TRANSPORT CONTROL

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 17911, 15 October 1932, Page 4

TRANSPORT CONTROL

GISBORNE ANOMALIES MR. COLEMAN SPEAKS OUT Lit EASING SYSTEM: CRITICISED (Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, this day. The application of the Transport Art to the control of road traffic in his eloetora'te was keenly criticised by Mr I). \V. Coleman, the Gisborne representative, in the coarse of the Budge! debate in the House of Representatives, the 'Gisborne member making a striking' comparison between the fares dictated by the Transport Licensing Authority for the journey between Gisborne and Napier, and that fixed for the journey between Napier and Wellington, a much longer trip on which the road services are in direct competition with the railways. “One member, speaking of the Transport board, declared that it had done more harm than good. lam inelined to the view that he is not far .wrong, although I am in accord with the principle of having a Transport Board,” said Mr Coleman. “It seems to me that the hoard has failed to appreciate local conditions in some instances. I may cite Gisborne to illustrate my point.

“There we had four motor services running to and from Napier. The board refused a license to one of the four, a very creditable service that was giving the owner a good return at a fare of rids. At that time the fare ranged from 2.7 s to 30s, bur, when this man was refused his license, the board tool: th<‘ opportunity to raise the fare to he charged by the remaining ser-

vices to 'ids. One of the licensees objected to this Increase, his contention being that he was making a good living with a fare of 30s, and that the increased charge will discourage travelling. “ The extraordinary feature of the ,whole case is that this route from .Napier to -Gisborne is not one that competes with the railways a single inch of the way. Yet on the Napier to Wellington route, which competes with the railways every inch of the way, the service car fare has been fixed by the board at 27s (id. So, on the 220 miles from Napier to Wellington, where there is competition throughout with the railways, the faro is 7s (id cheaper than on the route of IdO miles from Napier to Gisborne,

where there is an entire absence o competition ‘with the railways. \

“Surely there is something wrong with a board that makes decisions of that sort. I trust that the Government will take more interest in the operations of this body and take steps to see that such anomalies are righted. ”