Commissioners did comply with RTA, rules Secretary
Page 25
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• The Environment Secretary of State has dismissed the appeals of Hampshire County Council, the City of Winchester and several urban, rural and parish district councils within the area, against the decision of the South Eastern Traffic commissioners to grant the Thames Valley and Aldershot Omnibus Co Ltd a variation of the conditions of a road service licence for a stage carriage service between Aldershot and Winchester.
The decision of the Commissioners concerned the revision of services between Alton and Winchester in line with a change in train services in the area. The appellants argued that the Commissioners had not taken due regard, as required by the Road Traffic Act 1960, of the need to provide suitable and efficient services in substitution for the railway. They maintained that connections between bus and rail were not sufficient or reliable and that the journey time and cost would impose hardship on passengers. Altogether they considered that the decision was against the weight of evidence.
At the inquiry the appellants pointed out a number of connections at Winchester which were either lax or tight and also the distance between the station and buses and the difficulty for buses to wait for the late arrival of trains. There were similar difficulties at Alton. The appellants also drew attention to the company's apparent staff shortage problems.
In their reply the respondents stated that buses would generally provide a five-minute connection with a three minute tolerance at Alton, and at Winchester a 14-minute connection in the southbound direction. In the opposite direction there was an eight-minute connection at Winchester and a 12-minute connection at Alton. The respondents stated that there was now no staff problem and that their record of timekeeping constituted a reliable service.
The Secretary of State agreed with his Inspector that a bus timetable was not required to allow for unpunctuality of British Rail. In addition, he agreed that, with one exception, the connections at Alton were adequate. The Winchester connections were also considered to be generally acceptable. An adverse view was taken of the appellants' suggestion that buses should enter Winchester Station but sympathy was expressed with the offer of British Rail to notify the local depot of train delays so that buses could be held at the bus station rather than at City Road.
The Inspector accepted that the company's timekeeping record was satisfactory and he also accepted that the company had made a determined effort to improve its staff situation. The Secretary of State followed the Inspector's recommendation that the appeal be dismissed and he stated that he was satisfied that the application by the company was consistent with the requirements of the Road Traffic Act.