No fare choice

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33445, 29 January 1974, Page 2

No fare choice

Rangatira passengers who believe that they do not need to pay the fare increases which were authorised last week are mistaken.

A company spokesman in Wellington who had been in-

correctly quoted as saying that passengers holding tickets would not he turned off the ship for refusing to pay the increase had meant that .people who had not heard of

the increase and who would he financially embarrassed by it would not be turned away, the Union Steam Ship Company's head office manager (Mr D. A. Graham) told “The

Press’’ yesterday. However. Mr Graham said, the company felt that people had now had time to become aware of the increases, anti that the leniency which had been shown in the last four or five days was no longer justified.

The company’s Christchurch manager (Mr L. M Fairweather) said that since the increase was granted to the company bv the Price 1 ribunal last October all Rangatira tickets had a special condition stamped on them. The implementation of the Increase was delayed at the behest of the Government. The condition reads: “The company reserves the right to increase the fares and/or freight rates shown on this ticket to the amount of fares and/or freight rates ruling at the date of carriage, and the passenger shall pay the amount of such increase prior to embarkation.” Mr Fairweather said that if a person holding a ticket de-i cided he would use another' form of transport rather than pay the increase, he could | obtain a refund on what he' paid for his ticket. The amount of the refund depended on the time of cancellation. he said, and it could be as much as the full fare. A Union Steam Ship Company advertisement which has appeared in the last, few days says that all fare and freight rates are increased “effective immediately,” and that passengers with reservations or tickets should contact an office or agent of the company so that their fares can be reassessed.) and new tickets issued. The company says that there are also special ticket offices on the wharf at Wellington and Lyttelton.