Operating Aspects of
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PASSENGER TRANSPORT
STAGGERED HOURS .SCHEME REJECTED
EMPLOYEES at the Buckton Vale .ILAWorks of the Calico Printers' Association have declined to adopt a scheme of staggered hours, whereby they could have had increased bus service facilities. This was reported to the S.E.M.D. Joint Transport and Electricity Board, last week. (S.H.M.D. covers the Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield districts . on the Cheshire-Lancs border.) Following complaints, from the employees of alleged inadequate transport, the Board met a deputation of the workers, and the transport manager offered double the present bus facilities if employees would adopt staggered hours—a proportion would start work half an hour earlier and would finish correspondingly sooner. A ballot was taken at the works, and the vote was
" against." The Board was disappointed at this rejection of a scheme that was quite feasible and which would have improved the situation for the employees.
BOLTON TO SPEND £83,750 ON BUSES.
THE tender of Messrs. Massey Brothers, of Wigan, for the supply of 50 double-deck bus bodies of composite construction has been accepted by Bolton Corporation. The corporation is to make application to the Ministry of Transport for sanction to borrow £83,750 to cover the cost of these buses, LEICESTER TO OPERATE OUTSIDE CITY BOUNDARY ? •
SUBjECT to the approval of the East-Midland Traffic Commissioners and Leicester City Council, a service to Leicester's principal " lung " is to be operated by Leicester City Transport Department.
The corporation's proposal is to purchase, for £12,902, the service operated by Mr. J. H. Hutton, of Anstey, from
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Leicester to old-world Newtown Linford. It serves the beautiful Bradgate Park, the popular week-end -and holiday resort of thousands of city dwellers. This will bring the city transport system once more into competition with the "Midland Red," and will be the first service to be operated by the corporation outside the city boundary.
. MAXIMUM FARE SCHEME NOT
APPROVED IN MANCHESTER. rrHE finance committee of Man chester City Council has decided against a proposal for a maximum fare of 6d. on buses and trams. " Several.' reasons have been adduced for this opposition, culminating in the eomment that the reduction of incdme would be such as to equal a 5d. rate over the whole city. The loss on the most outlying routes is computed at £100,100, and on others at 226,400. Hence the committee recommends the city council not to approve cheaper fares, which would:—
" Result in subsidizing people living outside Manchester; penalize workingclass residents in the inner districts, who would get no fare reduction, but would have to contribute, through the rates, to the cost; overcrowd the express buses with short-distance passengers, and result in a demand for reducing the present is.' .' travel-anywhere ' tickets." (These are available for a whole day, with unlimited facilities, on trams and buses.) The committee therefore recommends that, if there are to be any subsidies to housing-estate tenants, they should be granted through the housing or public-assistance departments, and not indirectly from the rates through the transport department, LEICESTER LOANS SANCTIONED.
SANCTION for the loans in connectiontion with the building of the bus station at Burley's Lane, and for the car park at Eldon Street, has been received from the Ministry of Transport by Leicester Watch Committee.
SENTINEL H.S.G. GAS BUS ON TRIAL
THE first Sentinel H.S.G. 32-seater, using producer gas as fuel, to gc into service is now on trial in South Wales. It was placed in operation, last Friday, by Merthyr Tydfil Corporation, and we understand that it is working on one of the stiffest routes.
This part of the country abounds in steep gradients and narrow streets, whilst the natureof the locality served necessitates an exceptional frequency
of stopping places. We hope to be able to report, in the near future, on the performance under such arduous conditions, of this new product of the Sentinel Waggon Works (1936), Ltd., 72-74, Victoria Street, London, S.W.1.
As we go to press, we learn that it is giving general satisfaction.
TROLLEYBUS DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA.
T"popularity of the trolleybus in South Africa is evidenced by the Fact that Capetown's new fleet of 60 Sunbeam-BT.H. six-wheelers, with Ransomes regenerative-rheostatic control, is now in service. The number of trolleybuses operated by the Capetovvn Tramways Companies is now over 100.
Johannesburg, where the first fleet, including 11 Sunbeam-B.T.H. fourwheeled double-deckers of the M.F.2 type, was put into service, in August, 1996, now has 38 double-deckers.
The first trolleybus route in Durban was inaugurated in February, 1935, with affect of 22 four-wheeled doubledeckers, 11 of which were of SunbeamB.T.H. manufacture. Last June, the Sunbeam concern received a repeat order for vehicles of the six-wheeled type, followed recently by another.
We understand that the SunbeamB.T.H. machines, now on order, are equipped with shunt-rheostatic braking, and an electrical coasting brake to limit the speed on severe hills. The bodies are of M-C-W allmetal construction.
