Operating Aspects of
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Passenger Transport
All the latest news of important developments affecting public-service
vehicle owners
BIG CO-ORDINATION SCHEME APPROVED
To fewer than 18 applications, in IN the surrender of eight licences, were approved last week, by the Metropolitan Traffic Commissioner, when the Southern National Omnibus Co., Ltd., and Western National Omnibus Co., Ltd., sought to coordinate their numerous services to Bournemouth and Devon, which had become unwieldy as the result of the acquisition, within the past eight months, of the Royal Blue, Silver Cars and Tourist services.
There was opposition from the Shamrock and Rambler concern to increased competition from King's Cross Coaching Station on the Basingstoke-Bournemouth section of the LondonBournemouth route, but this was met by the National companies agreeing hot to accept such bookings on a number of its services.
The new co-ordinated time-tables, covering services from London to Southampton and Bournemouth, London to 1V1inehead and North Devon, London to South Devon and London to Cornwall, will come into operation on July 13.
It is computed that, under the new scheme, there will be a saving of almost 50 per cent, in the number of vehicle-journeys and up . to 1,400 operated miles per day.
EXTENDED BOUNDARIES AND PROTECTIVE FARES.
THE effect on bus operators of the extension of city and borough boundaries was discussed at the opening of a Ministry of Health inquiry, at Wakefield, on Tuesday, concerning West Riding County Council's scheme to reduce the number of local authorities from 147 to 77.
Mr. G.' Veale (for Mr. Samuel Ledgard, one of the largest independent bus operators in Yorkshire) pointed out that bus companies in cities such E40
as Leeds and Bradford allowe&i the tramways a protective fare as far as the city boundaries. Operators would suffer hardship if the protection applied as far as the new boundaries. If the boundaries were extended, the inspector who conducted the inquiry would have no power to advise the Ministry to intimate that the present position should not be altered..
L.N.E.R. WANTS LOW ROAD FARES!
Or-IN Tuesday, the London and North Railway Co. and the Eastern National Omnibus Co., Ltd., applied to the Eastern Traffic Commissioners for a licence for road services to he operated in conjunction with special railway excursions. The L.N.E.R. wished to exclude the condition that the road services should be worked only in connection with "special railway mileage" and undertook to endeavour to define the railway excursions with which they would be operated.
The railway company made the striking admission that these road services could be successful only if the bus fares, as well as the rail charges, were fixed at a specially low level.
BIG CAPITAL-INCREASE PLAN.
I T is proposed to increase the capital
of the North Western Road Car Co., Ltd., from £600,000 to £800,000 and sanction is to be sought at the general meeting on July 3.
STATE LOAN FOR GLASGOW TRANSPORT?
RECONSTRUCTION of Glasgow's transport system is being advocated by Councillor V. D. Warren, who is suggesting that the city treasurer should approach the Government in an endeavour to obtain a loan, as has been done for London Transport, to abandon the trams. He declares that the question of departing from fixedline transport will have to be faced.
It was significant, says Councillor Warren, that London Transport had greatly increased its trolleybus routes'. Glasgow had the finest electrical power station in the country and supplied the cheapest electricity, and an experiment should be made in that direction, ANOTHER LONDON COACH CO. PASSES.
THE last remnant of the goodwill of the Express Safety Coach Co., Ltd., London, has, it is understood, now been disposed of, Mr. L. A. Lovegrove, the proprietor, having ceded his seasonal service from London to Cleethorpes to his previous competitor, Fleetways, Ltd., which runs an all-theyear-round service via Lincoln and now holds a monopoly along the LondonLincolnshire road.
At the end of last season, the mainstay of Express Safety Coaches, Ltd., namely, the London-Dover service, was acquired by the East Kent Road Car Co., Ltd.