Tours Director Challenged on Coach Statements
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THE possibility of large travel agencies such as Cooks, Dean and Dawson and POly Tours, asking for dozens of connecting coach services to departure points for inclusive tours, if a Yorkshire Pools Service application for a Sunday express service from the West Riding to Derby Airport were granted, was raised by Mr. F. S. Marshall, representing Wallace Arnold Tours Ltd., before the Yorkshire Traffic Commissioners in Leeds last week.
Wallace Arnold Tours and Sheffield United Tours were objecting to an application by the West Yorkshire Road Car Co. Ltd., on behalf of the main Yorkshire Pool operators, for a Sunday express service, leaving Bradford at 9 a.m. and arriving at Derby Airport at 12.50 p.m. for a flight to Jersey organized by Gaytours of Blackpool. The proposed picking up points were Bradford, Leeds, Wakefield, Barnsley, Sheffield and Chesterfield, with a return journey on Sunday evenings, solely for Gaytours clients.
Mr. H. G. Hall, for the Pool operators, said that Gaytours had been carrying passengers on express service to and from London, and then by air from Southend Airport, with a Connecting link provided by an Eastern National coach.
But it had been found that on some occasions aircraft schedules had been disorganized, and on the return journey coach connections had been missed at Victoria and Gaytours had had to make alternative arrangements to get people home to the north.
If the application were granted, went on Mr. Hall, Gaytours would have a complete coach to be used exclusively for its clients from the West Riding and the other picking up points to Derby Air port. • • Mr. D. Walker, for Sheffield United Tours, pointed out that the proposed picking up points were right in the "catchment area" of Sheffield United Tours. His clients already had facilities for tours from Sheffield, including one from Derby Airport.
Mr. Marshall read to Mr. Corkhill, managing director of Gaytours, a statement from the 1962 brochure that "we commence our holiday in our tour coach from your home town ", and asked if be did not think that people in Yorkshire were being misled when they were actually travelling on an operator's regular express coach.
"There was no misleading at all replied Mr. Corkhill. "People from Yorkshire had rebooked on the holiday."
He was in factasking for no better facilities than Wallace Arnold or Sheffield United themselves enjoyed with the great advantage of feeder services. During the hearing, it was said that 95 per cent of , Gaytours' bookings came through travel agents and early in 1962 these agents were informed that seat numbers could not be allocated, as was the case with Standerwick and Yelloway, although seats were assured.
The procedure for changing coaches in London was also explained to the agents, and this was also supposed to be communicated. to clients when booking the Jersey tour.
With more witnesses to be heard, the chairman of the Yorkshire Traffic Commissioners, Major F. S. Eastwood, adjourned the hearing.