Leicester to Cut Fares : New Increase at Birmingham
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)ASSENGERS on Leicester City Council's buses will benefit by an .timated £18,000 a year if the East lidland Licensing Authority approves ie corporation's application to reduce ires. Leicester's transport undertakig for the second year in succession lade a prqfit of £30,000 last year.
Cllr. S. W. Bridges, chairman of the ansport committee, told a council ieeting last week that their aim was to :duce the cost of transport for people ho had been, and were being, moved
housing estates on the city outskirts rid to simplify the fares scale to assist mductors. That, in its turn, he tainted, could have advantage in 311ecting additional revenue which, nder peak conditions, might go ncollected.
Birmingham Corporation bus fares re to be increased for the third time in nee years on September 13. This ecision of the West Midland Licensing kuthority means that the number of tages for the 3d. and 441. ordinary fares rill be reduced, and that certain worknen's fares will be increased by Id. and d.
Rejecting the application to curtail ertain services, the Authority said that,
approved, it would mean a "sharp nd disproportionate increase in some ares which could not be justified."
Increases in fares have been recommended by the Darlington Transport Committee following a report on the undertaking's financial position. It is suggested that fares ranging from 20. to 4d. on certain stages be increased by 0.
The case for cutting Belfast's bus fares was argued before the Northern Ireland Transport Tribunal, last week, when the Northern Ireland Labour Party and the Belfast Trades Council applied for a revision of fares on the corporation's transport undertaking.
Mr. S. Napier, who appeared for the Labour Party, suggested that the corporation's policy in continuing the development of trolleyb us services might have something to do with the present charges, which, he thought, were unreasonable. He also submitted that another factor was lack of co-operation by the city transport system with the Ulster Transport Authority.
The general manager of the municipal transport department, Mr. J. Mackie, said that there was a fall of 42m. passengers last year, The corporation was against increasing fares, he said, but if the current application for a rise in transport employees' wages were granted, it might mean an extra cost to the undertaking of between £75,000 and £125,000 a year.