Passengers last in the bus queue?
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NICHOLAS RIDLEY, Transport Secretary, believes that bus operators regard transport as an activity for their sole benefit. The trade unions, on the other hand, think it is for their members' benefit. The passenger is a byproduct of their self-interest. And, according to the Transport Secretary, the law encourages that attitude.
So 17 people who had waited in the rain for an hour at Petersfield, Hants, decided to redress the balance of power and commandeered a bus travelling in the opposite direction, compelling the driver to turn round and take them home.
Whether or not Nicholas Ridley would approve of this action I do not know, but I disagree with his suggestion that bus operation is no more deserving of protection than the sale of sweets or shoes. Sweets rot the teeth and badly fitting shoes harm the feet but completely unrestricted competition on the road can have much more dangerous consequences.
If the Transport Secretary were old enough to know from experience what happened before road service licensing was introduced, he might be a little less liberal.