ROAD TRANSPORT SERVICES

Southland Times, Issue 23307, 17 September 1937, Page 6

ROAD TRANSPORT SERVICES

Purchase By The Government FIRST SITTING OF TRIBUNAL INVESTIGATION OF FIVE AUCKLAND COMPANIES (Special to The Times) - AUCKLAND, September 16. The first sitting of the special tribunal appointed by the Government to determine fair conditions of purchase for certain road transport services which the State proposes to acquire will begin in Auckland tomorrow. The operations of five companies in the Auckland district will be investigated and it is anticipated that the hearing of evidence will extend until next Tuesday at least. Should the business then remain uncompleted the tribunal will finish its work during the following week. At the first sitting it is intended to hear the cases of McClymont’s Transport Limited, Felton Waikato Transport Limited, Northern Transport Limited, Salter Transport and Hicks Transport. Certain conditions have been formulated for the direction of the commission in its negotiations. The major provision is that the Government will pay nothing for any monopoly value created as a result of the Transport Licensing Act. It is also specified that no operator will receive less than the present day value of the tangible assets plus a sum of at least 20 per cent, of this amount as compensation. With these qualifications the tribunal is given a free hand as to its recommendations.

The five companies whose claims will be considered in Auckland found the direct offers for purchase made by the Government’s valuation officers unacceptable and they have preferred to have their cases considered by the tribunal. It is understood that four other goods transport services will adopt the same course but the fixtures for them have not yet been made by the tribunal as the sitting in Auckland will be the first held by the tribunal. The procedure to be followed has not yet been specifically laid down. However, it is probable that the officers who conducted the investigations into each of the businesses on behalf of the Government will give evidence in support of their recommendations and that they will be followed by witnesses called by the operators. Testimony is likely to be confined largely to the general issues of valuation and profit. No decisions will be announced by the tribunal which will make its recommendations direct to the Government.