PRIVATE ATTENDANTS

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 120, 17 November 1936, Page 12

PRIVATE ATTENDANTS

AT CITY CAR PAR^S

BYLAWS SAY "NO!"

It is definitely laid down in the city bylaws, said Mr. L. S. Drake, the Chief Traffic Inspector, that only inspectors shall give directions to motorists in regard to parking.

A sub-clause added to' the relative bylaw, which became operative on March 31, 1936, reads: — :

"No person other than an inspector shall exercise any of the powers contained in this clause (No. 80, dealing with inspectors' powers) or give any directions tc any other • person in respect of parking or control of any vehicle in or upon any ytreet, private street, private way, or piflblic place in the city."

Mr. Drake said that few complaints reached him regarding the private car parking attendants referred to in "The Post" yesterday, but th-jit was chiefly because his department had nothing whatever to do with them, and, even so, some complaints had reached him.

In England there were official attendants, many of therm old soldiers, appointed from the British Legion. These men were eitlier paid a wage or allowed to retain tbie parking fees. The private attendants in Wellington appeared to appoint ■'themselves, and the position seemed to be that there was a private contract between the car owner and the attendant. ASSOCIATION DOES NOT WANT THKM. Asked how the Automobile Association (Wellington) regarded these private attendants, Mr.jW. A. Sutherland, the secretary, said! IJiat the association did not want them, round cars at all, and would like to 'see them off the street. Some tim c ago the association had made representations on these lines to the city traffic department and to the police. Stich attendants could not possibly knCAv whether anyone taking a car army was the owner or not. They were supposed to prevent petty thefts fro m cars, but they did not. "I wondeif if anybody ever pays them anything? * he asked.