West Riding Automobile Co. Seek £110,000 Increases in Fares
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A FTER a four-day hearing, the YorkI-1 shire Traffic Commissioners last week reserved decision on an application by the West Riding Automobile Co., Ltd., for fare increases designed to yield an extra £110,000 a year. They promised to give a decision as soon as possible on the application, which concerned fares on about 250 routes.
The company wanted to increase fares between 3d. and Is. by up to id.; Is. ld. to 2s. by up to 2d.; and over 2s. Id. by up to 3d. Their proposals were opposed by 18 local authorities.
For the company, Mr. D. Karmel, Q.C., said that over the past nine months about 60 per cent. of their services had not paid. Unless higher fares were charged, the company would be left with an operating balance of under Id. per bus mile, giving the hopelessly low figure of a 4.05 per cent. return on the capital invested. If the application were granted, the return would still be under 10 per cent., which was not unreasonable.
Mr. W. A. B. Goss, for the objectors, complained that passengers were nearly at their lowest ebb. He claimed that a policy of getting more and more from the pockets of fewer and fewer people was largely responsible for the state of many bus undertakings, although the West Riding Automobile Co. were not one of them.
Eastern Counties Get Less.
The Eastern Counties Omnibus Co., Ltd., have been granted increases of up to 2d. on town service fares and 3d. on country journeys. This was considerably less than the increases sought from the Eastern Commissioners, some of which would have been 7d. or 8d.
They lodged the application to bring fares into line with a mileage scale and to meet the cost of the wage award. If the application were granted, said Mr. J. R. C. Samuel-Gibbon, the company would gain £40.000 a year--£30.000 below the cost of increased pay. This gap would be met by economies.
The major Scottish bus companies were last week granted fare increases by the Scottish Traffic Commissioners (The Conunercial Motor, November 28). Single tickets from 5d. to 6s. 5d. will go up by between 11d. and 3d., and over 6s. 5d. the rise will be five per cent. There will be an increase of between Id. and 4d. on returns from Is. to 4s. 11d., with a five per cent, increase on higher returns.
Adjustments will also he made to workers' concessions, limited journey , tickets and scholars' fares. The increases, designed to help meet the cost of the wage award to bus crews, were opposed by 43 town councils and eight county councils.
Bus companies concerned are Scottish Omnibuses, Ltd.; Western S.M.T. Co., Ltd.; Central S.M.T. Co., Ltd.: W. Alexander and Sons, Ltd.; and David Lawson, Ltd. Increases were also granted to English companies crossing the border -Ribble Motor Services, Ltd.; Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd.: and the North Western Road Car Co., Ltd.
At the time of the wage award, Mr. James Amos, chairman of Scottish Omnibuses, said it would cost them an extra £600,0004650,000 in a full year.
Bus services in Edinburgh will have to be cut if fares are not to be increased, the-transport committee have agreed. It is proposed to reduce frequencies on about 12 uneconomic routes.
Southdown Motor Services, Ltd., have applied for revisions which will shorten the distance passengers rnay travel for 'fares up to 8d. The hearing will be next month, and may result in 21d. and Md. fares being introduced again.
Southern Vedis Proposals
The Southern Vectis Omnibus Co.. Ltd., want to increase the winter charges for adult weekly tickets and scholars' weekly. and term tickets. On tickets ranging from 3s. to Li 7s., the increases would range from 3d. to Is.
Lytham St. Annes Corporation are to seek higher fares and bus cuts. These moves are aimed at raising the extra £8,221 in yearly expenditure, and to stave off a full year deficit of £5,000. For the present year the deficit will be about £1,500. If granted, the revisions would mean many fares going up by Id.
Pontypridd Transport Committee are 10 withdraw some services and reduce the frequencies on " others to save about £10,000.
END OF LEEDS TRAMS
ACCORDING to Aid. J. Rafferty, chairman of Leeds Transport Committee, the municipal trams are likely to be finally abandoned at the end of next year -four years earlier than was intended. There arc three tram services still being run, of which one will cease next March.