PROFITABLE BUS OPERATION AT KEIGHLEY.
Page 67
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An Analysis of the Past Year's Report Dealing with the Municipal Passenger Transport Undertaking.
WHEN the Keighley Corporation abolished its tramcars and commenced to use trolley-buses for the town services in 1924, a substantial amount of unrepaid capital was left to be cleared off, but in the accounts for the year ended March 31st last, which have just been published, it is announced that all outstanding debts on this account have been wiped off. There still remains a debt on the old Cedes-Stoll trolley-vehicle system, which was in operation in the out-districts, being now superseded by motorbuses, and this is scheduled to be paid off by 1937, although it is hoped that if the finances of the department continue to be in a satisfactory state this debt 'will be liquidated before the appointed time.
The motorbus accounts are highly satisfactory. The income amounted to 140,590, of which £39,955 represented traffic revenue. Working expenses amounted to £31,726, including £13,681 for traffic expenses, 12,497 for general expenses, £8,995 for general repairs and maintenance and £6,553 for power expenses. The gross profit amounted to 18,864 and, after _the payment of £470 bank interest, 14,783 was transferred to the motorbus capital account, leaving a net profit of £3,611. From the reserve and renewals fund account 13.780 has been transferred to the old tramway net revenue account and this, with the payment made annually from the borough fund account, has wiped off the indebtedness of the tramways. In addition, however. 11,929 has also been paid from the motorbus gains to the trolley-vehicle net revenue account, and thus it will be seen that 14,809 has been paid this year from the motorbus accounts.
1)uring the year the capital expenditure on the motorbuses increased from /28,532 to £35,192, but the reserve fund has been reduced in the course of the same period from £4,629 to 12,983. The net profits recorded by the motorbus section have been as follow : 1922-3, £1,604; 1923 -4, £1,471 ; 1924-5, 13,646; 1925-6, 11,383; 1926
7 £2,326. The average fare paid per passenger was 2,48d.
The trolley-bus accounts include figures relating to the repayment of debts left on the old Cedes-Stoll system, as indicated above, but in an analysis of the figures it is stated that the actual loss ou the existing services amounts to £2,860. With the inchision of the figures connected with the old system, the total loss is recorded as £4,107. The total borrowing powers exercised in connection with the old and new systems amount to 161,917 and of the outstanding debt on both systems, amounting to £35,656, £7,912 is in
respect of the old system and /27,441 of the new system. The total expenses during the year amounted to £16,945 (13.1794. per vehicle-mile), this figure including traffic expenses, 19,596 (7.464d. per vehicle-mile) ; general expenses, £1,885 (1.4664.) ; general repairs and maintenance, £3,048 (2.3711), and power expenses, £2,414 (1.878d.).
The total trolley-bus revenue amounted to £19,101, or 14.8564. per vehicle-mile. The vehicle-miles run totalled 308,578, and the passengers carried numbered 3,892,371. The units of , electricity used averaged 1.665 per vehicle-mile, and the average traffic revenue per vehicle-mile was 14.6064., the total cost per vehicle mile being, excluding power cost, 11.3014.. and, including power cost, 13.179d. The passengers carried averaged 12.61 per vehicle-mile. The gross profit amounted to £2,156, but the loan charges repaid amounted to £5,016, thus leaving a deficit of £2,860.
The trolley-buses have recorded the following losses : — 1925-6, 12,858; 1926-7, 4191, and 1927-8, 14,108. It is pointed out that the loss per passenger carried , during last year amounted to only .1763d., whilst the services had prOved valuable by providing cheap fares for workmen. The passengers carried an all the services amounted to over seven and threequarter millions.
Whilst the ,trams had a revenue of about 120,000 in the last complete year of their history, it es pointed out that the payments for road maintenance in the past six years were as follow :-1920 £970; .J921, £3,187; 1922, 14,731; 1923, £867; 1924, £1,592, and 1925, £507, making a total of £11,854.
Swedish Railways Suffer from Bus Competition.
The conflict between motorbus and railway interests is proceeding not only. in this country but in quite a number of other 6untries, and, in most instances, the road vehicle appears to be more than holding its own, This is the case in Sweden, as is indicated by the fact that the Hoer-Roerby railway route, one of the oldest in Sweden, has suffered so severely from bus competition that the company operating it has applied to the Government for permission to abandon the route and remove the permanent way. :Until a decision is reached, only a few trains are being run each day. At one time this route was one of the most paying in the country, passing, as it does, through a densely populated district ; but owing to the flexibility of buses and the increase In the use of such vehicles, traffic receipts have shown a marked decline.
In some districts in Sweden co-operative arrangements between railway owners and bus companies have been. made. The fact that the Swedish highways are being rapidly improved is one of the reasons for the marked development of bus traffic, and Sweden is now said to have more bus routes per population than any other country.
Six-wheelers on Swiss ' Mountain Passes. AMONGST the new motor coach services established last year by the Swiss Federal Railway authorities was one from Altdorf at the southern end of Lake Lucerne over the Mansell Pass to Linthal, thus providing a connected system of communication between Central and Eastern Switzerland.
Although the distance is only about 31 miles, the schedule time for the journey is n hours. For the firs( few miles the road from Altdorf is fairly level, but after passing through Burglen, the birthplace of Wilhelm Tell, and linterslachen, the climb up the Klausen Pass begins, an altitude of 6,40'2 ft: above the sea being reached ere the summit of the pass is attained, the roacF then gradually falling to Linthal, which, as its name implies, is in the valley.
The service was only open last year between June 20th and the end of September, it being closed by snow during the remaining period of the year. An illustration which we publiih on this page de, picts one of the latest six' wheeled coaches, built by Franz Brozincevic and Co., Wetzikon, Zurich, negotiating one of the hair-pin bends on the pass.