Onward from Turnham Green
Sir: Mr Giles Playfair (14 April) is mistaken if he thinks that London Transport is introducing auto- matic fare collection on to the Underground solely because it is 'obsessed with the problem of how to pay its way.' London Transport has been experi- menting with automatic equipment for the issue and collection of tickets for eventual application to the Underground as a whole because the present system is inefficient. An automatic system will not only prove a serious deterrent to fraudulent travel, and thereby increase the Board's revenue, but it will also, and this is equally important, bring about considerable economy in manpower, principally ticket collectors. Public services can easily be jeopardised by shortage of staff—ticket collectors and booking clerks are difficult to recruit and re- tain, and will probably always be so in London. It is not surprising, therefore, that London Trans- port should seek to reduce its dependence on the human element or that it should choose the issue and collection of tickets—a largely routine job—as an operation that can suitably be taken over by machines. An automatic fares system which saves money will, of course, contribute towards a more favourable financial position for London Trans- port; but it will not 'balance the books' by itself.
Such a ticket system as is envisaged for the Underground will necessarily involve some change in people's travel habits, but London Transport is confident, from the experiments that have been carried out, that it will be possible to devise arrangements so that the public will be able to use the system without serious inconvenience.
In the longer term, the automatic system should enable London Transport to provide a much better charging and ticket system, which will directly be.aefit passengers by enabling them to travel more easily and more cheaply than would be possible under a manual system.
F. E. Wilkins Chief Public Relations Officer, London Transport, 55 Broadway, London SW1
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