Christchurch Transport Board tightening belt

Press, 15 September 1986, Page 28

Christchurch Transport Board tightening belt

This year has been a belt-tightening one for the Christchurch Transport Board. A cut in Government funding, dropping patronage numbers, some bad industrial relations and strikes and reductions in week-end services have taken their toll on the board.

Most candidates, especially those under the Labour ticket, cite better industrial relations as an aim the board must work towards. Most appear to think that better communications could avoid strikes and other industrial action.

Increasing charter work . was also seen by most

candidates as an obvious way to make more money.

Passengers needed to be enticed back to buses. A new fare structure and a shake-up of bus routes were the most common ideas candidates put forward to achieve this.

Several people saw the

board’s present system of routeing all buses through Cathedral Square as being out of date. They said circular and, cross-town routes, as well as those through the Square, would help. Funding allocations from the Government, through the Urban Transport Council, were critic-

ised by several candidates. Some pledged to fight for fairer funding. Opposing the uniform rating charge was another plank upon which one candidate set up his election stance. • A suggestion was to investigate the use of alternative fuels to cut down on diesel pollution.