Inner Harbour At Lyttelton

Press, Volume C, Issue 29534, 8 June 1961, Page 16

Inner Harbour At Lyttelton

The Lyttelton Harbour Board is wise to seek legal authority for the improvement of No. 7 wharf to take advantage of the better road access that the road tunnel will provide. This decision will not commit the board to any fixed timetable for widening the wharf and building a transit shed; but it will allow the board to take the first favourable opportunity for reconstruction. The recent congestion at Lyttelton and the growth of business have shown the urgency of the need for improved facilities, which will be met only in part by the eastern extension of the harbour. As the chairfol man (Mr A. A. Macfarlane) has pointed out, the existing inner harbour F must also be brought up F to date, or much of the value of direct road access from Christchurch will be lost. The old harbour will

still provide by far the greater part of the port’s berthage space. It should also be realised that, as long as the inner harbour remains geared to railway transport only, all the operations of the board will be unnecessarily complicated. The quicker clearance of cargo and the release of berths, railway trucks, and goods sheds will mean an important saving in time, which in turn will make for economy in transport costs. Apparently the best place to begin modernisation is at No. 7 wharf. This projected work may not be put in hand for two or three years; but the resolve to take the preliminary steps is welcome evidence of the board’s determination to make Lyttelton a modern, convenient, and economic port, and of an understanding of what is required to that end.