Meeting will delay Railways passengers

Press, 23 April 1986, Page 3

Meeting will delay Railways passengers

Passengers on Railways Corporation coaches and trains will face a delay of about two hours tomorrow morning while railway workers discuss disaffiliating from the Labour Party. The Canterbury branch of the National Union of Railwaymen will hold a stop-work meeting from 8.30 a.m. tomorrow. Mr Brian Larcombe, the corporation’s manager of long-distance services in Christchurch, said the meeting would cause delays to passenger and freight services.

The 7.30 a.m. Christ-church-Picton train would not be affected, but all later trains as well as coach services after 8 a.m. would be delayed. Goods and parcel reception and delivery services would also be affected, he

said. Mr Larcombe said that he did not expect services to resume before 10 a.m., and it was more likely the meeting would not finish before 10.30 a.m.

Mr Paul Corliss, the union’s secretary, said the stop-work meeting would discuss disaffiliating from the Labour Party because the Government had broken its promises to support railway workers. The meeting would also consider how to respond to proposed cuts by the corporation. Among the speakers would be Mr Jim Knox, president of the Federation of Labour. Mr Corliss said he regretted the inconvenience to the public, but it was necessary that all those affected by the proposed cuts attend the meeting.