§ 20. Mr. Chapmanasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his practice to keep an index of long-distance coach prices; and if he will estimate the movement of the average prices of such journeys in the last two years.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe travelling public has benefited greatly from some spectacular reductions in prices on the principal long-distance coach routes since the deregulation of services in October 1980. For instance, the single fare to Manchester was £8 in the summer of 1980 and is now £4.50. I take a close interest in developments in long-distance coaching, but I do not think the value of a formal index of coach fares would outweigh the cost of compiling it.