Criticism over delays in restructure of transport

Press, 22 September 1980, Page 2

Criticism over delays in restructure of transport

The Government has been criticised by the president of the New Zealand Road Association (Mr I. J. Johnson) for delays in restructuring road transport.

The lack of a firm decision was leaving the industry in “a state- of flux,” he said, at the association’s annual conference in Dunedin yesterday. If a restructuring eventuated it would force a fundamental change in the way carriers worked and could change the way the industry evolved.

Mr Johnson said that because the Government had taken its time to make a decision the industry had been left in a “confused and uncertain state.” “This uncertainty is causing problems with carriers unwilling to commit capital to new equipment where they don’t know what their business is going to be faced with,” he said. Detailed work needed to be done in respect of changes to land goods

licensing and rail protection

“If the Government were to treat trucks, trailers, and associated equipment in the same way as corresponding equipment is treated for the railways, road cartage rates could be decreased by 7 per cent,” said Mr Johnson. “The other extreme possibility is that comparable sales tax rates could be applied to rail equipment, in which case rail freight rates would need to increase.

“The Railways Department will probably need to be formed into a corporation with specific financial objectives,” he said. The Railways social role would'have to be clearly defined as would the ground rules by which it could continue to run road transport vehicles. “We see the challenges in this field as extremely formidable and unless they are faced up to the Government is -unlikely to achieve ' its stated goal of user choice, based on the merits of the respective transport modes,” Mr Johnson said.