TRAFFIC TRANSFERENCE
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iCeighley AS A TYPICAL CASE.
KEIGHLEY was one of the pioneer districts in regard to passenger road transport, and the services are so highly organized that, on several occasions, during the hearing of the appeal of the railway companies for powers to run road services, figures relating to the Keighley district were produced showing the effect upon the railways of competitive services.
Two of the earliest road services in the north of England were commenced in the Keighley area and, curiously enough, one of these services, that of Messrs. E. Layeock and Sons, of Cowling, near Keighley, is still in active operation under the same management, but has developed considerably in recent times, although, up to a few years ago, only the original service from the village of Cowling to the railway station at Cross Hills was run. Today, Messrs. Laycock run a joint service with the Keighley Corporation and the Colne Corporation between Keighley and Coble.
The Pioneer Service—a Feeder for the Railways.
Messrs. Laycock's first service, which was one to supersede the horse buses of that day, was simply a feeder for the railways, and was commenced with a Milnes-Daimler single-deck bus in 1905. A few months afterwards another service was started from the next station on the line to the village of Silsden, and, although the cornpany promoting this service is not now in exist
ence, the service was continued more or less regularly until a few years ago, when it was extended to Keighley. Keighley station to Silsden station is only three miles, yet it was stated in the Parliament ary proceedings that the railway passengers on a section of line which it is confidently believed to be this one, had decreased from 18,736 to 1,534, and this in a period of only two years. Similar figures apply to all the local stations round Keighley and, compared with the state of affairs three or four years ago, Keighley station is deserted. Inconveniently placed stations and badly arranged train services have been superseded by I apicl and frequent motorbus services at all hours of the day. In one instance, there is a busy bus service to the village of Thwaites, run by the Keighley Corporation, and the terminus is actually on the bridge over the main line of the L.M.S. Railway, where the railway company has a station which had to be closed years before the war. The station platforms are still there, but the substantial stone-built offices have been converted into cottages.
Keighley Corporation commenced a service of motorbuses in 1908, but it was not a success and the vehicles were sold. The present era commenced in 1922. Up to that time, the corporation had equipped a number of routes with trolley-buses which acted as feeders for the trams, but
one route was so unsuccessful a private company, the Premier Transport Co., Ltd., of Keighley (now incorporated with the West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd.) took on the service with motor coaches and carried so many passengers that the corporation decided to scrap the trolley-buses on that particular route and purchased Leyland saloon buses. A similar state of affairs arose on another route and the corporation very quickly equipped the service with motorbuses.
The Corporation Discards its Tramways System.
In 1924, Keighley scrapped its tramways track and adopted trolleybuses, but, in view of subsequent events, the wisdom of the choice is to-day often questioned and, although a satisfactory service is being given on three routes by double-deck trolley-buses, it is generally believed that the adoption of motorbuses for the whole of the services would have been well advised. At the present time, the fleet of the Keighley Corporation consists of 30 vehicles and is being standardized on Leylands of various sizes. Four Leyland Titans are on order, and the department recently took delivery of one vehicle of this type.
Keighley has passed through all the stages of the transport war, and at one time there was scarcely a route which ran inside and outside the borough which was not covered by competing concerns. On the town routes, the corporation maintained a monopoly. There was the period of racing during which the
corporation p u r chased small, fast Guy vehicles and the Premier Transport Co. ran a fleet of s m a 11 14-seater S.P.A. vehicles, the latter obtained because they were the fastest vehicles to be got. In the early days all the buses had solid tyros, but competition quickly eliminated these and to-day almost every vehicle on service is of luxurious appearance both inside and out.
The Era of Cooperation.
To-day, the era of joint services appears to have been reached and, although rivalry has not been eliminated. the spirit of competition is not allowed to run to great lengths. The Premier Transport Co„ Ltd., was amalgamated with the West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd., and Keighley Brothers (Omnibuses) Ltd., although run under the old name, is now controlled by the West Yorkshire Co., so that competition was eliminated on the Keighley to Silsden route and on the extended route to Ilkley through Silstlen. Messrs. Blythe and Berwick, of Bradford, worked an unlicensed service from Keighley to Bradford, which has also been taken over by the West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd.
On the Keighley to Bradford route, the West Yorkshire Co. has had In operation for some time a 20-minute service, but, typical of the new facilities, arrangements are being made whereby a joint under
taking will shortly be conunenced with the West Yorkshire Co., the Bradford Corporation and the Keighley Corporation taking equal shares in maintaining a 12-minute service. This is on a route which follows the railway closely and for five-sixths of the distance follows the tramway track. A similar joint service has been in operation for some time between Keighley and Colne, with the vehicles provided by the Keighley Corporation, the Colne Corporation and Messrs. E. Laycock and Sons. A 20-minute service over this 15-mile route has been provided and this has undoubtedly been successful for one reason, that the journey of one hour by bus cannot be made in any time under an hour and a half by train.
The railways radiate in four directions from Keighley station, and in three directions passenger traffic has been very badly affected by buses. The other line has never paid on passenger receipts. Up the Worth Valley some of the railway stations are inconveniently placed for the villagers, whereas the bus services follow the roads which pass through the most populous centres. The Keighley Corporation and the West Yorkshire Co. serve Oakworth by one route, whilst the next railway station higher up the valley is more readily reached from the centre of Keighley by the buses of the Keighley Corporation to that village, and it was to serve that village primarily that the first Leyland Titan was purchased, so heavy is the traffic even when a six-minute service is provided at some parts of the day. Some of the short-distance services are of particular interest, as for instance, the West Yorkshire service to the village of Laycock, which has to be worked by small 14-seater buses because of the narrow street through Braithwaite.
Small Buses on Awkward Routes.
A small concern, Morton Buses, Ltd., runs a fleet of Cale and Dennis buses to Riddlesden, just over the borough boundary, and to the neighbouring village of Morton, a little farther on, but just off the main road to Bingley and Bradford. Here small vehicles are used because the village of Riddlesden can only be reached by crossing a swing bridge over the Leeds and Liverpool Canal upon which there is a weight limit. The Thwaites Brow service of the Keighley Corporation is maintained by Leyland Lionesses, although the gradients in both directions are one in six.
An Absence of Congestion.
Colne, Ilkley, Hebden Bridge and Halifax were formerly all very inconvenient places to reach by rail, but through services now provide rapid transport. The Hebden Bridge route is run jointly by Keighley Corporation and Todmorden Corporation, whilst the Yorkshire (Woollen District) Tramways Co. serves the Halifax to Keighley route. The West Yorkshire Co. runs to Skipton and the intermediate villages and the associated company of Keighley Brothers provides the connection with other 'West Yorkshire services at Ilkley. A new service from Keighley is run by the West Yorkshire Co. to Leeds, whilst its two-hourly services to Blackpool and Morecambe from Bradford embrace a stop for a few minutes at the stand at Keighley.
With so many vehicles in service, it would appear that there would be congestion in the streets, but this can scarcely he said to be the case. Traffic certainly moves very fast in the town, but the bus services are very orderly. All the privately owned services commence in Town Hall Square in a street which has practically no other traffic, and here the West Yorkshire Co. maintains a traffic inspector who controls the departure of the vehicles and is generally at the service of passengers carried by all concerns.