M and D fares up
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• Maidstone and District Motor Services Ltd. has been granted its second fares increase in a year.
At the end of a two-day hearing in Maidstone last week, the South Eastern and Metropolitan Traffic Commissioners accepted the company's proposal to put up most fares by ld on December 14.
Chairman of the Commjssioners, Maj.-Gen. A. F. J. Elmslie, said: "We are satisfied that some increase is inevitable—and that the increase proposed is reasonable".
He added that the Commissioners considered the distribution of the increases a fair one. Under the new scheme the distance travelled for 4d decreases from 0.8 of a mile to 0.6 of a mile. All other fares go up by 1d.
Mr. John Main, representing the company, said the increase was necessary because of higher operational casts and wage increases in the past year. The company, he said, would be facing total increased costs of £294,000 in 1970, and even though' it had been able to make some savings by introducing more om-o buses there would still be a net increase of £203,000.
"We seek," he told the Commissioners, 'to increase revenue from stage carriage fares by £215,000."
In making the application, he said, the company had allowed nothing for the downward trend in bus passengers—which seemed to be levelling out—but had estimated 21. per cent carrying decrease because of "passenger resistance" to any increase.
Asked by the Commissioners why the company was seeking an increase just before Christmas, Mr. Ian Chapman, assistant company secretary, said that if the increase were put back to the New Year it would cost about £10,000 in lost revenue. Mr. Smith said he realized it was not good public relationsto increase fares at this time of year—but the company could not go on bearing increased costs.
The increase will also apply to Southdown Motor Services Ltd. and the East Kent Road Car Co. Ltd., where their buses follow the same routes.