TRANSPORT OF GOODS

Waikato Times, Volume 112, Issue 18797, 19 November 1932, Page 5

TRANSPORT OF GOODS

USE OF THE ROADS. PROPOSED REGULATIONS. RAISE STORM OF PROTEST. (Special to Times.) WELLINGTON, Friday. Protests are being made by business and farming interests, as well as by those concerned with road transport, against the drastic nature of the proposed regulations for licensing goods vehicles. It is recognised by all that some sort of regulation is desirable, but the severity of the proposed restrictions has caused a great amount of dismay and misgiving. Tho people whose living depends on road transport were not consulted in framing the regulations; the elaborate series of restrictive clauses were devised by departmental officers, and then the men and firms most concerned were given short notice in which to digest the proposals and define their objections.

The regulations as printed give the lioensing authority power to specify routes, territories, loads and freight rates. It will specify the nature of the book-keeping a lorry-owner must use. It will try to define whether any vehicle is “ suitable ” and whether it is “ maintained in a fit and proper condition " —matters that might surely be left to the discretion of the owner of the vehicle.

The introduction of licensing for goods vehicles will open another chapter in tiie rail versus road conflict. It is an elaborate attempt to restrict road services and drive more business to the railways.

One outstanding absurdity Is that a license shall be for one vehicle only, as a separate application will have to be put in for each route. Thus a firm with 10 vehicles and six routes may conceivably have to take out and pay 60 licenses.

Everybody acknowledges that the road and rail situation needs attention in the interests of the community, but those familiar with road transport contend that some of the proposed restrictions are so drastic as to be unfair and unworkable. As the wholo scheme, in connection with goods services, is an experiment, the harsher sections should be eliminated so that the licensing may be introduced with a minimum of trouble and friction.

In England the whole matter Is being thrashed out on the basis of the proposals of the Salter Committee, which are the subject of hot opposition from every interested party except the railways. The British Government has not yet made its decision concerning the details of the restrictions, and it would certainly be wise for the Transport Licensing Authority in New Zealand to “ hasten slowly " until the English procedure has been decided upon. The commonsense attitude towards the road and rail problem was recently stated in a bulletin on railway istration issued by the Department of Economics at Canterbury College: “ It is widely feared that road transport may be restricted and an increased degree of monopoly given to Lhe railways, in order that their earning power might be improved, it is more important that the community should enjoy the best transport available than that the railway should pay full interest on capital, hence protection of the railways by restricting fair competition in transport is opposed to the general interest.”