TOUR MINIMUM UP BY £11 OBJECTORS QUIT
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-pp IBBLE MOTOR SERVICES Ltd., applied to the North Western 171h. Traffic Commisioners in Manchester on Tuesday for an extended tours licence for a seven-or-eight-day tour to Swanage and the Dorset coast to be operated between April and October and the month of December, commencing in 1969. A Dorset coast and Devon tour would be surrendered.
Applications for tours to Weston-superMare, Cheddar and to Minehead and the Somerset coast were withdrawn. There were four objectors to the main application but during the inquiry agreement was reached when Ribble agreed to a £25 minimum charge for the tour. The objectors withdrew and the licence was granted.
Before agreement was reached Mr. F. D. Walker, for Ribble, said passenger carryings in 1967 had declined from 4,000 to 3,400 and the company felt that the figure had been affected not only by the economic recession but by the lack of holiday variation over the years. None of the objectors had Swanage on their licences and Hutchinson Tours (Manchester) Ltd., which alone served this town, had not objected to the application, he said.
The inclusive charge sought for the seven-day tour was £14 to £35 and for the eight-day tour, £15 10s—£37 10s. Then Mr. G. Dawes, Ribble licensing officer, said to save time he would agree to a £25 minimum but was not prepared to go higher.
Objecting for W. Robinson and Sons (Gt. Harwood) Ltd., Mr. J. A. Backhouse contended that Ribble had always operated a more luxurious type of progressive tour and now was seeking to enter the cheaper type of fantail tour. He suggested Ribble should be restricted to a £29 minimum in the high season.
Mr. Dawes said that only 243 passengers had travelled on the Dorset coast tour in 1967 between May and September when a 32-seater coach had been operated. On the new tour Ribble was considering introducing 41-seaters.
Ribble Motor Services and West Yorkshire Road Car Co. Ltd. also agreed to withdraw their objection to an application by Smiths Tours (Wigan) Ltd., for tours to Scarborough and Swanage. The Commissioners granted a four-day tour in place of a two-day one and seven-day in place of a five-day tour to Scarborough. Seven-and eight-day tours to Swanage will now replace Smiths' Newquayillfracombe tour. As the price range was between £9 and £23 the Commissioners agreed that there would be no competition with the tour granted earlier to Ribble.