Rebuilding Jersey's Transport System
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TRIUMPHS of individual enterprise, courage and ability are being
achieved in the rebuilding of the transport system in krsey, around the bones of the skeleton left by the Nazis. Some operators, more fortunate than others, found themselves still with the semblance of a fleet. Some were down to one or two wrecks of vehicles. Others, who had been away, returned to find nothing.
Whoever they were and whatever the condition of their affairs, they set about building up transport companies worthy of the name, in the face of the great difficulties of obtaining vehicles, bodies and spares.
Before the war, and the ravishing of the Channel Islands, public passenger transport had been making good progress. Prior to 1935 there had been a complete lack of control, with consequent " piracy " and uneconomic operation. A Road Traffic Act was passed in 1935 by the States of Jersey, and operators from that time had to submit vehicles for inspection, keep to certain routes, and produce timetables and fare scales.
Operators Segregated
Each company was in fact given a licence to operate on a particular route, with the exception of three concerns operating St. Helier town services. These companies were the Jersey Motor Transport Co., the Safety Coach Service, and Joe's Bus Service operated by Mr. Manning.
A small-scale public transport system, on traditional lines, had thus come into being on the island. Such was the situation at the occupation.
The subsequent deterioration and near approach to ruin may be left to the imagination. The story is a familiar one.
After the nightmare was over, there were in a remarkably short space of time four concerns operating country services. They were the Jersey Motor Transport Co., the Safety Coach Service, SIade's Bus Service, and Tantivy Motors. There was as yet no town service because of the shortage of vehicles.
At the end of 1945, Mr. Manning, of Joe's Bus Service, returned to the island to• find that he had lost his fleet M Morris-Commercial buses. After some time of search he found a Ford 20seater bus for sale, and at once applied to the States for a licence to operate a town service again. The J.M.T. and S.C.S. also applied and all three were granted licences. Mr. Manning has since bought a Morris-Commercial, a Dennis and a Federal, all 20-seaters.
Early in 1946 the J.M.T. company purchased Slade's Bus Service, and after the death of the manager iaf the Safety Coach Service this concern also was absorbed. With the exception of the routes served by Messrs. Tantivy Motors, the J.M.T. company now operates on all the country routes.
General manager of the company is Major F. H. Blakeway, who has recently returned from the Army. He occupied this post before the war. There is a number of Leylands of all types in the fleet.
Mr. A. Pitcher and his sons, of Mwrs. Tantivy Motors, who serve the north of the island, are this year celebrating their half-century in transport. They started business with horse-drawn buses. All buses are Leylands and there is a nixed fleet of coaches. The Motor Traffic Committee does not control coach fares, but a road licence must be obtained and vehicles must be submitted for inspection each year. Most coach concerns operate direct from the various hotels.
Many operators have visited the mainland recently, hoping to find secondhand vehicles at reasonable prices, but they had to return emptyhanded. Messrs. Tantivy Motors are trying to overcome this shortage by building coach bodies for new chassis. but find great difficulty in obtaining fittings, glass, upholstery, etc. A Reo coach bought soon after the liberation. and fit more for spares than anything else, was rebuilt by this firm and is now an excellent operational vehicle.
Apart from inspecting all public service vehicles, the States Motor Traffic Committee, under the chief inspector, Mr. P. T. A. McCready, also tests all new applicants for driving licences. Mr. McCready has held the position of chief motor traffic inspector all through the occupation.
Heavy goods vehicles are not in great demand in the Island. Most merchants operate their own goods fleets and several work also as haulage contractors. An interesting type of haulage is the transport of seaweed, which is collected on the beaches and either carried direct to farms for manure, or taken to a dump to be dried and stacked, later to be sold as •a fertilizer.