PRESENT FIGURES.
The following are in round sums the average figures for the two years 1911 and 1912, based on the Railway Returns published by the Board of Trade annually under the Regulations of Railways Act, 1871:—
| (a) Passenger traffic receipts. | ||
| Season ticket holders | £5,000,000 | |
| Other passengers | 40,000,000 | |
| Total from passengers only | 45,000,000 | |
| Mails and goods by passenger trains | 10,000,000 | |
| Total from passenger traffic | 55,000,000 | |
| (b) Goods traffic receipts. | ||
| Minerals | £30,000,000 | |
| General merchandise | 32,500,000 | |
| Livestock | 1,500,000 | |
| 64,000,000 | ||
| (c) Miscellaneous receipts. | ||
| Steamboats, docks, etc. | 5,000,000 | |
| Hotels, rents, etc. | 5,000,000 | |
| 10,000,000 | ||
| Grand Total | £129,000,000 | |
| Expenditure. | ||
| Maintenance of ways, works, stations, docks, etc. | 18,000,000 | |
| Traffic expenses | 23,000,000 | |
| Locomotive and rolling stock expenses | 28,000,000 | |
| General charges, rates and taxes | 12,000,000 | |
| 81,000,000 | ||
| Net receipts | £48,000,000 | |
| Total number of passenger journeys, including season ticket holders (assuming that each annual ticket represents 200 double journeys per annum only), about | 1,620,000,000 |
| Of this total there were first or second class passengers about | 160,000,000 |
| That is, about 10% of the total number carried. |
The average fare for every journey is therefore 6½d.
In other words, if every passenger paid for every single journey, long or short, the sum of 6½d., then the gross receipts from passengers would be about the same amount as is now received.
Total tonnage of goods per goods train:
| Minerals | Tons | 410,000,000 |
| The receipts as above for these represent an average of 1/6 per ton. | ||
| General Merchandise | Tons | 114,000,000 |
| The receipts for these as above represent an average of 6/- per ton. | ||
| Total tonnage per Goods Train | Tons | 524,000,000 |
The total receipts for the two kinds of merchandise together show an average of 2s. 4d. per ton.
Note that the total tonnage of minerals carried is about four times that of general merchandise.
The total tonnage may be less than the above, owing to overlapping of the various companies, but for the purpose of my estimates I am taking these official figures.