MAIL CONTRACTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 21, 25 January 1934, Page 17

MAIL CONTRACTS.

OFFICIAL PRICE-CUTTING. •'WRONG IN PRINCIPLE." (From Our Own Correspondent.) DARGAVILLE, this day. "We cannot blame the Department for accepting the lowest tender, but the authority cannot help thinking that this is just another example of flogging an operator through the Transport Act," said Mr. W. Jones, chairman of the No. 1 Transport Licensing Authority, yes.terday, when John Gordon applied for a parcels carrying license. The secretary ot the authority stated that the license was for the carrying of mails between Dargaville and Tangowahine twice daily and the delivery of parcels on the Tangowahine-Avoca-Te Karake Road three times weekly. The applicant had been operating on a former run on a temporary license granted by the Department as from January 1, 1934. In reply to the chairman, the applicant said that no parcel would exceed 1001b weight. Delivery would be made to destinations only beyond Tangowahine. He had been requested by the settlers to start a service, there being only an irregular delivery by tradesmen's vans and cream lorries at present. The total distances which the runs would cover in a year would be 5131 and 4176 miles respectively. Objections to the granting of a parcels license were made on behalf of Dalbeth Motors and the Railway Department. Asked by the chairman what he considered would be a fair price, Hector Dalbeth said £125. The Post and Telegraph Department offered £112, but Dalbeth's refused to take it. Gordon said his price was £120, but the Department offered him £112. and he accepted. His predecessor's price was £170, but a further assessment placed it at 10/10 a day. He had no idea of the amount of the revenue on the proposed parcels delivery. He also said the Department had suggested that the parcels service be started in order to secure extra revenue. "In my opinion the principle of the thing is quite wrong," continued Mr. Jones. "There is no difference between the relation of storekeeper and client and that of the Department and operator. This applicant is obviously going into something which he cannot possibly carry out at this price. We recently had a case where a mail contract was lot by tender. One person tendered £108, and, when tenders were again called for, gave £IGO as his price. The contract was then offered to applicant at £123, but the matter was submitted to the authority, which raised the price to £135. This would probnbly be the procedure if your license for the mail contract were refused." Applicant explained that he wanted both licenses or none at all. The authority decided to reserve its decision until after sittings at Kaikohe, Kaitaia and Whangarei later in the week.