Transport Poll

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 498, 30 October 1928, Page 1

Transport Poll

Ratepayers Vote To-morrow

City and Suburbs Concerned Jt ? aS be ® ome somewhat lost in the election maze, will of . + the formation of a Transport Board Will be decided by city and suburban ratepayers to-morrow. motwVr, ° ne ° f Vltal lm P°rtance to everyone in the metropolitan area.

and suburban ratepayers will vote as two separate entities. The city has to agree to hand over the tramway undertaking as a going concern, with all liabilities and assets, to a metropolitan board on which the city ratepayers will have six representatives out of a total of ten. The suburbs have to agree to coming into the tramway area, and undertaking any possibility of liability, in return for which they get four representatives on the board, and a general say in the management and services. Up to the present the city ratepayers have not paid anything in the form of taxation for the trams, and they have no likelihood of any benefit accruing to their rates in view of the adopted policy that any tram profits will be directed to reducing fares. The tram system has contributed largely to street upkeep, but it will continue to do that in any 'case.

So far as the suburbs are concerned the main advantage is to get a long desired say in the management of the trams, the bus services and tramway extensions. It is fairly generally recognised that the formation of a Transport Board provides the only hope for tram extensions to Point Chevalier, Remuera, Mount Eden, Dominion Road and other

districts for which the city ratepayers have very decidedly refused to sanction loans. In the event of the formation of a board it is anticipated that loans for these projects, also for urgently required new trams, will shortly be submitted to the ratepayers over the whole district concerned. Under the Transport Act the representation is: City, six; suburbs, 4. The board for the next two and a-half years will be nominated by the city council and suburban local bodies, and will thereafter he elected by the usual poll. The board will have no power to borrow money without a favourable vote by ratepayers. Voting will continue all day to-mor-row, and as the Issue is a straight-

out ‘ Yes” or “No” in both city and suburbs, it is expected that the results will be known not long after the poll closes at 7 p.m.