S.M.T. MEN REJECT NEW WAGES OFFER
AN offer of increased wages and 10 days' holiday with pay, made by the Scottish. Motor Traction Co., Ltd., and its subsidiary companies, to 9,000 bus workers, was rejected by a delegate conference of the Transport and General Workers' Union, following a meeting, lasting nine hours, in Edinburgh last week. The cornpanies had offered wage increases amounting to a farthing an hour, at .least,.. for . all drivers and conductors, and a levellingup of wages in the northern areas of Scotland, which involved . an increase of id. per •hour on the existing scales. In addition, an offer of 10 days' holiday with pay was made, The deIegate,conference rejected the offer as inadequate. Mr. J. S. Cherry, of Carluke, presided. at the Conference . and, in addition to Mr: Harold Clay, National Passenger Group Secretary, there were 40 delegates present.
'In a statement after the conference, Mr. Clay said that the negotiations had been referred to the branches for the workers to consider whether the proposals should be accepted, or whether permission should be sought from the national executive of the Union to take a strike ballot.
It was decided to hold another delegate conference, in Edinburgh, after the position had been reviewed by all the branches of the Union in Scotland.
A FARES DISPUTE IN BRADFORD.
ell:POSING an application, by Bradk..../ford Corporation, before the Yorkshire Traffic Commissioners, at Harrogate last week, Mr. W. R. Hargrave, for Hebble Motor Services, Ltd., resolutely declined to admit the principle that, if the corporation put buses on the road in addition to, and not in place of trams, it should have the slightest claim to preferential treatment as to fares.
Seeking sanction for a new municipal bus service which would cater for certain housing estates in Bradford, the corporation proposed a fares table which included a penny fare, this being for the benefit of residents on housing estates who have been trans-, ferred from slum-clearance areas.
The Hebble concern agreed to this penny fare, but objected to the rest of the fares table, and to the routeing " of the service so that buses would leave the centre of the city by way of Morley Street. One of the Hebble company's services passed through the same neighbourhood although not entirely by the same route, said Mr. Hargrave, and Fares on this service were arranged to give protection to Bradford Corporation's tram service in the same direction. The Hebble company contended that the moment the corporation ran buses beyond the point up to which there was an agreed fare for residents of the housing estates, it should do so at fares the same as those which the company had to charge.
Mr. W. H. Leathern, Deputy Town Clerk of Bradford, submitted, for the corporation, that once the penny fare had been established, the remainder of the fares in the application were perfectly logical and reasonable.
Major F. S. Eastwood, Chairman of the Commissioners, recalled that, at a • previous hearing, the case was adjourned, and it was suggested that the corporation might agree upon a fares table. As that had not been done, the Commissioners themselves would fix the fares.
" ROYAL. BLUE' PROVIDES . IMPROVED SERVICES.
• D ECENT 'successful applications at
• I‘Exeter, by Royal Blue Express Services, will result in this operator providing improved . facilities. The
• principal alterations involve a new service from Exeter to_Dartinouth via Goodrington and Brixham, which. will ,-. connect, at Exeter, with Royal .Blue coacheS from Portenloirth, Southampton and Bournernbutle froth. London via Basingstoke, Salisbury and Yeovil,
• and with the AssOciated MOtonvays group of serviCes froin the Midlands. On the CiermVall Services the existing Exeter-Newquay routes will be extended to Perranporth with a deviation to include the towns of Camelford, Wadebrielge and St. Golumb. An extension to Weinbuey Point, on the Plymouth service, has also been au lhorized
SHANGHAI ORDERS 70-SEATER BUSES
Op considerable interest, in view of the need for developing our overseas-trade, is the production of a new six-wheeled double-deck-hue chassis by Transport Vehicles (Daimler), Ltd.
This will be powered by the C.O.G.5.-type oil engine, and several chassis are in production for the China General Omnibus Co., of Shanghai. The bodies will be built in China and will seat 70.
This order results from the test for some time under local conditions of a standard C.O,G.5. Daimler doubledeck bus.
The maker has now 'introduced Fluid Flywheel buses into 15 leading cities in Africa, India, Australia and New Zealand. A report from the Adelaide Tramways undertaking says that each of its buses of this make has covered some 100,000 miles without requiring overhaul, a record of which the manufacturers may well he proud.
DOUBLE-DECKERS REPLACE SINGLE-DECKERS AT BAILDON.
DTIRING peak periods on certain L./routes at Baildon, West Riding, the West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd., proposes to introduce double-decker buses for the single-deck vehicles now operated.