Phone services being boosted

Press, 21 April 1984, Page 7

Phone services being boosted

PA Wellington A “dramatic” increase in demand means some people have difficulty making telephone calls on main routes at peak times, says the Postmaster-General, Mr Talbot. The Post Office was progressively introducing telecommunications additions to relieve the strain, but new systems could not be installed overnight, he said. “Some customers will have already noticed that during the busy periods of the day they are sometimes unable to get through on such routes as AucklandWellington and WellingtonChristchurch,” Mr Talbot said. The growth in demand for the toll service had been so rapid that the level of call-

ing was now what it had been expected to be next year. Last December the growth in the number of calls was about 4 per cent, in January it was about 9 per cent, and in February it reached a high of 16 per cent. The Post Office was introducing a number of additions to relieve matters and a big toll extension between Auckland and Wellington would be brought into service about September. Several relief measures were due to be completed from next month. There would also be additional circuits on the WellingtonChristchurch sector. Mr Talbot said customers could help by making routine calls outside the busy periods of 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.