HEAVY DELAYS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 April 1942, Page 3

HEAVY DELAYS

IN TOLL AND TELEGRAPH TRAFFIC UNAVOIDABLE IN WAR CONDITIONS. MINISTER’S EXPLANATION & APPEAL. WELLINGTON, This Day. “Civilian toll and telegraph traffic is now subject to heavy delay, and this condition is not likely to improve while the war lasts,” said the Postmas-ter-General (Mr Webb) today. The Minister explained that the Post Office could do nothing to alleviate; the position, because it had not now the number of lines available that it formerly had for handling civilian traffic. Even before the war, most of the toll circuits were. carrying full loads and today, after meeting the evergrowing communication requirements of the Armed Forces—requirements which all would agree had to come first—insufficient circuits remained for handling civilian traffic. The delays on some circuits were particularly heavy, Mr Webb said, and while he regretted that this should be so, he had to ask the business community and other toll users to bear with the Post Office in its present difficult position. In normal times the Post Office would not be behindhand in installing additional equipment to meet the increased demand, but the equipment came from overseas and business men did not need to be told of the difficulties that existed in obtaining supplies from abroad today. “Besides expressing regret for the delays,” said Mr Webb, “I want to appeal to toll users to lend their aid in meeting the position that has arisen. This they can do by reducing the length of their conversations to an absolute minimum. By doing this, they will release the circuits in the quickest possible time for use by other waiting callers.”