THE CITY TRAMWAYS

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue 59, 7 September 1914, Page 9

THE CITY TRAMWAYS

TO THI EDITOR. Sir, — I read the report of the meeting of the City Council of Thursday night in connection with the power supply, and desire to offer a few observations on the matter. I consider that the council has completely failed to appreciate the position. The point which underlies tho question is Hot whether tho lose to the tramways is to be this year £200 or more, but the principle that the power supply and the tramway undertaking should each, stand on its own basis and not be mixed up together. Mr. Richardson's report is a very able one, in that it carefully avoids the mam pomt — that the reduction, estimated at £1792 is to be. made at the expenses of the tramway revenue, or, rather, that all the profits made last year of £993 from the power sales are to be given away and a. further £800 taken out of the pockets of the tram users, h> the hope, as he expresses it, that "the lowering of the charge per unit to the public would stimulate the demand and give substantial benefit to the business people of the city.'" He further 6ays : "Next year, provided the war has not seriously affected trade, the natural increase should compensate to a substantial extent the present shrinkage of revenue." From this it seems that even Mr. Richardson has doubts as to whether the policy adopted will be successful. The figures> show that the natural increase hoped for in the report was last year a decrease of somu £104— roughly 10 per cent,, of the previous year' 3 revenue; but the report does not convey to the council any idea as to the degree to which the trade must bfc increased to compensate for the loss. Presumably our councillors have not adopted a policy of reduction without calculations having been placed before them ; and I feel that the report is a weak one, in that it does not give an indication of the growth anticipated. The report assumes that the charge per unit is lowered to the public. I maintain that the charge is not lowered to the "public," but only to those favoured few who desire to buy energy for power purposes. It is specious in that it states that the reduction would be a substantial benefit to the "business people" of the city. This is not so, as it is only a email but influential section of the business people who, being users of power, can benefit by the reduction. It does not bring into prominence that, in order to possibly benefit those favoured few, the profits from the tramwaysy earned for it by the travelling jjublic, are being speculated with under the certainty that any losses, even if they be temporary, are made good at tho expense of tho tramway "strap-hangers." — I am, etc., TRAM FAKE. sth September.