Tunnel Road Chairman Sees Harbour Bridge

Press, Volume C, Issue 29536, 10 June 1961, Page 9

Tunnel Road Chairman Sees Harbour Bridge

Some of the things he had seen in an extensive inspection of the workings of the Auckland Harbciur Bridge Authority would be of great assistance in planning the operations of the road tunnel, said Mr W. S. Mac Gibbon, chairman of the ChristchurchLyttelton Road Tunnel Authority, when he returned to Christchurch yesterday. Mr Mac Gibbon, who had been in Rotorua to attend the annual conference of the Electrical Supply Authorities’ Association, spent four days in Auckland, and was joined on one day by the deputy, chairman of the authority <Mr R. A. Witbrocki and the secretary (Mr F. G. K. Gilchrist!. “The whole system is running like a well-oiled machine." said Mr Mac Gibbon. The bridge authority collected its tolls on axle loads, whereas the tolls for the tunnel road would have to be on the basis of cargo, Mr Mac Gibbon said, but the Auckland system of checking and administration could, with necessary adaptation, be

of great use to his authority. It might be possible to get an electronic control system which would measure cargo, he said, and while he was in Auckland he had discussed this with .executives of a company w-hich has had wide experience in automatic and electronic controls. They were going to look at the proposition. One of the most interesting things he saw was the actual traffic control on the bridge, Mr Mac Gibbon said "Although Auckland has a bridge and we have a tunnel, traffic control must be very similar. We must have provision for telephones to report breakdowns, breakdown vans, and a fullyequipped fire-fighting unit, as they have in Auckland, where there is also direct communication with the central fire station. Our fire precautions m a tunnel are even more necessary." Officials of the bridge authority had given him much valuable information on recording and accounting systems. They were sending him further information. The administration in Auckland was vastly superior to that of the Sydney harbour bridge, Mr Mac Gibbon said. Its chief administrative officer had gone overseas before taking up the work. "Whoever is going to be appointed as our general manager, we will have to take the bold view and let him have a look overseas,” Mr Mac Gibbon added.