Correspondece with the Public
| Date | 01 July 1936 |
| Author | Ashton Davies |
| Published date | 01 July 1936 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9299.1936.tb02437.x |
Correspondence with the
Public
By
ASHTON
DAVIES,
0.B
.E.,
M.Inst
.T.
CGef
Cmmercial
Masiqer,
London
Midland
and
Scottish
Railway
[Paper
to
be discussed
at
Ge Summer Conference, Oxford,
July,
19361
N
approaching the subject of this paper the question obviously arises
as to what is to be understood by the expression
"
the Public."
The activities of a railway company are
of
course manifold, but
it
is on the transportation side that
its
dealings with external interests
are most in evidence and from this standpoint the
"
public
"
falls
under
two
broad headings
:
-
(I]
The commercial house
or
undertaking with whom business
is
regularly done in the supply
of
transportation, whether
for
freight
or
passenger
train
traffic.
(2)
The passenger, whether regarded individually
or
as
a
member
of
a
party, who travels more or less regularly in pursuit
of
either business or pleasure.
While
the
former category is in a sense known and identifiable as
a result
of
the ordinary and regular course
of
business contact, the
latter
is
limited only by the bounds of the populace, and therefore
presents problems in the matter
of
relationship which are not present,
at
any
rate in anything like the same degree, in the
first
instance.
From the angle of our subject, therefore, a railway cumpany par-
takes
of
the nature both of a public service undertaking and a com-
mercial house with a more or
less
regular clientele, and while the
underlying principles must in essence be the same, their practical
application gives
rise
to
points
of
difference,
a
proper recognitiun
of
which can do much towards
the
promotion of a better understanding
with
those
whom we serve, whatever their requirements
or
station
in life.
From
the railway standpoint, correspondence with the public has
several outstanding features. It is immense in volume, diverse in
character, and at the same time widely diffused. The
L.M.S.
Com-
pany,
for
example, with a clerical staff exceeding
30,000,
has over
2,000
passenger stations and nearly
3,000
goods stations, apart from
head and regional offices, all
of
which are in correspondence with
the
public in greater
or
less degree. There is, of course, an even greater
volume of domestic correspondence, but this
does
not come within
the
scope
of
our
subject.
268
I
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