CARRIAGE OF FISH

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27387, 12 May 1950, Page 8

CARRIAGE OF FISH

Application For Transport Licence Opposition By Railways The New Zealand Railways Department (Mr J. D. McDonald) successfully opposed an application by Southern Fisheries, Ltd.. Dunedin (Mr W. J. Meade), to carry fish and other marine products by road .front Waikawa to Bluff daily and from 'Waikawa to Finegand daily. The case was heard yesterday before a public sitting in Dunedin of the No. 4 Transport Licensing Authority, Mr C. L. Bishop. Southern Fisheries were granted authority to. carry their products from Waikawa to Gore daily and from Waikawa to Dunedin on Sundays and public holidays. The authority said he was concerned with the carriage of perishable foodstuffs, and the difficulty seemed to be in getting immediate use of insulated wagons. “As I see it, the railway facilities have not been fully explored, and I think advantage should be taken of them,” he said. If they were not suitable, another application could be made and it would then be granted. Mr Meade submitted that the application was in the interests of the public. Tlie rail service had proved suitable in many cases and the company utilised it at every opportunity, but road transport was necessary on the Bluff route. The goods sent to Bluff were of a perishable nature, and loading arrangements for vessels were frequently not known until the day before. If the goods were sent by rail, a day and a-half was lost because insulated vans had to be sent from Invercargill. The applicant company had not completed its chilling works at Waikawa, Mr Meade said, and it was often necessary to send fish to Finegand for treatment. The Railways Department was asking the applicants to carry the fish 26 miles by road and then rail it a further 40 miles. “ This means tying up a wagon for a day, and from the department’s point of view it cannot be economical,” Mr Meade continued. The use of Finegand was made necessary by an over-catch, which could not be handled by the applicant. and it was not known until late in the day what the catch was. As insulated vans had to be requested by about 10 a.m. on the day before they arrived from Invercargill, the arrangement was a most unsuitable one. Mr McDonald said that the fish sent by rail transport would arrive at its destination only four or five hours after despatch. Insulated wagons could readily be made available. There was a peak period every year for wagons during the lamb-killing season, he said, but usually they were idle. Charges were reasonable, and he saw no reason why the rail transport facilities should not be utilised. Special Buses Southern Services, Ltd. (Mr E. J. Anderson), was granted authority to continue its bus service from Dunedin to Lawrence and return, “ with the right to run additional vehicles on special occasions.” The application was not opposed. Mr Anderson said that the company had only two buses on the run. and on race days and during representative Rugby and cricket matches it was not able to cater for the increased travelling public. On such days operators who conducted tours were able to run special buses and had the chance to make an “ undue profit.” “ The route operator should have the business," the authority commented when granting the application.