" No Tourist Monopoly for Railways "
Page 47
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"1010ROTECT1NG the railways from 1 . the competition ,of road travel will, contrary to the interests both of tourism and of transport as a whole, restrict the free development of motor coach lines. Instead of following such a policy in the hope of retaining the hulk of traffic for the railways, it would be better to assist in creating a wider market which would enable all forms of surface travel to develop simultaneously."
This is stated in " Tourism "in Europe," published by the Organization for European Economic Co-operation, 2 Rue Andre-Pascal, Paris, 16, France.
"From certain studies it can be reckoned that international road trans
port in Europe increased by 20 per cent. from 1950 to 1955 and that in 15 years it will have trebled as compared with 1954. On the whole, however, it has not been given the encouragement it deserves," says the publication.
There were many restrictions on coach services which added to the difficulties of tours operators and travel agencies in providing facilities for longdistance tours in Europe.
"Although inclusive tours by motor coach cater for Americans and tourists from other continents as well as for European visitors in Europe, there is still no Iting-distance international bus service by road in Europe at all comparable with the facilities offered in America. While the technical means are available for the operation of such a service at a low price. the European countries have taken insufficient measures to encourage such a development.
"The importance of road transpor; services, however, cannot be neglected. Approximately 50 per cent. of international tourism in Europe is carried by road to the exclusion of other forms of transport, and the users of rail transport almost inevitably use other forms to some extent. Increasing road traffic will necessitate greater investment in road building and improvement which could open up new areas in Europe for tourism.
"Greater measures of co-operation between forms of transport to provide co-ordination of services would seem advisable. Greater freedom for the expansion of road transport would also seem necessary."
A policy of staggering or extending the holiday season must be instituted if the tourist industry were to meet growing demands. This implied the making of agreements with the transport industry and other bodies concerned with tourism.