LTE now TUC intervenes
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• The TUC has stepped into the row about the future of London's public transport services with an announcement last Friday that it is pressing the Minister of Transport to subsidize the provision of such services. It is also urging the Greater London Council to drop its intention of obtaining a £2m a year profit from the operations of the new London Transport Executive.
In making this latter move the TUC has assumed (writes Derek Moses) that turning an operating loss (which in 1968 amounted to £1m) into the necessary profit can only be achieved by further rises in fares. However, Sir Richard Way, LTE chairman, is reported to have said that the Executive did not want to raise fares as it was entirely against its interest to do so.
Mr. Victor Feather, general secretary of the TUC, said that the GLC, London Transport and the Minister of Transport were "not prepared to take the necessary initiatives to counteract a spiralling decline in public transport and the growing use of private cars in Londoon which will accompany successive fare increases".
Also calling for Government subsidies to avoid fare increases, Mr. Peter Bessell, MP, and Liberal spokesman on transport, said that the Government had a duty to encourage the use of public transport.