MOTOR CAR AS BUS

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 11324, 30 September 1930, Page 7

MOTOR CAR AS BUS

ALLEGED “PIRATE” SERVICE

NAPIER-HASTINGS ROUTE

(Press Association.) NAPIER, Sept. 29. A case brought by tlie Railway Department involving the NapierHastings taxicab service, run m competition with railway buses, was heard by Mr' A. M. Moslem, • S.M., tlris morning, when Malcolm Mclntosh Taylor was charged with being the owner of a motor cab registered by the Napier Borough Council as a motor cab lie did on August 5, 1930, ply for hire with such vehicle as a Borough omnibus, such vehicle, not being'licensed so to ply. Mr H. B. Lusk stated that the. prosecution v had been brought because it was thought that unfa.ii jtfifmpetition was being caused .by the of-these cars, which were merely subject,, to taxi car taxes and not to the. heavier penalty imposed upon motor omnibuses. The service referred to. was really a pirate .service which was causing heavy losses to the omnibuses service, on the route. Evidence would be brought to show that the • service was being carried out in direct contravention to the borough by-law*. Alexander Miller Olliver Borough Inspector qf motor vehicles, stated that the license issued in .respect to defendant’s car was for a motor cab to carry four, passengers. Other licenses were granted at the same time to other members of the service. Application had been made for permission to carry- six passengers tinder the taxi license.-This was refused and, subsequently, an- application was made just for taxi licenses, which were granted. At no time bad the borough approved of the time table for the service. ' Cross-examined, witness stated these proceedings were lodged by the New Zealand • government' Railways Department, not by the council. This was an unusual proceeding. De-

fendant had.rim on the license granted during. 1929 and the license had been renewed this year in May. Fur-

ther cross-examined, witness stated that all service cars leaving Napier daily for various .parts of the country were licensed under the same licenses as - the Napier-Hastings service. Some of these were used for taxi work as well as motor cabs. The

licenso was the only license issued over the whole of the Dominion, In answer to His., Worship,, witness stated that the _ Napier-Hast-ings service was exceeding the allowances of the license by driving on a set route to a time table at' separate affairs.

For the defence, Mr Rogers suggested that the by-law dealing with the matter was invalid. He produced the judgment of Mr Justice _ Ostler on a case in which the question of licenses was involved. In this- His Honor stated that the by-law governing omnibuses was unreasonable and was not strictly enforced by authorities. This fact alone was sufficient to show that the law was unreasonable. Mr Rogers submitted that the Napier Borough Council, realising that it had no license to meet the exact case, granted a certain license and also a renewal of tlie license, at the time knowing full well the nature of the service being carried on at tlie time and in- the future.

No prosecutions, had. been, instituted by the council and he suggested that the action of that body had been reasonable in allowing the use of a license which most nearly applied. Mr Lusk contended that the pro sent case was very different from the one quoted by counsel for the defence. His Honor’s decision was that it was not a fair thing that service cars.'’should be forced to comply with omnibus rules. In' this case', there were motor cabs trading . as omnibuses without that license. He contended that no one could suggest that these were service cars, which were cars used for long distance trips. His Worship - reserved his decision.