Road Transport Leads in Cyprus THE road-rail battle goes on
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even I. in the little British colony of Cyprus. The Government operates the 71-mile railway and has stated that without, protection from road transport competition there was no hope that the railway could be made to pay by attracting more traffic.
As a common carrier, the railway had to accept everything offered, but road hauliers were free to pick and choose; they could concentrate on the more valuable goods which could stand higher transport costs and they could wait for full loads.
The railway is 44 years old. To renew its ancient tracks and re-equip it with modern locomotives would cost 12400,000. If it were modernized and then protected by law from road competition, the statement continues, travellers, traders, farmers and other producers would have to pay much more. The activities of existing road hauliers would have to be severely restricted, and it was questionable whether the public would derive any commensurable indirect benefit.
The railway handled goods at a cost of nearly 4id. per ton-mile. Since the introduction of large oil-engined lorries, the cost of road haulage had decreased considerably and under local conditions it was cheaper than rail transport would be after the railway had been reequipped.
The cost of road transport, using oilengined 6-tanners, similar to those now being operated by the Government, would be between one and two piastres (three piastres equals 4c1.) per ton-mile, according to conditions, and Would be lower if larger lorries or modern oilengined tractors with trailers were employed.
In 1949, the volume of. railway goods traffic was 31 m. ton-miles, Passenger traffic brought in only about. 10 per cent. of the revenue.