Transport rates will rise 11 per cent

Press, 15 May 1985, Page 9

Transport rates will rise 11 per cent

Christchurch Transport Board rates will be increased 11 per cent for the 1985-86 financial year, to raise a total of $8,014,000.

The increase was approved by the board at a meeting yesterday. The rate levy will be made up of general rates of $7,921,000 and special rates of $93,000.

A rate decrease of 5 per cent could have been recommended if the Urban Transport Council had not cut its grant to the board $1.2 million, said the chairman of the board’s finance and planning committee, Mr C. L. Sugden.

“Because of the new ground rules adopted by the council, Christchurch people

have been disadvantaged by SI.2M. This highlights the very drastic cut in the method of council allocations,” he said. The committee had used a cash surplus of $357,000 from the last financial year to reduce the rate increase. Without this, the rate increase would have been 16 per cent, said Mr Sugden.

The board’s estimated expenditure for the 1985-86 financial year is $22,222,700. The biggest item is traffic operation, which has been estimated to cost more than $8 million. Revenue for the year has been estimated at $13,851,500. Both revenue and operating expenses for the year

ended March 31, 1985, were higher than estimated. Increases in wages and salaries, diesel fuel, oil, and road-user charges were the main reason for increased costs, said Mr Sugden. Passenger revenue and interest earned from shortterm investments were above estimate, he said. All instalment loans owing by the board had been repaid during the year, reducing the board’s loan liability to a little more than $1 million. “The board is in an extremely sound position, which is a credit to the work of the executive and management staff,” Mr Sugden said.