TRANSPORT LICENSING

Grey River Argus, 27 April 1939, Page 4

TRANSPORT LICENSING

Sitting at Greymouth A sitting of the No. 3 Transport Licensing Authority was held at Greymouth yesterday. In the absence 01 the No. 3 Authority (Mr T. Langford) who is temporarily engaged on other business for the Government, the No. 4 Authority (Mr V. Rains) presided. Mr W. Rodgers, District Traffic Manager, represented the Railways Department and Mr J. M. Eadie appeared on behalf of the West Coast Branch of the New Zealand Road Transport Alliance. The following applications were dealt with:— R. P. Chibnall, Gold Band Taxis, Greymouth, new rental car license to cover the operation of two vehicles. Applicant said that he had not. been operating the vehicles for anv length of time, but he had the business or Gold Band Taxis.

No objections were received to the application. The application was granted, the Authority stating that the question or charges would be reserved in the meantime, as it.was proposed that the Association should submit a scale of charges. Meanwhile the applicant could carry on with his present charges. Haines Motors Ltd., Greymouth, new rental car license to cover the operation of four vehicles. James Haines, a director of Haines Motors Ltd . stated that the firm had operated two vehicles consistently lor six years and four or five vehicles on busy days. The application was granted, tne Authority making the same comment In regard to the charges as in the previous case. A similar application by R. N. May, Kumara, was withdrawn. GOODS SERVICES. T. F. Lord, Greymouth, application for transfer of his goods service license to C. C. Hende, Paroa. Mr W. Douglas Taylor, who appeared in support of the application, said that his letter of February 28 set out the reasons for the application. It was mainly on account of health reasons that Lord found it necessary to give up his business. He submitted that the figure asked for the transfer, £2O, was not excessive in view of the fact that Lord had spent the best part of that sum in fees since he had held the license.

Lord said that up to the time that he had made the contract to sell, in January or February, he had been working on Public Works and Hende had carried on. Hende had agreed to pay him his equity In the truck and to take over the balance. It was about a month after his first trucic was burnt that he entered into the transaction. Hende already had one vehicle authority, for Public Works. In granting the application, to which no objection was received, the Authority said that he had just wanted to be sure that it was an active license.

L. Elsmore, Blackball, new goocts service license for the carriage of malls only between Blackball and Atarau.

There was no appearance of the applicant, but at the request of the Authority, evidence was given by Mr H. C. Rowe, on behalf of the Post and Telegraph Department. He saia that Elsmore carried the mails twice

weekly and was paid a subsidy of £lt> per annum, which was under consideration at present, owing to certain conditions in connection with the license. Elsmore had commented carrying the mails on October 10, 1938. ; j No objections were received ana the application was granted. Wylde’s Motors, Runanga, applied for amendment to passenger service license, to provide for an increase ut Is per week in the fares from Runanga to the Strongman mine at the Nine Mile. Evidence was given by Frank Wylde, who said that the present rare was 7s per week, 3s Gd per man ana a subsidy of 3s Gd from the Government, s o that the increase of Is asked for would mean Gd from each party. When development work was proceeding at the mine, on three shifts, they were able to do very tartly out of the 7s 6d, nut since the mine had been opened up most of the men were on one shift and buses still haa to be provided for the few going on on the afternoon and midnight shifts. It was a bad road and at a conference between the interested parties It haa been agreed that they could not carry on at the present rate. In the event of a breakdown at the mine or tne cavil every three months extra trips had to be run without any additional charge. The basis of payment was that if the mine worked only one day in the week no charge was made, it it worked two days half charge was made and if three days or more were worked the full fare was charged. The Authority; Have you got anything in writing to show me that the miners know of the application? Witness: I have nothing in writing except the minutes of the conference (produced). When the Union met. the Secretary and President both informed me that the proposal was carried.

The Authority: If the me n wanted to object, they could have had someone here.

In reply to another question, the witness said that the Government haa agreed to pay the extra subsidy. The application was granted, for an increase in the fare to 8s instead of 7s, the rise being made retrospective to last Monday.