Fiji seeks a better system

By Penny Gibson

THE Fiji Government is to under take a major transport sector study within the next 12 months. The study will analyse all aspects of the sec tor. including road, marine and air traf fic. and is likelv to be financed interna tionally and undertaken bv consultants.

As well as providing data, the 12month studv will make recommendations on resolving the transport difficulties faced bv travellers, particularlv in rural and island areas, and increasing the effi cient of transport services.

The transport sector is fairly dynamic at present, with millions of dollars being spent on upgrading infrastructure and facilities, but there are two major areas

of stagnation causing problems domesti

cally: inter-island shipping and the bus service. • Air Transport: Air transport is a. growth sector, re flecting the increased number of tourists entering the country and the increased

economic activity.

Civil Aviation Authority of Fiji -CAAF)

statistics show a substantial increase in cargo freighters into Nadi in the last year, largely due to the tax-free zone

industry generating more traffic.

During the year, international aircraft

movements averaged 16 a day through

Nadi and two through Nausori. Interna tional passenger arrivals increased by 33 per cent over 1987/88, departures by 26 per cent and transit passengers by 17.8 per cent. At Nausori, international pas sengers dropped by about 10 per cent with a further decline expected. Domes tic flights averaged 71 a day through Nadi and 37 through Nausori. Domestic passenger traffic at both Nadi and Nausori increased more than 10 per cent over 1987/88.

Some recent developments in the sec tor, include F 510.5 million extensions to the airport included more administration offices and check-in counters, improved baggage reclaim, a larger restaurant and

departure lounge, major renovations to

and expansion of the transit lounge, Fi

jian decorations throughout carparking

and landscaping.

Over the next five years, CAAF will

extend the Nadi Airport apron and build a new taxiway to enable parking for more domestic and international air craft and allow one aircraft to come in as another prepares to depart. The airport can currently cater for four Boeing 747 s and three 767 s at any one time and the tendency for aircraft to come at the same time puts pressure on the facilities.

On-going projects include the intro duction of short-circuit security televi sion, extension of the baggage conveyor system, more VIP areas for airlines and an expanded check-in area. There are plans for an arrival duty-free shop, more office space at arrivals and a new aerob ridge. Within a year CAAF will invest about F|3 million to replace the Auto matic Message Switching System, a navigation system that channels messages around the world, to comply with inter national standards.

CAAF began running its own Air Traffic Control Courses in November 1989, with plans for eventually catering for other regional countries. Controllers had previously been sponsored by the United Nations Development Program me to study in Asia, but when funding was substantially reduced, CAAF began its own training programme, which co ordinates more closely with training schedules and is more relevant to local conditions.

In another major development, Fiji Air’s engineering department has begun providing maintenance services to other Pacific airlines, the first being Air Tun garu, of Kiribati. The move should save smaller airlines the expense of setting up their own maintenance operations, utilise underused expertise at Nausori, and

earn foreign exchange for Fiji.

• Marine Transport: Marine transport covers a vast amount of traffic and cargo movement into and out of Fiji and between the islands and is a sign of the economic well-being of an economy. The Ports Authority of Fiji (PAF) and Marine Department are re sponsible for most traffic.

PAF has control of the three major international ports at Suva, Lautoka and Levuka. Its statistics show that the total number of vessels visiting these ports in 1989 was 960, 54 more than 1988, and 1,773,084 tonnes of cargo passed through the ports. It is making a con scious effort to generate more traffic by

offering competitive rates to get shippers

to use its facilities to trans-ship cargo, which will generate more income, pre dominantly foreign exchange.

The Suva Wharf has undergone major reconstruction over the last few years and F|lo million is being spent on major repairs, renovations and extensions to Lautoka’s Queen’s Wharf. The works are necessary because of the different ship ping technology from when the wharves

were built 30 years ago; the ships are now much larger and cargo handling has changed to containers, which require different unloading, transport and stor age facilities. Both wharves also needed maintenance work to repair ravages of time, and more offices.

