Guinea-pig tours of London
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• An application by Grey-Green Coaches Ltd to operate three separate tours of London (morning, afternoon and evening), by adapting an existing licence picked up some years ago by a member of the George Ewer Group, was refused by Mr D. I. R. Muir, chairman of the Metropolitan Traffic Commissioners in a written decision.
A second application to vary a licence by adding eight day or half-clay tours was granted, however, subject to the deletion of one of the picking-up points, and the deletion of King's Cross Coach Station as a picking-up point for a further eight day-tours on licences held by Grey Green and Orange Luxury Coaches Ltd.
A remark made by a Mr Wilson, representing the applicants, at the three-day hearing in September, was accepted by Mr Muir in his decision. It was that licensed tours of London and surrounding districts on which individuals and groups could be booked provided an introduction and a guide to foreign agents to the sort of tours which they ought to include in their package deals and so take out of licensing restrictions (under Section 118 of the Road Traffic Act 1960 read with Part III of the 12th Schedule). Thus the licensed tours of London now performed the humble but no doubt useful function of the guinea pig.
With regard to Grey-Green's application for London tours, Mr Muir dismissed the company's claim that it had discovered a "middle market" consisting of people from abroad who wanted something more than the tour operated on behalf of London Transport providing a quick tour round the City and West End without a guide or stops (cost — 50p) and who were unwilling to pay as much as £1.50 for guided tours with arranged stops at places of interest.
If the applicants' proposals were approved their customers would get for I guided tours with arranged stops and visits to places of interest. It seemed to the Commissioners that the applicants would not be catering for a middle market but rather competing for the market already served by London Transport, Frames, Rickards and Evan Evans, Mr Muir declared.
In refusing the applications, Mr Muir remarked that it was of course, quite open to Grey-Green to activate the London tour from King's Cross which was already on the company's licence.