'No further PTA argument' says ClIr. Trotter
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• Mr Richard Marsh, Minister of Transport, has written to Clir. Neville Trotter, chairman of Newcastle upon Tyne traffic, highways and transport committee, welcoming an offer of co-operation in establishing the new Tyneside Passenger Transport Authority and making it work smoothly.
Cllr. Trotter, replying to a previous letter from the Minister (CM, October II, page 30), said:—
Thank you for your letter in which you advised me of the losses on the two rail passenger services in which the Tyneside PTA will be principally interested. The magnitude of the losses will certainly present the new Authority with a formidable challenge.
"Having regard to Newcastle's past opposition to certain aspects of the PTA proposals, it may be helpful for you to know that now that the Transport Bill has become law, we feel that no useful purpose would be served by further argument.
"Our efforts must now be directed to ensuring that the new Authority is established as smoothly as possible and to assisting it to improve public transport in the Tyneside area.
We have never opposed the setting up of the Authority but have doubted the wisdom of its taking over the operation of some of the bus services on Tyneside and the equity of recovering railway losses through the rates.
"Upon these two points my present views are inclined to be as follows: (0 At an early date the PTA should come to an agreement with the National Bus Company, as operators of the remaining Tyneside bus services, with a view to a single operating entity being established for the area.
(2) While initial improvements can probably be made to increase the attractiveness of the local rail services and to reduce their losses, the ultimate decision as to their future must wait for the findings of the Land'Useirransportation Study which are not likely to be available for two to three years.
"In these circumstances I would hope that the Authority will obtain substantial Ministerial grants in the interim so that Tyneside receives fair treatment compared with other areas of the country.
"I feel that the public good will best be served if all concerned with the PTA now work together in harmony, and as our arguments over the past few months have caused considerable public discussion, I think that it would be helpful if I were to release this letter to the press. Perhaps you could confirm that you have no objection to my doing so."
The Minister's reply reads:—
"Thank you for your letter of October 29. I welcome the co-operation you offer and I am quite sure it is very much in the public interest that all those concerned with the PTA should work together from now on. I expect to be able to establish the PTA next spring and I hope all the local people who are appointed to the Authority will approach their work in this co-operative spirit. If this is forthcoming. I believe that the Tyneside PTA can be a real success.
"On the arrangements for the bus services, it will be for the PTA itself to decide the policies to be adopted and then to negotiate with the National Bus Company. At first sight, your ideas seem worthwhile, and I fee! sure the National Bus Company will be very willing to give them serious consideration.
"On local rail services, the White Paper on Public Transport and Traffic proposed that the rate of grant on payments which PTAs make towards 'unremunerative railway services would be 90 per cent in the first year, and the new Act provides for payment of grant on a tapering basis in the following years, which should be of great assistance to the PTA. The results of the land use/transportation studies will obviously be very germane to these problems.
"I agree that it would be helpful to publish both your letters and this reply."