New ideas at 'transport UN'
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UITP Congress reported by Derek Moses
• Attending a UITP Congress is similar, in many ways, to attending a conference organized by one of the British passenger transport associations. One hears repeated many of the platitudes made at earlier conferences, together with a few really new and constructive suggestions. But with the Hammer and Sickle, Stars and Stripes and many other flags keeping company with the Union Jack, one is reminded that the problems of public transport are world-wide, and that the UITP knows no boundaries—it is a transport united nations.
The problems—and solutions—discussed are also inter-related; for example, measures to improve public transport are raised at the conclusion of a business session on the subject of integration and co-ordination, are discussed again when dealing with economic viability, appear yet again in a discussion on the role of operational research, and still crop up after a paper on new forms of transport.
In the very week that approval by the British Government of swingeing fares increases for London Transport is announced, Mr. S. A. Caria, president of the American Transit Association, reports that a 1 per cent fares increase in the States results in a loss of one and a third per cent of passengers equivalent to 22 million passengers throughout America. Yet Mr. S. Au i (Algiers) reports that a cut in fares of six and two-thirds per cent in 1968 brought an increase of 15 per cent in the number of passengers carried and a rise in income. This year a further cut of 20 per cent was made, and the increase in passengers is following the same curve as last year while the undertaking is running at a financial surplus and paying 12 per cent tax on its gross earnings.
Dipl. lng. J. K. Pithardt (Prague) talked about the "vertical" solution (different types of transport on different levels) and Dr. lng. A. Orcel (Rome) also spoke of the vertical solution while talking about special lanes for public transport. We learned from the British MoT that work on a special bus lane in Tottenham High Road is about to start (five years after the scheme was announced) while a French delegate described the success of special bus lanes already introduced in Paris.
Dr. Orcel described the commuter (an Americanism now almost in universal use) as "one of the most important social persons of the present time". He spoke of underground tramways as an intermediary solution to the problem of segregated public transport until underground railways could be built. But Mr. H. Bjorck (Stockholm). during a discussion on the paper of Prof. E. V. Tchebotarev (Moscow), "study of new systems of public transport", stated that the motor bus was underestimated. It was capable of transporting 10,000 passengers per hour and not 5,000 to 8,000 as mentioned in the paper, and could manage the prime requirements of public transport.
A frequent contributor to the discussion periods was Mr. D. W. Glassborow, and, in view of his position as chief planning and development officer, National Bus Company, these contributions could be read as pointers to the future. (His paper to the Public Trans
port Association's annual conference in Folkestone in 1967 will also be remembered for some time (CM May 26 and June 2 1967).)
Mr. Glassborow said he thought there should be a paper "Passengers are human , beings", when the discussion on co-ordination and integration was taking place. He asked if large units were justified and reminded delegates that giant companies were not always good ones.
He believed the structure of bus undertakings was very important and that the NBC holding company retained the advantages of large business structures while maintaining smaller operating units. England was trying to merge two large units (THC and BET) into one. Time would tell if this was successful. Each subsidiary company retained financial responsibility, he said.
Commuters are people
Turning to management, and its place in the role of operational research, Mr. Glassborow believed that research employing computers was the formulation of judgment previously made by human brains. "We must not be too impressed by operational research, nor must we believe everything which comes out of a computer model. Managers must be masters, not servants", he stressed.
It was during the discussion of operational research that Mr. P. I. Welding, director of management services. LTB, revealed that he had had a "most favourable exchange of views" with Mr. R. Faure (Paris). Mr Welding thought that surveys for detailed planning of local services gave neither sufficient geo graphical detail nor sufficient coverage of local services. He spoke of the use of questionnaire postcards in a recent London survey.
Mr. Norman Morton (Newcastle University) claimed that there was not sufficient research into public transport carried out by universities and blamed operators for this. The completion of a switch to o-m-o would not result in an end to the need for more research and public transport undertakings and universities should get together more, he said.
Mr. R. E. J. de CIercq. SNCV, Brussels, said that not enough use was made of cybernetics (another name for computers and not a reference to Dr Who) by public transport operators. Some said they were too busy to study the results of such surveys, he claimed. He suggested that the UITP should publish a quarterly or monthly bulletin on data analysis and operational research.
One subject briefly mentioned in last week's opening report was that of standard buses. Both Papers (CM May 9) brought a long discussion, Germany's progress with standard buses was largely the same as that in Britain, although Mr. J. W. Wicks (London Transport) commenting on a slide showing the products of four German bus builders built to VoV requirements said that they appeared very similar. Mr. Wicks wanted to know more about them.
Standard buses
Several seating layouts possible in the German bus were shown and none of these was as severe as the seating layout in LTB's new standee buses. Mr. 0. W. 0. Schultz (Hamburg) stated that only the main dimensions had been laid down for the German bus—the requirements were much the same as those of the British MoT except that double-deckers were not included. Mr. Schultz questioned as to where the engine should be—he was not entirely happy about rear-engined buses.
Mr. Wicks (possibly ruffled by frequent complaints about London's new single-deckers) seemed obsessed about lowering the floor in buses. This meant smaller tyres which would lead to steering problems or more axles, more complications and more maintenance. He admitted nevertheless that there was a passenger need for a lower floor. As for whether or not the manufacturer should recondition or replace components, Mr. Wicks questioned the competence of manufacturers and claimed that LTB could repair stub axles much better themselves.
Mr. A. F. Neal, adviser on bus operation, MoT, said that, although most countries had accepted standard dimensions, the cost of new buses had still increased. Two requirements of the modern bus were acceleration equivalent to an electric train and maximum seating capacity—which meant doubledeckers.
Mr. R. Mackenzie (Scottish Omnibuses Ltd.) said that he would support the manufacturer overhaul scheme if only they could bring the cost down. Pillar spacing at 4ft intervals was a standard he supported--it gave operators large enough windows in double-deckers and enabled 8ft "picture windows" to be employed on express coaches. Mr. J. P. Bamberg (Groningen) suggested that the subject of double-deckers versus single-deckers should be discussed at the next Congress.
A sum of £1.75m had already been paid to British operators -as part of the bus grants scheme, revealed Mr. J. W. Furness (MoT). He advocated standard buses, but conceded that the door must always be open to allow the incorporation of new developments.
A look ahead
Prof. E. V. Tchebotarev's paper on new types of transport in the future led to a further discussion on town planning! He believed, however, that traditional modes of transport would remain until the end of the century. In addition to the remarks already recorded earlier, Mr. Bjorck suggested that the air pollution caused by diesel buses was exaggerated, although noise was a very different matter.
An MoT plan for employing four-seat taxis on special tracks was described by Mr. A. P. Goode. A passenger would enter a cab then dial for whichever destination he required. The technical feasibility or architectural desirability of such a project would have to be considered, but an experimental system would be built in about 18 months, he said.
Finally, Mr. Glassborow put on another cap and, as a board member of Throughways Transport, he spoke about experiments with guided buses which could leave their special tracks outside city centres, and operate as normal buses. The experiments were based on adapting a-standard Leyland Panther single-decker for this purpose.