SAVING OF FUEL

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 40, 15 August 1940, Page 8

SAVING OF FUEL

DUNEDIN'S EXAMPLE

••While Wellington, Auckland, and Christchurch have dbn e absolutely nothing to conserve fuei and in some cases have even increased their bus services, the Dunedin City Council has made reductions in fuel consumption which can be made even more effective at short notice," sail Councillor H. L. Gibson, chairman of the transport committee, when referring at a meeting of the Dunedin City Council to criticism of the council by the Otago Labour Representation Committee, states the "Otago Daily Times." The committee recently passed a resolution, expressing "amazement and disgust at the action oi; the City Council in persistently opposing the Government's policy for the conservation of fuel."

"When I went to Wellington to see the Commissioner of Transport (Mr. Laurenson) recently," Councillor Gibson said, "I put before him proposals by which we could make a cut of 45 to 46 per cent, in the fuel consumption <y£ the'buses; if necessary. He expressed appreciation of the council's action, but said a cut of 20 per cent, would do in the meantime, provided that there could be a further reduction at short notice. The present cut reduces the bus running by 14,560 more miles annually than the commissioner asked for. In.addition, the running of the petrol buses has been reduced as far as possible until they represent only 5.75 per cent, of the total running." Mr. Laurenson had expressed the opinion in a newspaper interview that the Dunedin City Council's effort was an outstanding one, Councillor Gibson added, and had said it was due to the elimination of overlap between bus and tram services.