SECOND READING. (Hansard, 6 August 1887)

§ MR KIMBER (Wandsworth)
, in moving that the Bill be read a second time, said, its object was to permit the authorities in Ireland to authorize a change in its method of construction of tramways, from the two-railed system where that was found not to answer, to the one-rail system.

§ MR. CHANCE (Kilkenny, S.)
said, he objected to the Bill being proceeded with at this Sitting, as it had been sprung upon the House without Notice. The existing legislation with regard to tramways and light railways was of a very difficult and complex character, and he could not gay that it had worked successfully up to the present. But the most objectionable thing about this scheme was that it was promoted by a gentleman who was completely un-known. It was proposed by means of this measure to give legislative sanction to a special kind of tramway as to which not two Members of the House had any information. He moved that the Bill be read a second time that day three months.

§ MR. KIMBER
said, he had no reason to believe the Bill would be opposed. It was entirely Irish in its origination. It was simply permissive. He had taken pains to inform and consult many hon. Members on the Irish Benches, and knew that many of their constituencies approved it. It proposed to give certain localities in Ireland the right of permitting the construction of the one-rail, or any other kind of tramway as an alternative to the ordinary two-rail system. The cost of the construction of the one-rail tramway, which had already been tried in Devonshire and in Ireland itself, was half that of the present system, and the tramway could be constructed in one-third of the time now required. The working expenses would be considerably less than the expenses of the two-rail system. If the Bill were passed employment would be given to a number of people.

§ MR. BIGGAR (Cavan, W.)
said, he rose to support the Amendment of the hon. Member for South Kilkenny (Mr. Chance). The Bill was introduced for the purpose of promoting a certain patent system of tramways; and if the House could be induced to sanction the system, the next thing they would have would be an advertisement in the newspapers asking the public to subscribe funds for the carrying out of this experiment, and the argument in favour of the scheme would be based on the sanction of Parliament. He objected altogether to the House giving its sanction to such a scheme. He did not think the principle on which it was proposed to construct these tramways was in operation in every part of the Kingdom, and he did not think it was feasible to work a line on such a principle for general purposes. The tramway, he understood, was proposed to be in the form of a triangle, and in the cars the passengers would be seated back to back, something like what they were in a jaunting car. It might be possible to run light trains with passengers, but it would be perfectly impossible to carry any quantity of goods. The system would therefore be useless for the purposes for which the promoters alleged that it was intended—namely, to facilitate the development of Irish industries. The Bill went upon the assumption that it was possible to construct and work tramways successfully on this principle in various parts 1494 of the United Kingdom, through the agency of Public Companies; but he objected to the public being called upon to find the money to make experiments for the benefit of the promoters. If experiments were to be made to test the value of the principle, let them be made at the cost of the promoters themselves; and instead of the experiments being carried out in Ireland and in remote parts of the West of England, they should be made near London, where the public would have an opportunity of judging of their success. If the promoters would carry out those experiments, and then, next Session, come to Parliament for laying down a line at Charing Cross, he would be ready to give them his support; but he objected to the Irish public being put to the cost of experiments for the benefit of the promoters of this scheme.