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Commissioners paid insufficient regard to children's safety
Page 40
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• A licence has been granted on appeal to Slatter's Coaches, Long Hanborough, Oxfordshire, to operate an express service between North Leigh and Witney for the benefit of pupils at Wood Green school but for a limited period only.
The appeal by the North Leigh parish council was against the decision of the East Midland Traffic Commissioners' refusal of a licence to Slatter's which had operated the service since November 1971 without the necessary road service licence but with a degree of financial assistance from Oxfordshire County Council.
A short-period licence had been granted for the 1972 summer term to allow the county council to make arrangements for assisted travel on the alternative service of City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd, At the inquiry, the appellants were allowed to call evidence that on a number of occasions during the winter of 1970-71 some pupils had been unable to board the City of Oxford service back to North Leigh and parents were worried about the resultant danger. It was held that the Commissioners had paid insufficient regard to the safety of the children and in emphasizing the importance of maintaining rural services in the interests of residents as a whole they had identified the public interest of the majority at the expense of a significant minority.
City of Oxford Motor Services had claimed that there had been an improvement in the supply of vehicles and the past deficiences had been remedied. Moreover, the regular service had been adjusted to the needs of the children.
In giving his decision, the Secretary of State for the Environment said that he shared the parents' concern but he noted that the shortages of vehicles and crews of 1970 had not recurred. He was also concerned that, for the continuing viability of scheduled services in rural areas, any local authority contemplating financial support for a service should provide convincing evidence that its proposals formed part of a consistent transport policy for the area. This was absent in this instance.
In a limited sense he proposed to allow the appeal and he had written to the Commissioners asking them to grant the licence to continue in force until the first statutory date of expiry following the conclusion of the current school term.
This was to allow the parish council, the local education authority and the City of Oxford undertaking to confer on how their best interests might be accommodated.