BRIEF ITEMS OF NEWS FROM THE TRAFFIC AREAS
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East Midland Sittings.
WE are requested by the Commis sioners for the East Midland Area to advise operators that the provisional arrangements for sittings at Nottingham (December 8th), Lincoln (December 14th) and Nottingham (December17th) are likely to be altered. Those who do not obtain regularly copies of the gazettes should closely watch the announcements in this journal.
Practically all the licence and backing applications received in the East Midland Area will have been heard by December 4th, and arrangements are now being made to hear the remainder in the course of a tour of the usual sitting places, which will probably take place towards the end of December. By the close of the year all of the c48 East Midland applications, aggregrating approximately 5,000, will have been heard and determined.
Croydon Operators Asked to Co-ordinate Services.
THE applications of John Bennett (Croydon), Ltd., and Bourne and Balmer (Croydon), Ltd., in respect of services between Croydon and the coast, have come up for hearing before the South-Eastern Traffic Commissioners, whose chairman has requested the two companies to endeavour to come to a working agreement and to combine their services, stating that such caordination would be to the benefit of the public. Licences have been granted, but in the ensuing months the companies are expected to come to terms.
Sports-meeting Traffic in London. A NOTHER coach operators' organiza
tion has been formed, under the title of the Motor Coach Operators' Protection Association, a meeting of which was held last Tuesday, when, it is understood, there were about 50 members representing some 250 coaches. Mr. G. F. C. Croxon (Essex County Coaches) is the secretary, and most of the members are engaged in the conveyance of people to and from sports meetings in the London area.
The Metropolitan. Traffic Commissioner, after hearing some 600 applications for licences of this class, has stated that a common feature of them is the irregularity of the services provided, so that the public cannot rely on them. He cannot agree that irregular services supply a public need, and he considers that, if he granted licences to all these applicants and made it a condition that regular services must be run, he certainly would not be doing anything to regulate Loudon street traffic.
Northern Scotland Commissioners Refute Municipal Criticism.
A REPRESENTATION has been
made to the Northern Scotland Commissioners from one of the local authorities in the area that the Commissioners have failed to comply with a section of the Road Traffic Act, in that they have not sent notice to local authorities regarding licences granted.
At a recent sitting the chairman of the Commissioners explained that the procedure which they have decided to adopt is to issue to the authorities concerned a copy of the Notices and Proceedings (" gazettes "). The chairman continued with a rather important remark, stating that over and over again at public sittings he had stressed the need for local authorities to appear before the Commissioners and make representations when they consider it necessary.
The matter of representation of the public viewpoint before the Commissioners, to which, of course, the above relates, is one the growing importance of which has recently been emphasized in this journal. London.coastal Appeal Dismissed.
THE Minister of Transport has dis missed appeals by Mr. C. G. Lewis, of East Greenwich, against the refusal of the Metropolitan Commissioner to grant him licences for express services to Eastbourne and Hastings. Up to the time of going_ to press no other news is to hand regarding appeal decisions.
Stockton Corporation's Appeal Heard.
JUST too late for inclusion in our issue for last week, a report came to hand of the inquiry heard at Middlesbrough County Court into the appeal of Stockton Corporation against the Northern Commissioners' decision refusing to license a municipal bus service between Stockton and Middlesbrough. on the Acklam route. It will be remembered that this was the case at the original hearing of which the Mayor of Thornaby consider141 himself rather severely treated. His objections were, in fact, raised again at the appeal.
The case in favour of upholding the Commissioners' decision was that Stockton Corporation's Special Act gave Parliamentary permission to the local authority to run a motorbus service, but such authority was subject to Commissioners' licences. Four operators provided a service of 15 minutes' frequeney, and the corporations of Stockton and Middlesbrough wanted to superimpose a 10-minute service. The Ministry representative said at the hearing that, from the shorthand report of the original sitting, it appeared that Stockton Corporation regarded its application as a mere formality.
Northern Area: Full Details of Licenceexpiry Dates.
AT the Morpeth sitting of the Northern Commissioners, the dates fixed forthe expiry of road-service licences were announced. On February 29th, 1932, licences for tours and excursions will expire ; all stage-service licences, mainly in Northumberland, Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire, also all express-service licenees in the area, will expire on June 30th, 1932; all stage-service licences in the county of Durham and the North Riding of Yorkshire will expire on September 30th.
The expiry dates for backings will depend upon the dates fixed for the primary licences of other areas. New forms of application for 1932 licences are being prepared and Mr. Henry Riches has said that the Commissioners hdpe to hear all applications for tours and excursions some time in December, so as to be complete before the end of the year.
Every possible effort to bring to a satisfactory close all hearings of 1931 applications is being made by Traffic Commissioners in all areas.