BRITISH TRAINS

Hokitika Guardian, 30 September 1933, Page 6

BRITISH TRAINS

RAILWAY EXPERIMENT PENNY A MILE FARES / LONDON, September 20. The lour big railway companies decided early in the summer to make a dras.ic experiment in an endeavour to recapture the passenger trade from tlie motor-coaches. They reduced tlij rate of fares of return journeys to what was equivalent to one penny a mile, iustead of the standard rate of ltd a mile. The courage lias keen just.lied by results, and they have now announced that the reduction will remain in lone until the end of the year.

The new fares are being prolonged to the end of the year for tire benefit of those who arc taking late holidays, to provide for the Christmas holiday rush aial to ret ail the patronage of the railways’ newly-wn customers.

“The companies aio thoroughly satisfied with the success of the penny-a-mi lo policy, so far,” said a railway •official, “and are hoping that it will ko found to have justified itself in increased receipts, as well as an increased number of passengers. The future of penny-a-niile fares depends absolutely upon this issue.” The principle conditions governing the issue of “summer tickets” are: Availability on any day, by any train, •between any two stations in Great Britain with minimum fares of 4s first class and 2s 6cl third-class. The outward halvps are available for three days, and the return journey may be. made at any time within one calendar month. A break of journey in. either direction is permitted and in many oases there is a choice of alternative routes for the return ponrnev.

OTHER INNOVATIONS

Tlio Introduction of the “summer ticket” and the. extension now announced constitute the greatest step, ever taken by the railways to regainllveir business. It is the principle measure adopted in a year which has been unprecedented energy and ingenuity on the part of the companies to introduce facilities • likely to have a popular appeal.

Many of these innovations have involved the expenditure of considerable sums of money. Many luive produced i:n themselves, only small revenue. In the aggregate, however, they have ’teen amply justified. Among scores of recent improvements and additions to tlio railway services are the following:—Electrifications, wid-

enings, new stations, etc; “commercial travellers” to seek passenger traffic; unusual excursions, rambles, and train cruises; complete holiday arrangements, including hotel accomodation; (buffets and shops on trains; new and improved, rolling-stock; railroad and rail air joint working; .speeding up of many main-line expresses.

INCREASED RECEIPTS The-companies have found however, a definite tendency toward increased passenger receipts, and while the figures have tended to fluctuate somewhat as compared with the receipts of corresponding weeks last year, the different companies have found that in many weeks they have shown a materia] increase. The figures for May show an increase over the May of last year of nearly a million passengers carried at reduced rates, contrasted with a decrease of more than a million and a-half in the passengers carried at ordinary or .standard fares. And the decrease in the one kiiicl was not to any great extent due to the increase in the other kind. The period tickets by ordinary trains ■relieve the companies of tlio necessity of putting on the extra trains for the seven, 14 or 17 days’ excursions, which used to run in addition to the regular trains.