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PASSENGER TRANSPORT
HOW GLASGOW IS TO FINANCE BUS BUYING
LAST week, Glasgow Corporation approved a proposal by the transport committee to pay for the purchase of buses out of revenue, instead of borrowing the capital required. The proposed expenditure is for buses still to be delivered under the contracts which were placed last September. Borrowing powers for this purpose are not now obtainable, and an appeal to the Ministry of Transport has not been successful. By taking the money out of revenue the department will get over• the difficulty of requiring the express sanction of the Minister to the expenditure.
Criticism of this method of financing the purchase of new buses was made by members of the Progressive Party. Councillor E. Love said that instead of borrowing money for the purchase of new buses the transport committee proposed to pay for the vehicles by taking the sum of £118,115 from the depreciation fund and the balance of what was required, amounting to £110,250, out of prospective revenue. By interfering with the depreciation fund, he maintained, the committee was making too low an allowance for depreciation, whilst by earmarking prospective revenue it was incurring a tremendous deficit.
After Bailie David S. Brown, the Socialist convener of the transport committee, had defended the policy, the Lord Provost, Mr. P. J. Dollan, iaterjected the explanation that the matter had been examined by competent officials, who had decreed that it was perfectly in order. In all, 63 of the 100 buses had already been delivered to the corporation, and 17 more would be delivered shortly. The proposal was carried by 47 to 29 votes. .
SUNDERLAND'S POLICY ON FUTURE CHANGE-OVER
WARNING that unless steps be taken to increase the undertakifig's revenue not only will there be a loss for the current year, but the plan to build' up a reserve to introduce another form of transport in place of trams will be a "dismal failure" is given in the annual report of Mr. Charles A. Hopkins manager of the transport undertaking of Sunderland Corporation:
The report says that the net surplus on the trains and buses amounted to £15,985, compared with £27,220 in the previous year. Of this, £8,157 has been transferred to the renewals fund, which now stands at £28,832.
Mr. Hopkins says that, in February last, he suggested to the council that measures should be taken to increase revenue, but the council decided to postpone action until the annual report was issued.
Unless the Corporation possessed sufficient funds to meet the cost of changing over from trams to trolleybuses or motorbuses after the war, it would find itself in the hands of moneylenders. To carry out the change-over by borrowing would involve a great increase in fares.
Mr. Hopkins suggests that the best method of increasing revesue is to withdraw the 2d. universal return fare. The transport committee has approved the proposal and the matter will come before the next meeting of the town council. The 2d. universal fare, it is understood, costs the undertaking £10,000 per annum.
DARWEN'S NEW BUS GARAGE
DARWEN'S new municipal bus garage at Bottom -Croft Mill was inspected and formally accepted by parwen Town Council on August 29. The maintenance department has still to be completed.
PROTECTING MUN1tIPAL BUS GARAGES ON the instructionsof the Scottish Home Department, Glasgow's firemaster is having four old fire-engines repaired and they are to be allocated to the transport department for use at the municipal bus garages.
COUNCILLORS' TRAVEL PRIVILEGES
ON August 29 a sub-committee of Dundee Corporation's Lord Provost's Committee agreed that members of the town council should still be allowed to travel free on the municipal trams and buses, but that no charge be put through the books.
WOMAN OBTAINS P.S.V. LICENCE
NAISS AGNES PROW, of Shields a I Road, Glasgow, has been granted a licence to drive buses by the Ministry of Transport. She obtained a driver's licence nine years ago, and recently applied to Glasgow Corporation for permission to undergo bus-driving tests. When informed that the corporation had not thought of employing women drivers, Miss Prow applied to a Paisley firm of bus operators, who agreed to give her a test, which she has passed.
AIR-RAID TRAFFIC PLANS AT LEEDS
IT is announced at Leeds that in the event of people being stranded owing to an air-raid alarm lasting until after the rearmal time when the transport services cease running efforts will be made to organize supplementary services after the " all clear."
Leeds City Tramways Department "states that after an alarm has been sounded the trams and buses will continue a short distance, so that junctions are not congested and in order that the vehicles may not be left near any military objective. Passengers would not be compelled to leave the trams, but would be directed to the nearest shelter.
BUSES AID RATES AT WALLASEY
DURING the year ended March Si last, a million fewer passengers were carried by the municipal buses at
Wallasey. Last year's total was 25,133,978, the reduction, of course, being due to the introduction of reduced emergency services. Traffic receipts totalled £165,723, which is a little more than £6.000 below the previous year's figure. Last year, a rateaid contribution of £8,500 was made from the undertaking, compared with £5,000 each year since the complete introduction of motorbus services upon the abolition of trams six years ago.
SCOTTISH BUS SERVICE DISCONTINUED
THE village bus service from Sandy]. hills, Glasgow, to Carmyle, Lanarkshire, a distance of a mile-and-a-half, may soon run again. It was discontinued last week because it was not paying its way. Mr. Charles M'Ateer. of Broomhouse, owned and operated the one-bus service. Lowland Motorways, Ltd., Glasgow, is now considering approaching the Ministry of Transport to take over the service.
MANCHESTER VETOES FARES CONCESSIONS TO THE FORCES
AANCHESTER Transport Commitaltee on Tuesday of last week decided that the question of free travel for members of the Forces was a national question and that "We, as a local authority, cannot see our way to grant any further concessions."
This decision was arrived at after careful consideration of a letter from the Labour Group of Manchester City Council, which desired a maximum Id. fare for members of the Forces. Two long reports on the subject were before the committee from Mr. R. Stuart Pilcher, general manager, who described the proposal as beyond the means of the Department.
In his review of the situation, Mr. Pilcher reminded the committee that, at present, the department was doing a considerable amount of work for the military authorities for which payment was made, as agreed, on a national basis. On Sundays, a few buses were specially provided for the Home Guard and on the all-night services members of, the Forces were charged ordinary instead of double fares.
The cost of granting free travel to members of the Forces could not be estimated, but would be considerable.
The financial position of the undertaking was not sufficiently secure to enable any large fares concession to be given: Although the revised fares had increased the revenue, expenditure was also increasing, particularly payments to employeesserving with the Forces. If all those registered were called up the amount would be £4,000 per week. Rationing had meant that the normal weekly bus mileage of 601,000 had been reduced to 475,000.
A great increase in travel by members of the Forces .followed concessions already made, and the public would be seriously inconvenienced by further shortage of accommodation.