PTAs to stay
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• The Minister of Transport has decided that the Passenger Transport Areas established on Merseyside, Tyneside, in the West Midlands and in SouthEast Lancashire/North-East Cheshire (SELNEC) are to'remain in being.
He announced this at the close of a full discussion with the chairmen of the four PTAs in Manchester last Friday.
The Minister said that the advantages of comprehensive planning of public transport in heavily congested areas was recognized by the Government, and that he had been interested to hear from the chairmen of the progress made in this and also with the rationalization of services.
The decision to retain the PTAs did not, however, rule out the possibility of procedural changes, said the Minister. For example, there had been representations about the operation of Section 19 of the Transport Act 1968 (relating to the transfer of bus licensing functions to the PTEs), of Section 20 (relating to the transfer of responsibility for local rail services) and some aspects of precepting. These representations were being carefully studied and, at a later stage, would be discussed with the PTA chairmen and others concerned.