Evening bus service cut

Press, 2 December 1978, Page 1

Evening bus service cut

Cuts in evening bus services have been approved by the Transport Licensing Authority (Mr D. I Hogan) However, the time-table suggested by the Iranport Board had been Changed, said the authority Evening buses would run from Cathedral Square, every hour, at a quarter to the hour, .from 7 p.m. This time-table would apply Monday to Thursday, and Saturday. Services on Friday and Sunday were not changed. The chairman of the Transport Board (Mr M. (). Holdsworth) said he was “very pleased' with the decision He said it had shown "that, the board has been acting responsibly in the way it has been approaching this." Cuts would probably not come into effect until February,'said Mr Holdsworth. Because of the delayed decision of the authority, the board had had to post a new three-monthly roster for drivers earlier this week. The secretary of the Tramways Union (Mr M. D. Dawson) said he tvas amazed at the authority's decision. The hearing into the proposed bus cuts had been a “farce and a waste of time,” he said. The board had not researched the matter as it was cutting down on runs that were making a profit, such as the Brighton and Riccarton services, said Mr Dawson. Previously drivers had given notice of their intention to strike from December 22 in protest against the proposed rosters for the new evening services. An informal disputes committee hearing, to be chaired by an industrial mediator (Mr T. Groves)

has been set down for Tuesday. Both Mr Dawson and Mr R. Wilson, speaking foi the Bus Action Group, took issue with the suggestion made earlier that the hoard would lose as much as $12,000 if the cuts were delayed until Man h. “Even the most conservative estimate would show that the 'loss' to the board in th.- 12-weel. period would be only $4000?’ said Mr Wilson Tn fait, n is possible that the delay in the decision has saved the board, and hence ih< ratepayer, as much as $16,500.” The group bases it* figures on a Survey of evening passengers and says that the board’s figures ate based on “pure guesswork.” Mr Dawson challenged Mr Holdsworth’s conten tion that during the times affected by the cuts 4200 passengers were carried each week. “In fact, almost twice that number, about 7200. should have been the figure used. If he had used the correct number of passenger trips, his argument would have been far Jess convincing.” said Mr Dawson.