Shackling the coach .. Operator F URTHER hardship to the long-distance coaching
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industry has been caused by the extension of the limitation of duplication. The Minister of Transport has applied to a number of services from Lancashire to London his well-known decision to restrict duplication to three times the minimum number of journeys operated daily throughout the., year, but with the provision that two-thirds of the total number of journeys may be worked in one direction. This concession was first introduced -in , . September. last, in connection with certain other 'Ion-distance services. The latest ruling applies to all the LancashireLondon services under review, but a special provision has been made to deal with the heavy traffic to Blackpool. Coaches in excess of the number permitted by the duplica,tion Order may be run for the transport of passengers whose journeys commence or terminate at Blackpool, so long as no person is picked up or set down en route.
This provision implies that the Minister recognizes the public need for long-distance services, particularly those catering for holiday traffic. It also suggests that the Minister may be softening in his attitude towards coach operators, a view which is, at least superficially, strengthened by his comment, in limiting the duplication of ManchesterLondon services, that " it will, of course, always be open to the Commissioners to adjust the number of duplicates authorized, on good reason being shown to them for so doing."
The "good reason" for an increase in facilities will, however, be extremely difficult to produce, in view of the fact that the duplication ruling has been imposed for the benefit of the railways and that the authorities might well retort that surplus traffic should go by rail. We are therefore inclined to be dubious as to the value to be placed on the Minister's suggestion.
In our view, the operators upon whom the duplication Order has been made have a genuine case for application to the Traffic Commissioners for the variation of their licences to provide for the unlimited duplication of through coaches not stopping at intermediate points. The Minister has not yet been made to recognize that coach services between even industrial centres are primarily of a pleasure nature, otherwise heavy duplication would be unnecessary at holiday periods. Moreover, business men seldom have the time to travel by coach.
If the Minister realizes the need for elasticity in running services to Blackpool, he should also, with some persuasion, be able to appreciate the necessity of sufficientfreedom to meet the public requirements on other routes also catering for a comparatively large volume of pleasure traffic.