SOME CURIOUS OLD PRACTICES AND THEIR RELEVANCE TO EQUILIBRIUM IN BUS COMPETITION.

SOME BAD PRACTICES OF DRIVERS BEFORE 1933 (CRAWLING, MISSING OUT SOME STOPS, TURNING A BUS WHEN EMPTY AND SENDING IT BACK IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION) ARE SHOWN TO BE NOT INCONSISTENT WITH EQUILIBRIUM. OTHERS (PASSING OR OVERTAKING, TAILING, CHASING, HEAD RUNNING) ARE ADEQUATELY CONTROLLED UNDER THE 1985 TRANSPORT ACT. PREDATORY PRICING CAN, IF LET TO HAPPEN, THWART THE OBJECT OF DEREGULATION. THE PAPER TESTS THE ABOVE HYPOTHESES IN SIX SETS OF CIRCUMSTANCES AND CONSIDERS THE RELEVANCE OF THE LITERATURE ON COMPETITIVE EQUILIBRIUM FOR TESTING THE HYPOTHESES, AND IN PARTICULAR FOR DETERMINING ON WHAT ASSUMPTIONS EQUILIBRIUM MIGHT BE REACHED. ONE SECTION DISCUSSES HOW A ROUTE TIMETABLE MIGHT BE BUILT UNDER COMPETITION, ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT DEMAND IS PREDICTABLE. LASTLY, THE CONSQUENCES OF ASSUMING STOCHASTING DEMAND AND CONGESTION ARE EXAMINED.