D.— 2.

In the expenditure provision has been made for interest at 4J per' cent, on capital (including goodwill), depreciation on vehicles and plant, and the establishment of necessary reserve funds. A comparison of the results obtained on the various services is as follows: —• Profit, Profit, 1937. 1936. Variation. £ £ £ Wellington-Wanganui .. .. .. 1,901 400 +1,501 Napier-Hastings .. .. .. .. 3,405 1,419 +1,986 Hutt Valley - Wellington .. .. .. 9,894 5,983 +3,911 Wellington-Johnsonville .. \ ~ rfi _ , „ -„ 7 Wellington-Khandallah ../ " " " " + '• Christchurch services .. ~ .. 105 . . + 105 Dunedin services .. .. .. .. 2,026 702 -\-1,32i Waipahi-Edievale .. .. .. 78* 94 — 172 Queenstown services .. . .. 789* .. — 789 South Westland services .. .. .. 2,667 .. +2,667 Total . „ .. .. .. £21,698 £8,598 £13,100 * Loss. During the year the fleet covered 3,531,623 miles, in comparison with 1,792,872 miles last year, an increase of 96'99 per cent., while passenger journeys increased from 3,242,469 last year to .4,556,316 (40-52 per cent.). This rapid expansion is accounted for by the fact that during the year the Department purchased several privately-owned motor-services in the Wellington, Christchurch, South Westland, Dunedin, and Invercargill districts, and also instituted a service of its own between Invercargill-Kingston and Queenstown. The revenue and expenditure per passenger iourney were 10-47 d. and 9-33 d. respectively, as against 7-64 d. and 7-01 d. last year. The Department now operates 70 omnibuses, 96 service cars, 18 lorries, and 9 motor-cars, as compared with 56 omnibuses and 10 service cars last year. The results of operating the various services are shown below : — Wellington-W ang anui . 1937. 1936. Variation. Per £ £ £ Cent. Revenue .. .. 12,174 10,448 + 1,726 16-52 Expenditure ... .. 10,273 10,048 + 225 2-24 Net revenue ... .. £1,901 £400 +£1,501 375-25 Passenger journeys ... .. 13,633 10,707 + 2,926 27-33 Mileage " .. ..328,659 332,071 - 3,412 1-03 This service consists of 9 service cars. Revenue was 8-89 d. per mile and expenditure 7-50 d., compared with 7-67 d. and 7-37 d. respectively last year. Ordinary passenger revenue showed a substantial increase. The increase in expenditure was due to the increase in drivers' wages as a result of the restoration and to the introduction of the forty-four-hour week. Napier-Hastings . 1937. 1936. Variation. Per £ £ £ Cent. Revenue .. .. ~20,224 17,986 +2,238 12-44 Expenditure .. .. 16,819 16,567 + 252 1-52 Net revenue .. .. £3,405 £1,419 +£1,986 139-96 Passenger journeys .. .. 533,314 512,292 +21,022 4-10 Mileage .. .. ..343,124 321,076 +22,048 6-87 All classes of revenue, with the exception of that from school-children's tickets, showed increases Revenue from special trips showed a particularly heavy increase of £624 (73-58 per cent.). The increase in expenditure was due to the restoration of salaries and wages, the introduction of the shorter working-week, together with the employment of additional stafl to cope with the extra traffic. Hutt Valley - Wellington. 1937. 1936. Variation. Per ||£ £ £ Cent. Revenue .. .. 73,820 65,180 + 8,640 13-26 Expenditure .. .. 63,926 59,197 + 4,729 7-99 Net revenue .. £9,894 £5,983 + £3,911 65-37 Passenger journeys .. 2,731,492 2,437,868 +293,624 12-04 Mileage .. .. 1,044,617 958,531 + 86,086 8-98

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