CO-ORDINATION OF TRANSPORT

Southland Times, Issue 24239, 24 September 1940, Page 4

CO-ORDINATION OF TRANSPORT

DIFFICULTIES IN WAY OF CARRIERS

FARMERS SAID TO BE HINDERING SCHEME

The attitude allegedly taken up by some farmers when carriers attempted to co-ordinate their services was the subject of comment when the No. 4 Transport Licensing Authority (Mr S. V. Raines) heard applications in Invercargill yesterday for the renewal of goods service licences. Mr Raines said he had conferred with the Minister of Transport (the Hon. R. Semple) and had suggested the appointment of special officers whose job would be to recommend schemes for the co-ordina-tion of motor transport in various districts. The proposal was now under consideration by the Minister. Questioned whether he had made any move to have the goods services in his district co-ordinated, one ijarrier said that the farmers, as customers, objected to it. There was one law, he said, for the farmer and the ancillary user and another for the licensed operator.

The Transport Department representative (Mr K. Davies): You mean that the attitude of the farmers towards coordination defeats the very object of it?

The applicant: Yes. Mr Raines said he considered that the Transport Department should appoint an officer to travel about a district and take the initiative in negotiations. There were many difficulties to be overcome, not only in the No. 4 district, but all over New Zealand. The appointment of a suitable man would relieve operators of an awkward situation in which they were involved when they took the initiative.

“Other licensing authorities recommended this as far back as two years ago,” said Mr Raines. “It seems to be everyone’s business and yet at the same time nobody’s business.” When dealing with another application, Mr Rainej said that the average efficiency in hours of the industry was only 70 per cent, of the possible and the object of the co-ordination proposals was to bring the efficiency up to maximum, thus reducing the operators’ costs and ultimately reducing the charges to the customers. The more, however, that farmers used their own trucks on the road, the more they lessened the chances of the industry to increase its efficiency.