BUS PROGRESS IN THE SHEFFIELD DISTRICTS.
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How a Municipal Service, Started in 1913, Has Grown Until it Now Carries Nine Million Passengers Per Year and Has Absorbed Privately Promoted Enterprises.
By A. R. Fearnley (General Manager, Sheffield Corporation Tramways and Motors).
THE Sheffield Corporation has owned and operated the tramways in the Sheffield district for 28 years. About 12 years ago it commenced to take an interest in the development of the 'motorbus, and in 1913 opened the first route, and developments were proceedincr rapidly until the war • put a stop to them and Made it only possible to carry, on in the smallest possible manner with the buses then in service.
Immediately the war ceased, extensions again commenced, until there are now close upon 109 miles of motorbus route served by a fleet of vehicles which, by -Easter {providing the contractors keep their agreement); will total 86 vehicles.
They are both of the single and double-deck type, about equally divided, between Leylands and A.E.C.s, the types which are now on order being 35-seater single-deckers and 52-seater double-deckers top-covered, one of the latter being shown in the • accompanying illustrations. All single-deck vehicles now on order are fitted with.single-front and twinrear pneumatic tyres, and existing single-deckers with solid tyres are being converted' to pneumatics as rapidly as possible.' The single-deek vehicle is found to be the more suitable for the long 20-niile nuns into the country. The principle upon which the Sheffield Tramways Committee is working is that it, being the owner of the large tramway system in the Sheffield area, does not in any way consider that the tramway is a back number, and has reeently added a considerable number of new cars of a very attractive. type to its tramway rolling stock. It recognizes, however, that. the motorbus has a useful field of operation in conjunction With the tramways,. and, as the Transport Committee for the Sheffield area, it is 'prepared to do all that is necessary in and around that area by providing motorbus services to the whole of the surrounding districts and to bring the urban and rural districte into direct contact with the city.
At least frair-fiftbs of the meterbus route outside the city area and extensions are still being made.
The attitude of the Tramways Committee is that it is better for road-passenger transport to be co-ordinated in this way Under the control of the municipality, than that wasteful and unnecessary vehicles should be operated which, in the end, would mean loss,. inefficiency, unnecessary expense, and, finally, the waste of effort and money of the competitors.
Two or three small owners who have commenced operating in the district on routes which had not been covered by the Corporation have been bought out on fair terms, and the services have been transferred to the municipal authority. The operations have now reached such a stage that the bus business in itself is a considerable undertaking.
An idea of the range covered by the Sheffield municipal vehicles will be gathered. when it is stated that they are running regular services to districts so far afield as Baslow, Bakewell, Stock-abridge, Langsett, ,Peniatone, Eckington and Chesterfield. The Mileage is in the neighbourhood of I,800,000 per annum, whilst the revenue is at the rate of £120,000
per antinin. .
It is, estimated that the passengers for the present year will reach 9,000,000, and there will be a substantial balance on the year's working, after payment of interest and sinking fund, depreciation and renewal charges.
It is worthy of speeial note that the Sheffield municipal motorbus undertaking has, for some years, been financed out of revenue, and that the motorbus department, 'after meeting all charges, has made a net profit each year since its inception. In regard to the trackless trolley vehicle, the Sheffield Corporation have had powers to operate this class of vehicle for 12 years, but, so far, have not found any useful field for its operation. The greater mobility of the motorbus is such an enormous advantage that the Sheffield Tramways Corn mittee have had no hesitation at any time in extending the sphere of operation of the motorbus in any direction where such a service would provide reasonable retiirn on its operation and be of value to the public.