviest item in a station estimate. The carriage stock is being designed so as to be easily entered from both the high terminal and the low wayside station platform. The saving thus made will I hope balance the extra cost of the Taipo Jetty and the two new flag stations.
Under the sub-head "Workshops" no expenditure has been incurred up to date. It has however been practically decided to erect a small workshop in Kowloon to keep the Rolling Stock of the British Section in repair. The total cost of this shop with its tools and plant, etc., will be about $120,000.
Plant.
C.
There was some expenditure under the sub-head Construction" during the year, a good deal of two foot gauge trainway and trucks was purchased as well as metre gauge stock for construction of the tunnel.
An indent has gone home for some of the permanent Rolling Stock for the line. One locomotive has been ordered and one more will be ordered shortly but it is not expected that payment will be made for these before 1910.
The underframes for eight carriages are on order. It has been decided to build the wooden superstructure locally and take advantage of the cheap labour and timber.
Eighteen waggons have also been ordered, twelve of which are of the long bogie type and six short ones. It is proposed shortly to order thirty more short trucks and a couple of goods brake vaus.
General Charges.
The Expenditure under General Charges was in excess of that estimated for at the beginning of the year. The excess is under salaries only, there being a decrease under other minor heads. It was not found possible to reduce the Engineering Staff as soon as it
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