New Authorities' support to be fixed
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PUBLIC SUBSIDY for bus fares in the English PTE areas is to he slashed from April 1 under an order made by Transport Secretary Nicholas Ridley.
The new order has been designed to have the maximum precept for the new joint board Passenger Transport Authorities which will he responsible for non-commercial public transport services after the metropolitan county councils disappear on April I. For Greater Manchester the figure will be 19.99p in the pound. In Merseyside it will be 44.88p, South Yorkshire 44.07p and West Yorkshire 26.51p.
In 'Fyne and Wear the figure has already been agreed at 24.27p and in the West Midlands 10.32p.
Ridley claims that ratepayers would have paid up to 50 per cent more next year to subsidise local public transport if spending had been allowed to continue un clwcked.
"This order at least puts a stopper on the amounts which metropolitan ratepayers have in the past had to fork out year after year."
According to the Government, had the PTAs been allowed to continue unchecked, the figure for Greater Manchester would have been 32p; in Merseyside 58p, South Yorkshire 66p, Tyne and Wear 31p, West Midlands up to 19p and West Yorkshire 34p.