PTE told to work with Low Fell
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LOW FELL COACHES has been a lowed to continue to operate its cross-Tyne bus service between Gateshead and Newcastle in competition with the Tyne and Wear Metro.
The Northern Traffic Commissioners have granted the company a five-year licence for the service despite opposition from Tyne and Wear County' Council, Tyne and Wear PTE, Northern General Transport and United Automobile Services.
In granting the licence, the Commissioners said that the operation of the service for a trial period of 12 months since July 1982 had shown that in spite of alternative services there was a significant public demand for the Low Fell service. It had proved efficient, satisfactory, cost-effective and popular with the public. The operation of the service had had very little adverse effect on the public elsewhere. The main part of about 75 per cent of compensating service reductions by the objectors had already been achieved with minimal disturbance to the public interest and the remaining proposed adjustments would be less of a disadvantage to the public than a refusal to renew the licence.
The Commissioners said that bearing in mind the relatively limited nature of the application, a grant would not significantly disturb the overall county public transport policy when set against the total passenger movements in the Low Fell corridor, particularly if it was found possible to make economies in other less satisfactory and costeffective cross-Tyne services.
There was no evidence to show the overall County transport strategy was wrong but there was room for flexibility within it.
They expressed the hope that the PTE would now look again at the other Low Fell corridor services with a view to integrating the Low Fell services into the network and if appropriate adjusting other less satisfactory and cost effective services.
The Commissioners would expect that in future the inclusion of private operators into the metropolitan county network if and when appropriate would be considered and decided as indicated in the 1983 Transport Act relating to the finance and management of PTE.