BUS PARKING IN WHARF STREET

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 14860, 23 December 1948, Page 2

BUS PARKING IN WHARF STREET

Sir, —Councillors E, IT. Drew and T. F. Connor are to be complimented on the simple and reasonable way they decided to remove the congestion caused by buses parking in Wharf Street. They adopted the only sensible way out of this difficulty and it cost nobody anything. The Mayor, Mr L. R. Wilkinson, in opposing the suggestions made by Crs Drew and Connor, said these buses were serving a useful purpose for people to sit in after they had done their shopping. It sounds a little old fashioned to allow large buses to monopolise the whole of one block of shop frdnts for hours at a time for such a purpose. It also sounded a little amusing to hear the Mayor say that there would be just as much congestion even if the buses did move around into Willow Street after dropping their passengers. It was only at the last meeting 01 the council that the Mayor moved that the buses be allowed to stay m Wharf Street. This is how the Mayor intended to solve the congestion problem. For the Mayors information, the writer has seen these buses parked for hours without a single soul occupying any of them. Shoppers will still be able to sit in these buses in Willow Street if they prefer this, or perhaps the Mayor will provide a few extra seats on the Strand for these weary shoppers. The Parking Committee has been very lenient wi'th these, buses in allowing them 20 minutes before picking up passengers. Ten minutes would have been plenty. If this had been done then the problems of parking and congestion of buses would be solved for years to come providing the correct timetable is kept. —I am, etc., “KEEN OBSERVER.”