Archived Extracts

  The increased fares being charged on omnibuses serving the Sutton district formed the subject of a special meeting of the members of the Sutton Urban Council held on Tuesday evening, when the question of the proposed substitution of 'buses for trams was also discussed.
  Councillor A. Pepper (chairman), presided, and others present were Councillors T. Barnes, J.H. Brailsford, C.A. Morley, Dr. J. Young, A. Thompson, A. Walton, H.C. Wright, J. Wade, H.S. Shacklock, W. Limb, A. Spencer, J. Aked and J.E. Scott.
  The Clerk (Mr. Luther Pepper) explained that the meeting had been called on the requisition of four members of the Council, Messrs. A. Walton, A. Thompson, J.H. Brailsford and J. Aked, and which read as follows :- "We, the undersigned members of the Urban District Council, desire you to call a special Council meeting at your earliest convenience to discuss the problem of 'bus fares. It has come to our notice that the Tramway Company are appealing to the Traffic Commissioners on March 2nd for some kind of protection which, as we understand, would mean an extra rise in the fares. The Bus Owners' Association would like to send representatives to this meeting."

  Proceeding, the Clerk said he had also received a letter from the Mansfield and District Omnibus Owners' Association Secretary (Mr. R.H. Kerslake), which stated:-
  I respectfully beg to draw your attention to the fact that on March 2nd the applications for 'buses to replace trams will be brought before the Traffic Commissioners of the East Midland area, and the members of this Association ask for your co-operation with them in opposing any form of monopoly or protection on fares that will be asked for by the Tramways Company against the Independent operators in the district. As you are aware, there has been in the past a lot of bother over the traffic problem, and the time has now arrived when the whole issue is to be brought out and thrashed properly.
  The operators in the district earnestly ask for your support in stopping any form of monopoly or protection to the Tramways Company, as it is felt that only by the enterprise of the small operator has Mansfield and the surrounding suburbs attained the places that they now enjoy, and if the protection that the Tramways Company desire is given to them, it will mean that not only will the public be made to suffer, but the operators will be obliged to go into liquidation by this unfair protection.
  I am respectfully asking if you can call a meeting of your Council to discuss this matter at an early date, and also if representatives of this Association may be present to give you details of capital, etc., involved in this. Trusting that you will let me know if you Council can assist us in this more urgent matter.

  Mr. Wright moved that the deputation from the Association be received. Mr. Barnes seconded.
  Mr. Wade asked why, if the application was not to be heard until March 2nd, the fares had already been raised.
  Mr. Wright said the protection had, he thought, been granted.
  The Clerk said the application by the Tramway Company was to substitute 'buses for trams. In the applications of the Trent Motor Traction Co., Ltd., Pinxton 'Bus Co., E. Naylor and Sons, Ltd., and G. Swayne (Supreme Motor Coach Co.), in which the decisions were dated February 19th, 1932, the applications were granted subject to the special conditions that "the fare table is amended to give protection to the Mansfield District Traction Co." It appeared tha in all the applications which were being made to the Traffic Commissioners to run 'buses in this area they were enforcing that clause.
  Mr. Walton said he wanted Mr. Wade to be quite clear on the point he had raised. The public naturally thought the 'bus owners were fleecing the public but that was not so. The Traffic Commissioners insisted on the fares being charged, but the queer thing to him about it was that from Huthwaite to Portland Square, Sutton, the fare was twopence, but from Back Lane to Portland Square it was threepence. Then, again, if they were on a 'bus at Mason Street and were going as far as Fulwood they could travel for twopence, but if they journeyed to Portland Square the conductor could demand them paying an extra penny, which made it threepence. Apart from that, workpeople at the factories could not possibly afford to go home to dinner because there were no penny stages.

paragraphs extracted from a full paged discussion.

  Mr. Walton said he understood the Huthwaite Urban Council had passed a unanimous resolution to oppose the application by the Tramways Co.
  Mr. Barnes said he understood the Mansfield Tramways Co. had fixed a scale of charges, and if a fare was threepence presumably the other 'buses would have to charge 4.5d.
  The Clerk said he had received further communication on the subject. Mr. Wm. Brown wrote asking if he might be allowed to place the case of the workers at the C.W.S., Huthwaite, before the Council. Then Mr. G.G. Hancock, Sutton, wrote "a large and representative number of ratepayers in the town instruct me to sk for your approval in the furtherance of a resolution of protest relative to the increased fares no in operation upon the various 'buses plying for hire in the town.

  Further, Mr. Hancock, on behalf of employees of Messrs. Simpson, Wright and Lowe, of Huthwaite Road, Sutton, wrote informing the Council that at a meeting of the employees on February 15th, and which was representative of approximately one hundred employees who on four occasions per day used the 'buses, it was decided to ask the Council's consideration and support in the question of 'bus fares. The hope was expressed that cheaper travelling facilities would be secured, "thereby assisting to mitigate a most preposterous injustice to everyone who was compelled to use the various services in order to follow their daily employment."

.... The deputation then withdrew, and the Council next interviewed Mr. Brown, on behalf of the C.W.S. workers and Mr. G.G. Hancock for the workers at Messrs. Simpson, Wright and Lowe.
  Mr. Brown said the employees at the C.W.S. factory were grumbling about the raising of the fares, some 300 girls being affected. They travelled home for dinner and used to pay 2d., but not it cost 4., and this in 50 weeks made a total of £625. There was great inconvenience, and as the trams did not run to the times they would like that people could not avail themselves of these facilities. If the workers could not afford the extra fare it would mean that it would affect their health and he considered it was a very serious matter. He asked for the Council's support.

  Mr. Hancock supported Mr. Brown, and said there were 100 workers affected at Messrs. Simpson, Wright and Lowe's. Their further difficulties was that they were between two stages, and then again they could only obtain one workman's ticket for the morning, which meant they had to pay ordinary fares to get to work in the afternoon and return in the evening. Formerly they could obtain two distinct tickets to carry them four journeys. Prices had increased during the last two years 100 per cent.
  The proposal that the Council should meet the Mansfield and other authorities in a joint conference was agreed to, and the following were appointed delegates :- Messrs. Shacklock, Barnes, Walton and Brailsford. They were also given power to act in the matter of giving evidence at the enquiry on March 2nd.
  The Clerk was instructed to lodge the grounds of the Council's objection to the Tramway Company's application, and Dr. Young said he would like the system of penny fares suggested from Portland Square to various points.