TRANSPORT FOR SUBURBS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19809, 2 December 1927, Page 12

TRANSPORT FOR SUBURBS

GUARANTEE REFUSED. DECISION BY LOCAL BODIES. RELIANCE ON PRIVATE BUSES. JNO PART IN PROPOSED INQUIRY: 'Another turn to the transport problem jeas given yesterday, when representatives of the suburban local bodies in the, Auckland metropolitan area decided that they yrere not justified in committing their ratepayers to the heavy loss involved in guaranteeing a gross return of Is 6d per mile, or any other amount, in respect of .buses run by the City Council. The peason given for this decision was that private enterprise was providing, and was still prepared to provide, satisfactory service without any guarantee. No part will be taken by these bodies in the proceedings of the proposed commission of inquiry, the setting up of which the City Council suggested to the Prime Minister, who agreed to recommend Cabinet to accede to the request. The view was expressed by the local bodies that a commission is unnecessary, and would not justify the expense in volved, as it would • adduce nothing new that would assist in Bolving the transport problem The only remedy for the pres ent unsatisfactory' position, it. was con tended, was the formation of an Auck land metropolitan transport board, a course recommended in the report of tho committee presented to the House of Representatives when the motor-bus Regulations were introduced. Thsre was an attendance of about 30, Representative of the boroughs of Mount Eden, Mount Albert, Newmarket, and Onehunga, the road districts of One Tree Hill and Mount Roskill, the town districts of Ellerslie. Glen Eden, Henderson and 'New Lynn, and the counties of and Manukau. Mr. E. 11. Potter, Mayor of Mount Eden, was voted to the chair, and, oa the motion of Mr. A. St. C. Belcher, Mount Roskill, it was decided to conduct the proceedings in camera. In communicating tlie decisions of the conference to the press, Mr. Potter said a copy of a letter from a transport company to Mr J. A. C. Allum, chairman of tho Tramways. Committee of the City Council, had been read. The letter contained an offer to run bus services to some of the cuter districts, and, for that purpose, to take' back some of the vehicles which had been taken over by the council, from the company, it would bo necessary, if that course were agreed to, that some permanence of tenure bhould t be given, as the company would not undertake tlie building up of a service which had to be given up as soon as ii became profitable. Correspondence from other bus companies was also read, added Mr Potter. These showed the companies were willing ito run services to the outside districts immediately at reasonably low charges, inclnding the penal fare.

Resolutions passed at the meeting were telegraphed to the Prime Minister and to local members of Parliament. The Mayors and the chairmen of the interested bodies were constituted a committee to deal with questions as they arise. Mr Potter was appointed chairman of the committee, which has power to act The reply of the Prune Minister will be awaited before the next Step is decided upon.

Mr. Potter made it clear that the meeting had considered the problem solely on the basis of information which had appeared in the press. It had as yet received no communication from the Prime Minister. The resolutions had been carried unanimously,

TRANSPORT BOARD PLAN. BODY TO CONTROL SERVICES. NO SUGGESTION OF PURCHASE. References are frequently made in discussions of the transport question to a proposal to appoint a "metropolitan transport board" without precise definition of the functions of such a body. They become particularly confusing if accompanied by allusions to a recommendation by a Parliamentary Committee last year, especially when explanatory observations clearly reveal that an. entirely different idea from the committee's recommendation is proposed. The resolution passed by the Newmarket Borough Council on Wednesday evening declared that "the obvious solution is "the constitution of a controlling or licensing authority representative of the area affected." In support of his motion, the Mayor said the Parliamentary Committee which recently considered the question had arrived at this decision, but its conclusions had apparently been ignored.

This statement does not, however, represent the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee. Its report approved the original provisions in the draft regulations for the appointment of licensing authorities and appeal boards. The only reference to a board of control is the following recommendation : —"That consideration should be given by the Government to the question of establishing a Metropolitan Board of Control for the Auckland district, the board to have power to take over the tramway and bus undertaking of the City of Auckland at a price to be assessed by some appointed authority, and power given to the metropolitan board to arrange the neces sary finance and rating security over such metropolitan district."

One of the resolutions by yesterday's conference of local bodies also referred to the Parliamentary Committee's recommendation, but it is clear from the pronouncement of policy by the conference that it did not advocate the creation of a special board to acquire the municipal tramway undertaking. The point was referred last evening to the chairman of the conference. Mr. Potter said there was no doubt that what the conference had in view was the creation of an independent board to exercise the functions of the licensing authority now entrusted to the City Council