OMNIBUS PASSES

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 155, 29 December 1936, Page 9

OMNIBUS PASSES

LONDON BOARD'S RULE

A London omnibus is no longer an

omnibus at all, in future it is just a plain bus, says the "Christian Science Monitor." ' -

The London Passenger Transport Board has officially adopted the shorter word in preference to the longer, coming to the rescue of harassed writers, who have never been quite sure whether a bus is technically an omnibus, a tram, a -tramcar, or a railway conveyance, a coach, a car, or a carriage with a new official list of standardised terms.

This list of terms has been approv- j ed by the board for immediate - adoption for publicity, public correspondence, and departmental purposes. The problem *of writing correctly about railway stock has been solved by the announcement that in future, for. purposes of publicity and correspondence, all railway stock is to be referred to with the term "car." For technical and departmental use the term car is to be used for a "multiple unit saloon," the term coach for a "multiple unit compartment," and the term carriage for "locomotivehauled railway stock." But these need not worry the ordinary Londoner. A driver is in future a driver, and not a motorman. Moving staircases have been officially named escalators. Buses and coaches return to their "garages" and trains, trams, and trolleybuses to their "depots." A power house is in future a generating station. TRIPS NO LONGER. The board has signified that no future reference should be made to trips. These are to be known under the more dignified title of journeys. Hours with little traffic, which used to be known as "non-rush hours" or "slack hours," are now merely Vnormal hours." Rush hours are peak hours. "Route" takes the place of "service" when referring to a group of buses sharing the same identification number or a sequence of roads over which a particular group of buses operates. Booking halls are now ticket halls. The word underground is to be used in preference to tube. ■ A tram is a tram, and no longer a tramcar or a tramway. Trolleybus is officially shown as a single word and not as two words, trolley bus. Similarly a stationmaster lis no longer in any circumstances a station master. But besides standardising many of the terms used in respect of London transport undertakings, the board has given a ruling to clear up the use of the plural or singular in verbs referring to the board.

In future "the plural is to be used in referring to the board," such as the board have, or the board state.

Our reporter is correct, however, in having written that the board "has" given a ruling, because the singular should be used, the board says, when the "undertaking only is inferred." Or at least he thinks he's right.