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Council refused fares surcharged
Page 47
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ALLEGATIONS that Lancaster City Transport was substantially undercutting charges for private hire, in unfair competition with local coach operators, was made at a Manchester sitting of the North Western Traffic Commissioners last week.
Cross-examined, Thomas Knowles, general manager of Lancaster City Council Transport, denied that the private hire work was being subsidised, and said it produced a surplus towards fixed costs.
He refused to reveal full details of costings but said there was a fixed rate per mile, plus crew and other costs, and a margin of profit, each job being costed separately. In this, speed of travel was important.
Mr Knowles agreed that the bulk of the , private hire work was in competition with local coach operators. The undertaking had no vehicles used solely for this work, but it was mainly done by four semi-coaches, used 70 per cent of the time on stage carriage work.
The coach operators claimed that the undertaking could undercut because it had the advantages of rate support, local autho rity grants, bus grants and fuel rebate.
After discussion between the parties, the Commissioners were told that agreement had been reached for the applicant, in costing private hire, to use 26 pence per car mile as the basis for tenders.
Morecambe and Heysham Coach Operators' Association opposed the undertaking's application for fares increases on the grounds of unfair private hire competition.
In company with the Chamber of Trade and the Ratepayers' Association they also submitted that a proposed lp surcharge in Morecambe and Heysham during the holiciay season was unfair.
The Commissioners accepted the latter submission and although granting general fare increases, refused the Surcharge.
Mr Knowles said the application was a modest one, estimated to produce 08,000 in a full year, of which 00,000 would be from the surcharge.
When the last increase was granted, in November 1975, the undertaking was in a serious financial state and the Council had continued to conduct a massive review of the operations.