Warnings on bus services

Press, 23 September 1983, Page 4

Warnings on bus services

Parliamentary reporter Many small towns may lose all bus passenger services as a result of passage of the Transport Amendment Bill (No. 5), Labour members of Parliament have said. Three Labour members of the Commerce and Energy Select Committee, which considered the bill, disagreed with the report of the committee. They released their own “minority report,” and summarised

some submissions made to the committee. Mount Cook Coach Lines and Newmans saw in the bill the “ultimate demise of services to many rural areas,” the members said. The bus companies had given “very full and powerful submissions.”

They argued that passenger services to provincial centres were subsidised by the freight content. Freight made up half of total revenues.

“This revenue is used to cross-subsidise passenger fares. Under the bill it will be possible for couriers to set up parcel services, destroying the viability of many towns’ bus links.

“There was convincing evidence that many small towns after the passage of this bill/ may lose all bus passenger services.” The members quoted a Mount Cook Company submission to the committee. It said that the Christchurch-

Mount Cook-Queenstown service was endangered by the bill. “Our Christchurch-Mount Cook-Queenstown service... has adequately catered for passenger traffic levels on these routes, but because of seasonal fluctuations is still marginal. There is still insufficient traffic to warrant additional services. “Any additional capacity from other services could jeopardise the existing adequate services.”