Picking-up grant for Eatonways
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Ar Birmingham on Monday, Birmingham Corporation Transport unsuccessfully opposed a new picking-up point on the line of route of an existing works' service on the grounds of abstraction of traffic from a stage carriage service on the same route feeding two terminal points on either side of the proposed new point.
The application, by Eatonways Luxury Travel Ltd., was granted subject to a takeover application for Castle Coaches being granted. That case should have been heard at the same time, but Mr. J. W. Frost, for Eatonways, told the West Midland Traffic Commissioners that he had not realized it has been listed for hearing and had not come prepared for it.
Mr. Frost said the proposed new point at the junction of Redditch Road and Grange Hill Road, West Heath, Birmingham, was for a service to the Fisher and Ludlow car body plant at Castle Bromwich. It would serve the newly built Primrose Estate, and had been requested by five of the regular passengers on the service.
At present they were being picked up either at the Man in the Moon, West Heath, or The Green, King's Norton. One witness said that there had been occasions when he had misses the Eatonways coach because the Corpora tion bus he should have caught to King'. Norton had gone by full up. He had reacher the factory by travelling on Corporatioi buses and walking, the journey taking 9( minutes.
For the Corporation, Mr. G. W. T. Pit submitted that if the new point were granted the door would be opened for other works service operators to apply for a multitude o additional picking-up points. In theory works' services could have picking-up point! at every Corporation bus stop. It was hb contention that the Corporation should in allowed to continue to provide the "filling-ir bits" between works' service points.
Chairman of the Commissioners, Mr. J Else, said he found the argument interesting although the Commissioners could not agra with it. It showed a new approach by thr Corporation to its stage services in relatior to works' services. He pointed out that Primrose Estate had been built since tilt licence was first granted.
Also on Monday, during a fares increasr application at Birmingham, Mr. Else saic that the Commissioners were not "tied hand and foot" to refusing fare rises because of the prices "freeze". It was entirely a matter ol the public interest.
Mr. Else stated he could envisage granting an application where an operator was in danger of going out of business. What worried them about the freeze was that increases that were now being refused would have to be granted sometime. What might be a 2d. or 3d. increase now might be 4d. or 5d. by the time the freeze ended.
Everton Coaches Ltd. were refused an application for a 3d. increase in fares on an express service from Droitwich to Blackpool, Worcester, despite evidence that the service was operating below cost. In view of this decision, two other fares applications by the firm for a works' service and a stage carriage service were withdrawn.
Wafter Alexander Bid: An application has been made to the Traffic Commissioners by Walter Alexander and Sons (Midland) Ltd. to continue the licence rights of the Highland Bus Co. Ltd., which serves the Coatbridge and Cutnbernauld areas.