Yorkshire—Torbay Fight Ends After Four Months
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Yelloway Alleged to be "Flouting Law" with Hebble Stage -Express Link up
FINAL submissions in the applications by 10 Yorkshire and one Lancashire operator for licences to run new express services from the West Riding to Torquay and Paignton were made before the Yorkshire Licensing Authority, at Leeds, last week. The hearing, which began on April 10, was spread over 12 days.
A number of important questions of principle arose during the hearing, and the Licensing Authority's decision, which has been deferred, and any subsequent appeal decisions, are likely to be of importance to all operators.
There were nine applications:
Wallace Arnold Tours, Ltd., applied for a new express service from Bradford to Paignton.
Yorkshire Pool Operators (West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd., Yorkshire Woollen District Transport Co., Ltd„ Yorkshire Traction Co., Ltd.. East Yorkshire Motor Services Ltd.. and East Midland Motor Services, Ltd.) for a new exomis service from Keighlcy to Torquay. Hanson's Buses, Ltd., Huddersfield. for new express services from Huddersfield to Torquay. J. W. Kitchin and Sons, Stanningley. for new , express services front Bradford to Torquay,.
Hebble Motor Services, Ltd., for the variation of stage services between Halifax and Bradford and Leeds and Rochdale.
Hebble jointly with -Yelloway Motor Services. Ltd., for a new express service from Bradford to Torquay.
Yelloway jointly with Hebble for a new express service from Bradford to Torquay.
Mr. C. G. Littlewood. Sheffield, for the variation of an express service from Sheffield to Torquay.
There were objections by all the operators Concerned, and by British Railways; Shearings Tours (Manchcster), Ltd.; Happiway Tours, Ltd., Manchester; Associated Motorways, Ltd.; Pleasureways (1955), Ltd., Oldham; and Feather Bros. (Tours), Ltd., Bradford.
Against Minister's Decision The railways contended that the applications were nothing less than an attempt to appeal against the Minister of Transport's decision in 1955 upholding the Licensing Authority's decision to refuse applications made in 1954.
The coach operators submitted that the railways had not kept a promise to improve their services to Torquay, and that there was an ever-increasing demand.
Another issue—that of who was entitled to operate the road services— concerned Yelloway, Hebble and the Yorkshire Pool, whose existing services linked with those of Associated Motorways all over the south-west, against Wallace Arnold, Hanson's and Kitchin, who contended that local operators should have preference.
Mr. G. P. Crowe, in his final submissions for the railways, said Wallace Arnold were the initiators of this series of applications, and they were followed by their competitors. Their main arguments—the substantial discrepancy between road and rail fares; the demand to go farther afield since the introduction of 14-day holidays; and that many people wanted to go by road—had all been put forward in 1954, when similar applications were refused.
Wallace Arnold and Kitchin had ignored the existing facilities by road. Unless the Licensing Authority could devise some means for destroying the Yelloway link, any new facilities granted must take traffic from the railways. Their case was based on the false premise that facilities did not exist.
Referring to the Hebble-Yelloway applications, Mr. Crowe said that Hebble had admitted that their application for additional timings on their stage servrces was designed as an express feeder service. A similar service had been refused in 1954.
The abuse of existing services had not been contemplated by the Ministry's inspector when, in 1955, he said they should be improved. These links to Yelloway's service from Lancashire could cause unlimited abstraction.
Over 200 Departures
Mr. H. Allen, assistant general manager of Yelloway, said that at peak periods there were more than 200 vehicle departures, carrying in the region of 7,000 passengers, on the Torquay service at week-ends.
. Except for Huddersfield, Hebble were Yelleway's exclusive Yorkshire agents. Through vehicles to Torquay bad been operated from Halifax since 1952 and from Bradford since 1953, by means of duplicates on Hebble's stage services, which were on hire to Yelloway.
A similar service had operated with Hanson's from Huddersfield, and it was not until evidence was given on behalf of Hanson's during the present hearing that Yelloway were aware of any hitch in the arrangements. Yelloway carried 6,403 passengers from Bradford, Halifax and Huddersfield in 1955.
Mr. F. D. Walker, also for Yelloway, submitted that the 1954 applications visualized two feeder services to Huddersfield and one trunk service from there to 'Torquay, ensuring that the minimum number of vehicles made the trunk journey. in contrast, this time there was a series of wholly independent proposals, giving a picture of thoroughly uneconomic operation.
The other applicants were alleging improper and irregular operations by Yelloway as the only way to get over the fact that facilities were already offered in all the areas by them. Any evidence of demand brought by Hanson's had been created artificially. They had had the facility and declined to give it to the public, diverting bookings which they were bound as agents to pass to Yelloway. Hanson's claim that Yelloway's methods were unsatisfactory was nothing short of hypocrisy. No com, plaint had been made to Yelloway, and it would be unjust to allow them to profit by it.
In 1952 there was an enormous leap in traffic following the general introduction of 14-day holidays. Passengers increased from 67,152 in 1951 to 90,135 in 1952. In 1953, the company started through operation with Hebble. They were aware that their stage links might be open to criticism when they unsuccessfully applied for express feeder services from Huddersfield to Manchester, and Bradford-Halifax-Rochdale in 1954.
Mr. J. Evans submitted for Hanson's and Kitchin that a detailed review of the railways' evidence would establish that There had been no improvement in their services since 1953.
Referring to the Yelloway application, Mr. Evans said their facilities were never intended for the people of the West Riding, but they now wanted to stretch their tentacles to Leeds, Bradford and Huddersfield.
His Own Licensing Authority
They were carrying traffic from Yorkshire only because Mr. Allen had vested in himself the right to run a number of express services from Yorkshire to Rochdale and thence to Torquay. He had been his own Licensing Authority, flouting the law and operating irregularly.
Stage services had been used as a cloak for through journeys via Rochdale on Yelloway's Torquay service, with picking-up and setting-down points including Oldham, Manchester, Cheltenham, Bristol,.Taunton and Exeter.
They said they had a vested interest because existing stage services from the
• West Riding to Lancashire not operated by them could, by duplication, find a means for getting to their area from places which had nothing to do with their original licence. So long as the passengers had been only a trickle they were legally accommodated. Since 1954, they had become a flood and could not be dealt with legally.
Yelloway had duplicated other people's stage services by superimposing express services granted by themselves. On one occasion in 1955 no fewer than 13 vehicles assembled in Huddersfield as duplicates on one timing of the Oldham stage service to take people to Torquay.
The route coincided, but there all resemblance ended. Although ostensibly duplicates, they were not available for ordinary passengers. They were run whether the service bus was full or not, and there were no conductors.
On these facts, Yelloway had the effrontery to tell the Licensing Authority they were existing operators.
Mr. W.. Marshall, for Wallace Arnold, said that if Yelloway's application were granted it would put the seal of legality on these operations.