Drivers’ picket stops bus leaving

Press, 29 October 1977, Page 1

Drivers’ picket stops bus leaving

The office of the Mount Cook and Southern Lakes Tourist Company, on Riccarton Road, was picketed yesterday by several private coach-service drivers. The picket came during a 24-hour stoppage by Canterbury private coach drivers. Members of the Canterbury Drivers’ Union had voted on Wednesday to endorse the recommendation to strike made by their assessors, after award talks on October 13 and 14. The strike, which began at midnight on

Thursday, finished at midnight last night. The secretary of the Canterbury Drivers’ Union (Mr P. R. Liggett) said part of the resolution to stop work had stipulated no dispensations. Mr Liggett said there had been indications that Mount Cook would run some bus services, and the picket was held to stop the Christchurch-to-Queenstown bus leaving. He said the Mount Cook Company had later involved the police in the picket and that after long negotiations the company had decided not to run its service.

Passengers booked on the Newmans coach from Christchurch to Blenheim at 5.30 p.m. yesterday were taken to their destinations by taxi at the coach company’s expense. A company spokesman said that none of its Canterbury drivers had worked during the strike. The company’s Nelson drivers had not been affected by the stoppage. A spokesman for Bonici Motors said that all tours had run as usual. Bonici Motors is a subsidiary of Trans Holdings, which runs Trans Tours, one of the biggest tom - companies in New Zealand.

The general manager of Midland Coachlines (Mr D. W. Mcßeth) said that none of his company’s drivers in Christchurch worked during the strike. Canterbury schools generally did not seem affected. The principal of Kaiapoi High School (Mr T. E. French) said that no more than 20 pupils, who usually came by Midland bus, were away from school yesterday. The school roil is about 650. The effect on the school had been “pretty limited.” A spokesman for another school also noticed little effect — pupils who

f usually came by buses affected by the strike : came in private cars. > Private passenger-bus I drivers on the West Coast continued to work yesterday, after having decided i earlier to stop for 24 hours. The field representative of the Drivers’ Union (Mr ! L. Bums) said yesterday that unfounded rumours from Christchurch and i Nelson that the strike had ! been called off had led to the reversal of the deciI sion. The drivers had heard the rumours, had not been able to reach him, had gone ahead with a further

meeting, and had then decided to call off the stoppage, Mr Burns said. He alleged that at least two companies outside the West Coast were responsible for the rumours, and said he was not happy about the situation. But services in MidCanterbury ran normally yesterday, the Press Association reports. After voting 100 per cent to carry out normal duties, drivers at MidCanterbury Industries, Ltd, all turned out yesterday and made the usual school bus runs.