Call to keep Kaiapoi out of Canterbury urban transport area

Press, 15 November 1984, Page 2

Call to keep Kaiapoi out of Canterbury urban transport area

Kaiapoi was a self-con-tained community and should not be included in the Canterbury urban transport area, the Local Government Commission was told in Christchurch yesterday. The Town Clerk of Kaiapoi, Mr Rob McCabe, told the commission that the Kaiapoi Borough Council was closely involved with the community and thought the planning arid provision of transport services should be its responsibility. The borough was a separate geographical entity from the urban area of Christchurch and did not border any other urban areas. Urban services were self-contained within the borough, he said. Kaiapoi Borough had objected to being Included in the urban transport area as defined by the Canterbury United Council. Mr McCabe said the ex- , elusion of Kaiapoi from the ; area would not nave a detri-J mental effect on the area. The United Council had not been able satisfactorily to outline any benefits the borough would, receive by being included in the urban transport area, said Mr

McCabe. The Eyre County Council objected to half of the Eyreton riding’s being included in the area. The Eyre County Clerk, Mr John Barrow, said no objection was made to the urban Riseley Riding, which was part of Kaiapoi, being included in the area. His council thought that Riseley and Kaiapoi Borough, because of their urban nature, should be included in the urban transport area. The half of Eyreton riding which had been included in the area consisted mainly of dairy farms and horticulture. K Few people living there used anything but private cars for transport, said Mr Barrow. There was no demand for public trans- , port in Eyreton. ■ Cross-objections were entered by the Rangiora ; Borough Council and the United Council. The Town Clerk of . Rangi- ' > ora, > Mr Frank Rapley. said Kaiapoi and Eyreton should < be included in the urban ; transport area because of their interaction with Rangiora. Rangiora needed to be part of the area because 21.7 per cent of its

population was retired and dependent on public transport, he said. The director of regional planning for the United Council, Mr Graham Miller, said transport services “or a lack of transport services” could be planned for parts of the urban transport area. Kaiapoi and Rangiora were important to the regional development of Canterbury and should be included in the area. Kaiapoi had a strong inter-relation-ship with both Christchurch and Rangiora. “In planning terms it would be a nonsense to exclude Kaiapoi, which is one of the cornerstones of regional development,” said Mr Miller.

It would be difficult to service Rangiora if Kaiapoi was not part of the Urban Transport Area. If Eyreton was “lost,” the northern part of the area would be almost severed from the southern section; he said. If both objections were sustained, the Riseley riding would be left as an “island” and cut off from the rest of the urban transport area.

The commission, chaired; by Si.r Richard Webb, reserved decision.