Transport firms fear ‘shambles’ over act

Press, 20 March 1978, Page 4

Transport firms fear ‘shambles’ over act

Transport reporter

The new Road User Charges Act, planned to come in force on April 1, has run into immediate difficulties because of a shortage in the supply of hubodometers, the approved distance recorder.

According to suppliers of motor parts, thousands of vehicles in Christchurch and throughout New Zealand will not be equipped with the approved distance recorders before their respective deadlines.

But transport operators who notify the Ministry of Works, Wellington, of their inability to meet the provisions of the act by the required date, will not be liable for prosecution, it was learned yesterday. The Ministry of Transport, which will enforce the new regulations, will regard the matter “with tolerance,” says Traffic Superintendent A. Goldsmith, of Christchurch.

Final details are still being worked out by the departments concerned but it is believed that firms will be required to give information on the make of the vehicle, its licence-plate number, the name of the supplier, and the date the order was made. Transport operators are convinced that this provision, far from simplifying the confusion, will produce a mass of paper-work for the bureaucrats, and result only in a shambles.

The supply problem has been caused in part by the Government’s recent change of policy which revoked approval of existing hubodometers.

Many who had equipped their fleets with hubodometers long before the new regulations were drawn up or announced were relieved

when the Ministry of Transport informed the Roac’ Transport Association in December that existing hubodometers would be acceptable if serial numbers were in scribed by means of an air pencil. (The regulations say that the manufacturer’s serial number must be placed on the inside of the meter.)

The Road Transport Association was formally notified six weeks ago that this approval had been revoked. Firms are now faced with the choice of either replacing their hubodometers or returning them to the overseas i manufacturer for serial: markings. The strictness of the Gov-1 ernment’s policy on distance! recorders only increases the: anger of an industry which ( was already annoyed about; the haste with which the legislation was passed and ex-1 pected to be enforced. Many Canterbury transport firms and suppliers are dubious whether the regulations will come into effect as quickly as the Government had planned. Mr H. O. Duckworth, branch manager of Motor Specialities, Ltd, believes the introduction of the Road User Charges Act will have to be postponed. A meeting of transport operators will be held in Christchurch on March 29 to discuss the effects of the act. on both haulage and passenger sectors of the industry. The Opposition spokesman on transport (Sir Basil Arthur) said yesterday that Government theorists drawing up the new road taxation system had failed to note the Road Transport Association’s practical experience, the Press Association reports. He said that the legislation threatened complete chaos for the road transport industry.

“Many operators are already facing tight liquidity, and yet, in two weeks, huge increases in tax payments will be demanded of them to

meet the cost of distance licences they must purchase in advance.” Sir Basil said that in spite of tight liquidity, firms had been left in the dark about what would be the recovery; factors to compensate for the increases in taxation. The user-pays system i would be able to pass on! cost increases to the transport user, he said. “The reductions in sales j tax will benefit only those; who are in a position to re-1 place their trucks, and will do nothing to assist immediat cash flow problems,” said Sir Basil. Provision must be made to waive the road-user charges in cases where transport concerns could not foot the bill without going out of busi-, ness. A decision on such; provisions must be made im-i mediately as “I can quote sevefal examples of operators going out of business,” said Sir Basil. I Payment of distance icharges should be made after! I three or six months of cartage, rather than in advance.