TAXI SERVICES

New Zealand Herald, Volume 80, Issue 24531, 13 March 1943, Page 6

TAXI SERVICES

CATERING FOR PUBLIC ASSURANCE BY MINISTER (S.R.) WELLINGTON, Friday "It is noticeable that citizens have extreme difficulty in engaging taxis, while joyriders and the sly-grog people seem to he able to get all they require," said the Minister of Transport, the Hon. J. O'Brien, when replying in the House of Representatives to-day to an urgent question by Mrs. C. C. S. Stewart (Government Wellington West), asking the Minister to give consideration to improving the present road and taxi services. "Passengers by boat and train," she said in a note to her question, "say ifc is almost impossible to get a taxi to convey them and their luggage to the wharf or railway station. At times people requiring medical attention and even expectant mothers cannot hire a taxi." The Minister said he was aware that the position of motor transport was far from satisfactory. There was a serious shortage of tyres and petrol, which made existing services difficult to carry on. The majority of the passenger services were being maintained without serious inconvenience to the public, but the taxi service required a good deal of attention. In a recent check-up of taxis in Auckland. he said, 150 cars were found to bo visiting known sly-grog establishments. That was more than half the taxis now registered in Auckland, in order to save petrol for the war effort children had to walk up to cue and a-half miles to school in the rain and sick people had to produce doctors' certificates before they were allowed petrol, which was withheld from passenger services until they were cut to a minimum. "If the owners of taxis who cater for sly-grogging and joyriding think they are going to get the petrol thus saved they are making a very grave mistake," said the Minister. "Regulations have been gazetted giving the Transport Department power to so regulate taxi services that the needs of the general and the travelling public will be catered for."