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Abandon Brighton Agreement, Says Licensing Authority

13th April 1956, Page 44
13th April 1956
Page 44
Page 44, 13th April 1956 — Abandon Brighton Agreement, Says Licensing Authority
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

GRANTING an application for 1.-1 higher fares to Brighton Corporation and Brighton, Hove and District Omnibus Co., Ltd., Mr. H. J. Thom, chairman of the South-Eastern Licensing Authority, strongly criticized the agreement under which the two undertakings operate.

"We find that the corporation would be suffering a considerable loss if this application were not granted, whereas the company, if the application were granted, would be getting a balance of revenue over expenditure considerably in excess of what we are accustomed to grant," he said.

If this is the result of the agreement under the Act, and if that result is inevitable, then it is time the Act was changed and it is time the agreement was annulled.

Reluctant Grant

"We grant the applications with the greatest, reluctance, and we will not regard this as a precedent for future action. It is not in the public interest that we shonld have to grant this application in order to protect the corporation. It is not likely that any future application of this kind will be granted."

The company's traffic manager, Mr. G. H. Baker, said earlier that if it was not for the connection with the corporation undertaking, the company would not need to apply for fare increases.

The alterations approved included a 2d, minimum fare; id. on odd Id. singles between 2id. and 40.; Is. maximum single fare; abolition of ordinary returns and workers' singles; abolition of workers' 3d. and 4d. rates, and 2d. extra on other workers' returns; and children's and scholars' 2id. fare up to 3d.

Fares increases have also been granted to the municipal undertakings of St. Helens and South Shields and to the East Kent Road Car Co., Ltd.

Workers' Fares End South Shields was authorized by the Northern Licensing Authority to abolish workers' fares and to raise 2d. fares by id. It was stated that the department would have an annual deficit of £6,000 on the existing fares, hut that the higher rates would result in a surplus of £10,000.

Objectors to the East Kent application told the-South Eastern Licensing Authority at Canterbury, on Monday, that any increase was unjustified. The company were in such a strong financial position that they could happily carry on until this time next year.

The company said the higher fares were needed largely to meet an estimated £96,000 increase in costs this year. Only 11,677 fares would go up. 1,031 would go down and 7.552 would remain the same.

At a special inquiry by the Northern

Licensing Authority at Newcastle upon Tyne, on Monday, Mr. T. H. Campbell Wardlaw, for the Venture Transport Co., Ltd., said that although 15m. passenger-journeys a year were made, there were only 636 contract ticket holders. Some of these made 24 journeys a week, thus saving themselves two-thirds of the fares they would ordinarily have been charged.

Mr. J. A. T. Hanlon, chairman, said the inquiry was being held because of a flood of letters protesting against the abolition of contract tickets in February. As a concession to persons who had held contract tickets up to their abolition, they would be allowed to buy 13 12-journey tickets at a discount of 15 per cent.

ROVER INVEST IN AUSTRALIA

A SUM of LA350,000 is to be invested

in Rover Australia Pty., Ltd., by the Rover Co., Ltd. The Australian company was formed after negotiations between Rover and the Pressed Metal Corporation, Ltd., Sydney, New South Wales. Rover Australia will acquire a substantial shareholding in Pressed Metal, Who will provide facilities for the manufacture of components and the assembly of Land-Rovers and Rover cars at Enfield, near Sydney.

Hitherto, Land-Rovers have been assembled in Australia by five main Rover distributors. The Australian content of Rover products will be increased. In time, vehicles may be wholly manufactured in Australia, Mr. S. B. Wilks, managing director, the Rover Co., Ltd., intimated last week.

UNIONS AGGRIEVED

THE Scottish trade-union movement is to continue to press for representation on the new Scottish Transport Council. The general council of the Scottish Trades Union Congress protested to the Minister of Transport about the exclusion of trade unions from the Council. The Minister replied that it had been decided to keep Council membership small and confined to representatives of transport undertakings, wi th a few independent members.

The S.T.U.C, are to tell the Minister that they are not impressed by this answer.

STAFF OPPORTUNITY THERE is a vacancy on the staff of The Commercial Motor for a technical journalist of about 30 who has had sound engineering training. He must have a knowledge of the design of current goods and passenger vehicles, mathematical ability. good appearance and personality, and be able to write fluently and quickly. He must also be a good driver. A knowledge of foreign languages, particularly French and German, would be helpful.


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