Mather's Easyway Bus gets another chance
Page 29
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• Maintenance problems have led Jack Mather's Easyway Bus PSV 0-licence to be reduced so that it now expires at the end of October. North Western Traffic Commissioner Martin Albu also considered cutting the authorisation on the licence from nine to six vehicles but he relented following arguments from Mather that it would handicap the business.
Vehicle examiner Roy Prince said that in December only five Easyway vehicles have been classed as fit for service. On examination he found about 43 defects and was forced to impose three immediate and two delayed prohibition notices. An immediate prohibition on a vehicle involved in a fatal accident in Scotland in August had not been cleared; another, on a vehicle involved in an accident in Morecambe in July, had not been cleared; one vehicle had been delicensed after being given an immediate prohibition in June; one vehicle had been off the road for six months with engine faults; another bought from a local operator was said to be beyond economical repair; and a vehicle laid up for the winter had major defects.
Prince said he was told that requests for parts to repair vehicles were either ignored or they were obtained from scrap yards. Easyway maintained that a lot of money was spent on new parts, though it did have difficulty getting spares because the vehicles were old. Second-hand parts were only used for expediency, said the company. It was difficult to get good fitters in the area; there had been problems over vandalism and three buses had been stolen from the yard in 12 months. A local bus war had led to their three registered services being lost. The 53 service was eventually regained, however there was still a case pending over the alleged charging of a fare by an Easyway driver when that service was operated free.
Albu said it was clear that the situation had been less than satisfactory. He felt that matters would possibly improve now that Mather's two sons were in the business, and he was going to give Easyway another chance.