INCREASED FARES

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 121, 26 May 1925, Page 11

INCREASED FARES

ON CHRISTCHURCH TRAMS

MOTOR COMPETITION BRINGS

DECREASED REVENUE.

(BY TELEGHArn.—PRESS ASSOCIATION:)

CHRISTCHURCH, 2511 v May.

Pealing with the finances of the Tramway Board, the chairman, to-day, .told the hoard . that the year ended 31st March last revealed a deficiency of £10,205 The reduction made last August in the price on one-section concessesion tickets resulted in an increase in passengers, but the net result of this lilt.l'l attempt to popularise tram travelling resulted in a net reduction in revenue of £253 pel- month. The hoard made a further attempt to improve the system by reducing ordinary seaside return tickets by 3d, and this also resulted in an increase in passengers, but with a decrease in. revenue of £252 per month. In other words, the increase in passengers in these experiments was not sufficient to overcome the reduction in the price of the tickets. The infantile paralysis epidemic also caused a reduction in traffic. In addition to the above causes of revenue reduction, there was one which affected all lines and for the whole year round. Ho referred to the competition of taxis and rnotor'buses plying for hire and also to the large increase in the use of private mo-tor-cars A reduction in the race revenue by £1278 was one indication of this. On the other hand, principally owing to the increase in wages by the Arbitration Court, the increased car mileage- run, and the increased age of the system, operating expenses had gone up-

The hoard decided upon an increase in fares, principally iv tho three-sec-tion rides, which have been increased by a halfpenny for adults and one penny for children. There is also an increase in the price of concession cards over long distances.