Phipps fill the gap
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VEST DUNBARTONSHIRE'S new look bus service began on ionday this week, despite last minute hitches before the cottish Traffic Commissioners, reports ALAN MILLAR.
Frank Phipps Motors, the lelensburgh garage business rhich is providing unsubsidised arvices in place of those abanoned by Garelochhead Coach ervices, has been granted hort-term licences for a iodified service pattern, and 3s applied for permission to run further developed network om later this year.
The new services — operated ith Greater Glasgow PTE Leynd Nationals pending cer'ication of Phipps' own coach
extend the Garelochhead .utes into Helensburgh's cKenzie housing estate, an .ea with many Royal Navy milies.
But additional midibus serces into parts of Upper .lensburgh must await a Traf: Commissioners' hearing next onth, as some residents have )jected, and the Commis)ners felt they had to draw a stinction between replaceent and new services.
This nearly threw the entire an into the melting pot again, as Phipps' plans centred on a complete package guaranteeing maximum vehicle utilisation, and it was only the Commissioners' agreement last Friday to grant permission to run to McKenzie which kept Phipps in the running.
For the time being, there will be no Sunday services in the area, as Phipps propose to operate a frying pan-shaped route via Upper Helensburgh, and the fleet could not be operated viably if this was cut back.
Phipps have bought eight coaches — two Bedford VAS 29-seaters for rural and housing estate work, four 53-seaters, and two 45-seaters — and was awaiting their clearance for one-man operation as we closed for Press this week.
There have been some minor problems with school journeys under the new route pattern, but Greater Glasgow PTE is smoothing these out with Strathclyde Region education officials, and says it is looking to see where it can use 1980 Transport Act provisions to extend the use of school buses without road service licences.
The public hearing into Phipps' plans will be held towards the end of next month, and looks like being one of the first in which the 1980 Act's proof of need criteria will apply. It will be up to Upper Helensburgh residents to prove that there is no need for the new services.