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Britain's First Mini-bus Stage Service?
Page 46
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WHAT was said to be Britain's first mini-bus stage carriage service was authorized at Northampton on Monday when the East Midlands Traffic Commissioners granted one of five applications by Lion Services (Northampton) Ltd.
The company will operate a timetabled service from Monday to Friday with mini-buses from a corporation bus stop in Derogate, near the centre of Northampton, to Nunn Mills Lane on the outskirts of the town. It will cater for workers at a large cosrnestics factory.
Lion service's four major applications were for stage carriage licences to operate mini-buses on four rural circular routes starting and finishing at Northampton. These were refused after a hearing which began in January and lasted altogether three and a half days.
The chairman of the Commissioners, Mr. C. R. Hodgson, described the application as " a lovely idea" in theory, but added that in practice, costing had shown that it would not be run economically.
The four applications were opposed by the United Counties Omnibus Co. Ltd., the major operators in the area covered by the proposed routes, and by Midland Red, one of whose services was also affected.
General manager of United Counties, Mr. J. T. E. Robinson, said that the company was losing money on some country services and if any traffic was taken from them, as would happen if the applications were granted, the company would have to withdraw some of these services.
"The evidence given by Mr. Robinson was devastating ", commented Mr. Hodgson, "and he demolished every point made by the applicants. If we were to grant applications like these it is quite clear that companies such as United Counties would have to hand in their licences."