Wide Benefits from
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CI-ataci Lan. Local
Agreement
Municipal and Company Co-operation---Fart 1
By C. S. Dunbar, M.Inst.T.
IN the early years of this century many municipalities provided transport services, mainly at. first by tram, in a way that no private concern was able or willing to do, and to their efforts present-day travellers are greatly indebted for the intensive local facilities which have few parallels elsewhere in the world. For many of them the past decade has been most difficult, with reserve funds dwindling and an apparently insuperable task in trying to make both ends meet. It was with this situation in mind that I have been looking into the cases of six municipalities which have entrusted the management of their undertakings to companies who were all privately owned at the time of the agreement.
Civic pride is something not to be sneered at, and I was particularly interested to see how far it had been possible to retain local interest and some degree of control over the services, but, above all, I wanted to know whether the municipality had gained financially by the change. 1 propose to deal with the six undertakings in order of the dates at which the transfer was made.
B.31.111.0. Run Services for Worcester
WORCESTER had a horse tramway WY system from 1882: this was acquired by the BET. Co., who entered into an agreement with the corporation in 1901, as a result of which Acts were obtained to electrify cI4 and extend the system and to give the corporation the right of purchase after 28 years from May I, 1901.
As the period of the company's franchise drew towards its close, it became necessary to consider seriously how to cope with the growth of the city. At the beginning of the century, the population was almost entirely concentrated within a mile of Worcester Cross but, particularly after 1919, new and extensive suburbs were developed in all directions. The population today. is 63,580.
Although the maximum tramway route mileage was only 5.86, and the maximum fleet comprised only 17 50seat cars, an average of 3m. passengers a year was carried, a heavy traffic for a small system.
To clarify their position, the corporation obtained the Worcester Corporation Act, 1926. This had very comprehensive provisions, as it gave the corporation power to acquire the tramways as a going concern, to convert them, if wished, to trolley bus or motorbus operation and to run buses on many roads outside the city, the distance in some directions being about five miles. The corporation were also empowered to lease the undertaking if they thought fit.
They decided to buy the trams, and paid £58,000 for the undertaking, plus £1,423 for stores. Legal expenses came to £651. The corporation consulted Mr. Alfred Baker, then general manager of the Birmingham tramways, about future operation. He advised conversion to trolleybuses, with supple
mentary motorbus services. but this advice was not accepted.
Instead, an agreement was • made with the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd., for the conversion of the system to motorbus operation, the buses to be supplied and operated by the company. The last tram ran on May 31, 1928, and Midland " Red " buses took over the next day. The agreement was for 21 years from June I, 1928: it is now carried on in two-year periods.
The corporation had to remove the tram-tracks and adapt the roads (this cost £11,639), but they are not responsible for any capital expenditure on rolling stock or buildings. They are entitled to the net receipts from the operation of all services wholly inside the city or on routes scheduled in the 1926 Act.
Receipts Divided
In the case of services of which only a portion is along the scheduled roads, the receipts are divided on the basis of the route mileage within and without the corporation area. The corporation are also credited with a part of the company's advertising revenue, this being calculated in the proportion which the fleet required for the Worcester city services bears to the whole of the company's fleet.
From the gross receipts the company are entitled to deduct working expenses. plus a figure (originally 3d. and now 5d.) per car-mile to cover depreciation and interest on capital. No attempt is made to assess working expenses separately for the Worcester fleet. Instead, the average cost per mile of the whole of the company's fleet is ascertained, and this is multiplied by the miles run, including clead,miles, on the city routes.
Originally, a maximum fare of lid. per mile was agreed on, with the proviso that, if costs rose above 10d. per mile, the company might ask for an increase by agreement with the corporation, or if costs fell below 9d. the corporation could ask for a reduction. These figures, of course, have no significance nowadays when the Midland " Red " costs are running at about three times these figures, but the company still have to carry the corporation with them when wishing to revise litres.
the corporation may ask for new routes to be opened up, but the company are not bound to continue their operation if a three months' trial shows them to be working at a loss. There is no joint committee of company and corporation, but the corporation have a ;_uriously named "public traffic committee " which keeps the local situation continually under review.
In the year ended March, 1955, the corporation's share of the city receipts was £17,218, and it was possible to aid the general rates 637-.15,000, and to carry forward £12,880 as a surplus on the appropriation account.
Administration Costs
Every ,year, the public traffic account is debited with 11,300 towards the central administration of the corporation. The city's total capital expenditure on the undertaking has been £71,173, hut of this £4,744 (which was the cost oftlic Dolday and Sansome Street bus stations) has come out of revenue. The remaining £66,429 debt has been extinguished or provided for.
It will be seen that the corporation's decision in 1928 has given them a substantial income in most years which has enabled them completely to clear their capital indebtedness, to build two bus stations and. to aid the rates from time to time, besides providing the city with a greatly improved service.
There can be no doubt that the municipality has benefited greatly by receiViag the receipts from districts well beyond the old trathway area without putting down a penny for the capital costs that tramway extensions or buying a fleet of buses would have entailed.
This applies, for example, to service 144 (Birmingham-Malvern), one of the most consistently well-loaded on the company's system and normally worked throughout with double-deckers. Moreover, a number of the country services, in respect of which the corporation are credited with a proportion i of the gross receipts is. in fact, costing more to run than they earn.
The agreement has certainly proved advantageous to the travelling public. On the first day of bus operation several additional services were started and, as housing estates have developed, new services have been introduced or old ones extended to keep pace.
Midland "Red " have always reearded each city service as starting From the centre, although in practice two routes were linked to form a northeast to south-east service (Rainbow Hill-London Road) and two others, following exactly the tram routing, were linked as a north to south-west service (Barbouine-St. John's).
By 1951, congestion at the Cross had become so serious that the BarbourneSt. John's route was altered , to run almost due north and south between Barbourne and Bath Road and the other through service was broken in two. The long-standing use of Angel Place as a city terminus meant a good deal of movement over the Cross, and so, at the same time, services on the east side of the town were terminated at a new station in Sansome Street.
Further relief was gained by the transference of all country and longdistance 'services to the Dolday (since renamed Newport Street) station.
To operate the peak city services 33 buses are basically required, but this number is greatly augmented, by the use of country buses which are drafted in as extras during what would otherwise be long lay-overs. It is in this respect that the operation of city and country services under a single control shows to advantage.
The divisional superintendent at Worcester is responsible for both. The only distinction which passengers notice is in the protective fare outwards on the country buses.
(To be continued.)