End of the beginning for Confederation
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PREPARATORY WORK for the formation of the Confederation of British Road Passenger Transport has been completed. "We have reached the end of the beginning," Mr Denis Quin the Confederation's director general, told CM last week after a meeting of the eight signatories at the PRTA conference in Scarborough. The new body is ready to invite the active participation of the four existing associations and is now putting its plans to them.
Legal moves necessary for the incorporation of the Confederation have now been made, but the process cannot be completed until after the July 1 date originally forecast. Negotiations for a set of offices in London are now under way. Although precise dates cannot be quoted, it is hoped that the first council meeting will be held in September with the body becoming fully operational in the New Year at the latest.
The council will consist of about 30 members with a small general purpose committee representative of all interests which will be capable of taking ad hoc action. The council members will be nominated in relation to the vehicle strengths of individual operating interests with a ceiling to protect small operators. The council will receive nominations for a president from the associations and elect him as a priority.
The body will have four sectors: transport executives, (London Transport and the PTEs); State-owned fleets (NBC and STG -essentially the present PRTA members); local authority operators (non PTE members of APPT); and coach and independent bus operators (PVOA members).
These plans, of course, assume that APPT will become part of the Confederation, a question which is still not resolved. Mr Quin said on this point: "We will do our utmost to reach agreement with APPT having regard to the interests of other operators who constitute the substantial majority of the industry." Documents containing the final Confederation proposals will be with APPT in time for its next council meeting.
The Confederation will clearly need the experience of the present staff of various associations and there are already discussions to ensure a smooth transfer. There will eventually be a need for more staff to replace those whose retirement coincides with the formation of the Confederation.
Final details of the organizational structure are still being worked out but there will be some regional representation (the present PVOA regional offices will continue, for instance) and individual freedom will remain for such items as local conferences. The SR PTA Gleneagles conference will no doubt continue as a Scottish 'region affair, for example.
It is unlikely that an individual conference for each sector will be held. Instead the "slot" which would have been taken up by the PRTA conference next year will become the first Confederation conference. It will be held at Eastbourne on June 10-12.