One crane enough now

Press, 4 November 1978, Page 14

One crane enough now

Lyttelton’s failure to persuade the Minister of Transport, Mr McLachlan, that the port should have a second container crane should not be regarded as a disaster. He has unheld the Ports Authority decision that one crane at Lyttelton is sufficient in the meantime. To upset this decision the Minister would have had to find reasons that served “national interest" He could not entertain a case that rested solely on local benefits, unless these coincided with what was best for the national port system. In fact the Minister has probably done Lyttelton and its customers a favour in rejecting the Harbour Board's appeal Io him.

Many arguments can be produced in favour of having a second crane: it would certainly speed the handling of ships: it would sustain the movement of container cargo in the event of the breakdown of the other crane; it might be helpful in promoting the port among potential users of Lyttelton; greater use of this port might relieve the railways and road system of some burden. If the container traffic through Lyttelton

were greater than it now is, or if it could be shown to be in line for substantial growth, the cost of an extra crane would be of less importance. Given the present level of trade, Lyttelton can well do without the higher charges that an extra crane would entail.

The board has plans for the substantial renovation of the port in other ways, and if these plans go ahead it will be well placed to accommodate other forms of shipping and handling equipment. If the board prepares its case well, it should have little trouble in obtaining the approval of the Ports Authority Development of the Canterbury region and of the whole South Island is a matter of “national interest,” and the provision of appropriate port facilities must be part of this development. In due course a second container crane may be essential, but trends in cargo handling do not make the need certain. The Minister’s decision is really a blessing, and in spite of the set-back that some will find in it, this blessing is not even disguised.