LONDON TRAFFIC POOL.

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17224, 6 October 1927, Page 10

LONDON TRAFFIC POOL.

TO SAVE TRAILS AND TUBES. PROBLEM OF THE 'BUSES. A sub-committee of the London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee has sent to the British Cabinet a scheme for the co-ordination of London passenger transport services. The scheme provides: Omnibuses, tramways, and tubes to be under a single control; Pooling of receipts; Joint management, with retention of the principle of private ownership. To enable the scheme to be carried into effect legislation will be required and further progress is therefore impossible until the Government has notified its readiness to present the necessary Bill to Parliament. At the present time the passenger transport services of London are provided by the omnibuses, underground railways, and tramways. The bulk of the omnibuses are controlled by the London General Omnibus Company, which also controls the Underground Railways. It \s the omnibuses from which the profits are derived, and by means of which the underground services are financed.

Wasteful Competition. In many parts of the metropolitan area, however, there is wasteful competition between these services and the tramways controlled by the London County Council and, in the outlying districts, in a few cases by independent concerns.

With all of these further competition also wasteful, has resulted from the advent on the streets of the independent omnibus services.

The facts of this position strongly impressed the London Traffic Committee during its public inquiries' into travel facilities in North and NorthEast, East, and South-East London. In East London particularly it was found that the further extension of underground railways could provide the only means of carrying to and from : their work Londoners who have taken |up residence in the many new rcsi- | dential towns which have sprung up jin Kent and Essex. The cost of such | construction would he very heavy, however, and the. earnings of the underground railways alone are not sufficient to enable them to undertake the necessary capital expenditure. Committee arid its Work. In arriving at the scheme which it lias submitted the committee has had informal consultation with all the interests concerned and there is, I gather, little doubt that these will be prepared to notify formally their readiness to come in when they have been informed that the Government is willing to promote the, required legislation. ■ The committee has been careful to preserve unimpaired the principle of private ownership, while recognising that the interests of the public must be Safeguarded against exploitation by a monopoly.

The scheme provides for the retention of ail three forms of transport service—omnibuses, tramways and underground railways. Provision is made for a common fund, pooling of receipts, and common management. The duties of the public control body would include both the safeguarding of fare scales and the programme of expansion and development which forms the main reason for introducing the scheme. This body would, however, take no part in the management, and it is proposed that this work should be carried out by the London Traffic Committee, thus overcoming the objections which would he raised to the creation of a special new body. * ... • V, thoeo

The committee in submitting these proposals, is convinced, I understand, that unless such steps are taken both tramways and underground railways will be driven out of business and the resultant congestion on the streets would shortly bring the life of London to a standstill. The scheme makes no provision for bringing in the suburban services of the main line railways, but I gather that these have been consulted and expressed their entire readiness to cooperate in providing satisfactory facilities.