THE BUS ROUTES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 48, 6 December 1940, Page 3

THE BUS ROUTES

PROTEST AGAINST CHANGE.

LYND HU RST-LAU RISTON

DISTRICT.

DEPUTATION TO TECHNICAL BOARD.

As a result of statements made by a deputation from the school committees at Lyndhurst and Lauriston at a meeting of the Ashburton Technical High School Board last evening, the Board entered a protest against the proposal of the Canterbury Education Board to eliminate the special subsidy on conveyance allowances and the alteration of the school bus routes that would compel some childi*en to go to schools other than those chosen by the parents. The protest was made on the ground that the Technical High School should ‘Serve the full district it represents by watching the interests of children whose aptitudes are in the direction of technical 'education. Lack of Facilities. In connection with the bus route allowances, Messrs G. A. Franks and T. R. Greenaway, representing the Lyndhurst-Lauriston district school . committees, waited on the Board. Mr Franks said that advice of the cutting out of the subsidy for travelling had been received and the parents wished to know what assistance the Board would be prepared to help iu maintaining th e bus services. The parents were well satisfied with the education their children were receiving at the Technical School and wished them to continue. Next year there would be at least 16 pupils from the district wishing to go to Ashburton Technical School. There was no bias toward or against any one. school in the district, but the opinion was that the pupils should continue to go to Ashburton. There was a certain lack of facilities at a District High School, which did not seeip to cater for the ' type of education that was needed these days, especially for boys. It could not give the advanced tuition that was available at the Technical High School, and which was very necessary. The support of the Board in maintaining the present system of conveyance was asked. The saving of petrol was given as an excuse for the changes, but it was felt that there were many other avenues where money could he saved without encroaching on the school bus supplies. Mr Greenaway spoke in support of Mr Franks’s views. Question of Motive. In .reply to Mr Shaw, Mr Franks, said lie had no grounds on which any motive for this- change other than saving of petrol could be stated. There were suspicions, but nothing conci’ete. The previous Minister of Education had said that so long as Methven was left alone there would be no changes in the bus service, so the parents wanted to find the nigger in the woodpile.

Mr Shaw said there was no sense in making changes, ostensibly to save petrol, at the expense of the education of the children.

Replying to the chairman, Mr Franks said that if the need for saving petrol was sincere, the Department would have accepted a proposal from the district that would have' saved -a running of 2000 miles a year by the school bus". Under the new route scheme, some children would have to walk two miles to meet the bus. Again, the Department had said that if the present bus was not large enough, a larger one would be put on. 9 The Petrol Excuse. Mr Aitken said that for over 15 years the people of the district had been particularly energetic in. building np a conveyance scheme that was held by a former Minister to be one of the most economical and efficient in the Dominion. Many hundreds of pounds had been paid out of the parents’ pockets, the average at present being about £5 10s a family a year. It was not for him to suggest a motive for the change, but there was no doubt the excuse of the saving of petrol was not an adequate one. He urged the Board to assist the parents of the district if it could.

After a discussion in committee, the chairman (Mr H. Watts)’and the Principal (Mr W. Crawford) were authorised to prepare a report to be forwarded to the Education Department, the Canterbury Education Board, the Leader of the Opposition (Mr S. G. Holland), who is watching the interests of Mid-Oantenbury Electorate in the absence of Captain A. N. Grigg, M.P., setting out a comparison of the facilities and units of work of District High Schools with those available at Technical Schools. The chairman and Messrs J. Shaw and W. S. Kerr were appointed to represent the Board at a meeting of parents of the Lyndhurst district next Monday evening.

EXEMPTION SOUGHT.

THE COST-OF-LIVING BONUS

(Ter Press Association)

WFLI.IN G TON, December

Decision was reserved by the Court of Arbitration to-day on an application by the employers under the New Zealand Private Hotel Employees’ Award for exemption from the Couit s general order awarding a 5 per cent, cost-of-living bonus. The application was based on two grounds. The first was that Die business of the employers had already suffered severely froth the increase in the cost of living, and the decrease in patronage caused through the curtailment of the tourist traffic because of the war and rationing of petrol. The second ground was that payment of the most-of-living bonus would impose an unfair burden on the industry. Ninety per cent, of the workers were supplied with board and lodging by the employers, and so were not affected by the increased cost of living except in regard to clothing.