Inter-island shipping is one of the ma jor issues the transport study will have to address. Fiji has a three-tier system oper ating for inter-island shipping: the com mercial sector, the Marine Department and the Auxiliary Unit.

The Marine Department operates 40 vessels, mainly for transport of Govern ment personnel and machinery, but also for charter to the general public. The boats also carry cargo and passengers when going to remote islands, particular ly where it is not lucrative to run com mercial vessels.

The military’s Auxiliary Unit runs

three ships, also taking personnel and

cargo to the more remote areas and ser

vicing rural populations.

According to the President of the Fiji

Inter-island Shipowner’s Association, Jim

Smith, they all vie for cargo and passen gers. He said there was a lack of rationa lisation in the sector, no regular route scheduling and freight rates had re mained unchanged since 1986, making it very difficult for commercial operators to maintain their viability and profitabil ity. Many operators had gone to the wall, with Association membership falling to five from 12, five years ago. Last year 10 ships were sold.

Smith called for the shipping system to be brought into line with other coun tries, thus giving operators a basis on which to plan ahead, make investments to improve and expand services.

Director of Marine, Captain Sekove Gama, said operators had been offered the opportunity to regulate themselves and determine schedules earlier this year under the licensing provisions of the marine legislation, but had not yet re sponded. He suggested that many inter island operators had the wrong type of ships for their purpose, which reduced

profitability.

A major problem identified by both Smith and Captain Gama was the uncer tainty created in the sector because un scrupulous operators edged out sche duled shipping by arriving at islands a few days earlier and “stealing” cargo and passengers.

Smith said: “If the Government is se rious about tapping the potential of out er islands, development of the transport system needs to take place. When inves tors put a ship on, they must know they will get a return.” He said Government

promised action, but nothing transpired.

If secure routes were established, every body would benefit. While boats need an assured cargo to ensure viability of the

route, islanders need assurances of a regular route to ensure their produce can get to mainland markets.

Shippers are also hampered by freight

rates, which haven’t risen since 1986 while the cost of fuel, wages and mainte nance have soared. The Prices and In comes Board is considering the new rates.

Another uncertainty in the sector is the seasonal movement of passengers and, to a slightly lesser extent, cargo.

Traffic is weak between February and June, then picks and peaks between October and January.

Passenger traffic between Viti Levu and Vanua Levu alone is 220,000 people annually, and this is expected to almost double with the completion of tarsealing of Vanua Levu’s main road and major wharf developments at Savusavu and Nabouwalu on Vanua Levu this year. • Road Transport: The Government is putting a major effort into road improvement in Fiji.

The World Bank is financing the sealing of 120 km, worth $53 million over three years and the Asian Development Bank is financing maintenance and resealing.

It is expected that work will commence to upgrade the congested Ba and Sigato ka bridges on Viti Levu to double lanes.

The number of vehicles registered in 1989 was double 1988 registrations, with the trend continuing this year. The big gest increase was private vehicles, largely due to the influx of cheaper recon ditioned and second-hand cars; 2176 registrations last year equalled total 1985-88 registrations. Over 1000 com mercial vehicles (excluding taxkhire cars) were registered last year compared to 2000 from 1985-88.

A major road transport issue the transport study must address is the bus system. The industry is in array, with poor services, broken down buses and overcrowding in the urban areas.

According to the President of the Fiji Bus Operators’ Association, Pyara Singh, who represents Fiji’s 70 bus operators, this is largely due to no fare increases since 1982 and high maintenance costs.

“The whole bus industry needs an overhaul and rationalisation, but the Government has turned a blind eye to the problem.” The association was seek ing a 50 per cent fare increase, but has reduced its demand to 20 per cent plus further Government subsidies. Singh estimated the industry needs $2 million from Government to make it viable and properly operational. □