Joint Colliery Operator Accused: N.C.B. Thoroughly Dissatisfied
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A LLEGATIONS by an operator of ..t–t colliery services against his cooperator, with whom he ran a joint service, were made before the Northern Traffic Commissioners at Newcastle upon Tyne last week when Mr. Norman O'Hara, of Spennymoor, County Durham, applied to have a condition removed from his workmen's express service licences.
For the applicant, Mr. J. L. R. Croft said his client and Mr. Albert Cadman, who objected to the application, were once in partnership, operating various miners' services in County Durham. In 1948 there was a dissolution of the partnership and each was granted a licence enabling him to provide separate services. A condition was imposed on the licence that each would be jointly and severally" responsible for the maintenance of the services.
Mr. Croft said that suddenly, in May, 1959, a Mr. O'Neill .began to run the buses which Cadman had hitherto operated, and his client had been informed that O'Neill had taken over Cadman's business.
His client waited for an application for the grant of road services licences to O'Neill to be made so that -he might give his views on the continuation of the condition, but no such application was lodged.
In June, 1959, the National Coal Board received a letter asking them to make cheques payable to J. O'Neill instead of A. Cadman, and enclosing a bill, the heading of which had been altered in ink from Cadman to O'Neill. The Coal Board at first complied with the request, but later learned that O'Neill did not hold appropriate licences and insisted that cheques should be made payable, as before, to Cadman. ,
Reported to Commissioners
No application was made by O'Neill to operate the services though the coaches bore" his name in place of Cadman's. Mr. O'Hara reported this to the Traffic Commissioners who subsequently were assured by O'Neill that the necessary application would be made.
The Coal Board, contended Mr. Croft, were thoroughly dissatisfied with the position, because, on two occasions, there had been breakdowns in the service which should have been provided by Cadman, and O'Hara had been called out. in the small hours of the morning, to provide services for miners.
Because the situation was still unchanged, Mr. O'Hara had made this application to bring the matter before the Commissioners.
Mr. Croft said Cadman had left the district altogether and he considered it unreasonable to make the applicant responsible for any breakdown in services not provided by him.
Cross-examined by Mr. T. H. Campbell Wardlaw, for Cadman, Mr. O'Hara said that he was not seeking to take over the whole of the services or to ask for Cadman's licence to be revoked.
Mr. J. A. T. Hanlon, the chairman, pointed out that there was nothing on the licence to show which operator was running any particular journey. "Who are we to prosecute, if nobody turns up?" he asked. Mr. Croft pointed out that the same situation obtained all over the Area. Mr. Hanlon said they had the right to prosecute them both—both were jointly and severally liable. Mr. Croft said that the condition was a "most unusual" one to find upon a licence.
Mr. Hanlon said that since the matter had been brought up and the possible difficulties examined, the whole question should be reviewed.
Mr. Wardlaw then stated that his client would not resist the application to remove the condition, but he could not see that it was in the interests of the N.C.B. to have the condition deleted.
Verbal Arrangement Mr. Albert Cadman said he had decided to move to Ilkley and had made a verbal arrangement with Mr. O'Neill, whom he had once employed, to manage the business and eventually to purchase it. He was in the course of forming a company which would make application for the licences.
Mr. Cadman said he had received no money and seen no accounts lhough, he contended, he was still the owner of the vehicles' and the business. .
Mr. A. G. Mein, legal adviser to the Durham Division of the Coal Board, said that, in view of the difficulties they had experienced, and the evidence during the hearing, the Board would almost certainly now terminate their contract with Mr. Cadman, and would like to be in a position to offer the whole of the service to Mr. O'Hara.
Mr. Wardlaw challenged the Board to produce one letter of complaint. In view of what Mr. Mein had said, the matter would he taken up " at Board kvel," and he asked the Commissioners to adjourn the application so that his client could consider what action he should take.
Mr. J. O'Neill was called to explain his
position, and the , application was adjourned.
CUTS IF TAX CONTINUES?
FURTHER drastic cuts in rural bus I routes and increases in fares might be the result of the continuation of the Mel tax, said Mr. T. G. Davies, general manager of the Western Welsh Omnibus Co., Ltd., last week.
Some rural services Were losing up to is. a mile, he added, and the company were paying about 1250,000 a year, or one-tenth of their total expenditure, on fuel duty.
If the tax were abolished or reduced. Mr. Davies considered that fares would at least be stabilized.