Harbour Board sues Railways

Press, 29 September 1979, Page 6

Harbour Board sues Railways

PA Wellington A difference between the Wellington Harbour Board and the Railways Depart-, ment came to a head yesterday when a Supreme Court writ was served claiming' almost $89,000 from the de-] partment in allegedly unpaid wharfage dues.

The writ, served by Izard,' Weston and Company on behalf of the Harbour Board,' names the Attorney-General in respect of the Railways. It claims “neglect and damages” amounting to $BB,BlB. No more details of the writ are open to public search, and neither the Railways nor the board would comment yesterday on the background to the dispute.

But it is believed that the writ is the first public surfacing of a months-long dis- ■ pute over wharfage charges.

The Harbour Board imposed a 20 per cent rise on its harbour dues and wharfage charges from July 1, and it is believed that the Railways was not alone in criti-

cising the new levels. The criticism is based on the severity of the charges, the rate at which they have' continued to rise, and the profit margin which accrues] to the Habour Board. In the Railways’ case there has been more than criticism. It is believed that since July the Department has not paid the full dues owing for its ferry terminal in protest against the new charges. That ran up the debt claimed for in the board’s writ. The Railways' opposition was apparent in April, when the board agreed to its new charges applying from July 1. The board meeting was then informed that there had been no formal objections to the advertised new charges, but an adverse comment had been received from the Rail-' ways. Last year, the Railways] had to pay $3.9M for wharf-: age charges at Picton and Wellington, according to the department’s annual report.