BUS FARES TO RISE AT ONCE
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New Bill for Emergency Increases : General Rise in Haulage Rates
ABILL to permit emergency increases in road passenger transport
fares began a high-speed passage through Parliament on Monday and is likely to become law by today. It covers, only increases necessitated by the extra is. fuel tax, and not by advances in the wholesale and retail prices of fuel A minimum fare of 3d. will be introduced in London on January 1.
Last Friday the Road Haulage Association recommended an immediate increase of 10 per cent, in road haulage rates, and the National Conference of Road Transport Clearing Houses urged hauliers to raise rates by at least 7+ per cent. A surcharge of 7+ per cent. was also imposed by British Road Services on all their rates from December 6.
On Monday, railway cartage rates rose by 6d. a ton for each service of collection and delivery, with a minimum addition of Id. per consignment for each service.
The measure to authorize emergency increases in bus fares, the Hydrocarbon Oil Duties (Temporary Increase) Bill, had its second reading in the House of Commons on Monday. The Committee Stage took place on Wednesday and the Bill was due to pass through the remaining stages yesterday.
The proceedings are reported on pages 678 and 67.9.
A private or municipal bus undertaking is allowed, without reference to the Traffic Commissioners, to raise its fares to increase its present gross revenue from services run under service licences by not more than one-twelfth. The operator of up to five public service vehicles, or of up to 50 if a chairman of Traffic Commissioners, or the Metropolitan Traffic Commissioner, certifies that the services are "substantially rural," may raise his fares to yield an extra eighth of gross revenue.
London Transport will be allowed to raise receipts by one-twelfth of the present gross revenue from coach and bus services, and to spread the higher fares over the motorbuses, trolleybuses • and Underground railways.
End of Concession The special right to charge higher fares will cease a fortnight after the removal of the extra Is. fuel duty. This period may be lengthened "for special reasons" by the Traffic Commissioners or, in the case of London Transport, the Transport Tribunal.
Operators' discretion to apply to the Commissioners in the normal way for permanent increases in fares to cover the higher retail price of fuel, extra tyre costs, wages and so on is not affected by the Bill.
Spokesmen of the Public Transport Association and the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association told The Commercial Motor on Monday that they expected that the increases authorized by the Bill would generally cover the higher fuel tax.
tOther news of fares and charges appears on pages 665 and 667.1