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News of the Week

HARVEST WORKERS MAY RIDE IN GOODS VEHICLES

HARVEST workers will be allowed to travel" for 'payment in goods vehicles under an Order made by the

Minister of Transport with the object of easing the problems of transport in agriculture. The Order becomes effective on June 19 and will remain in force until November 30 next.

Existing insurance policies of goods vehicles normally cover the legal liability of the owner and driver

towards passengers who are being carried by reason of, or in pursuance of, a contract of ethplbyment; provided that the vehicleis not being used -for the oartiage• of passengers for hire or reward.

As Vehicles may be uSed for the carriage . of. passengers for hire or reward and some farm Workers may not

be under contract of emplOyment, the haulier should protec(birnself hY Cover

Mg his liability. Cover will normally be available at rates of jOs..per.vehicle for a period not exceeding twonionths, plus 5s. per vehicle per , month thereafter.

This concession does not apply to the arriage of hop-pickers, and insurance of yehtCles used tor this purpose should be.eclealt: svithby -individual application to the -appropriate insurance office.

DRIVING LICENCE REGULATIONS ISSUED

THE Minister of Transport has recently issued. the Motor Vehicles Driving Licerices) Regulations, 1947, iated May 13.. They revoke the eighth schedule to the regulations without prejudice to the validity of anything done thereunder. They deal with applications for licences; diseases and disabilities which will prevent the issue of a licence; driving tests and who may conduct them; fees for tests and all other

information relative to the obtaining of • a driving licence.

The schedule which is revoked contained provisi9,nal regulations issued during and afte the recent war, and the new regulations consolidate them without amendment. They are contained in Statutory Rules and Orders, 1947, No. 925, issued at 3d. net and obtainable from H.M. Stationery Office, or through any bookseller. 123 VEHICLES IN LONDON PROTEST PARADE

E.ORTY-SEVEN companks 'proiiided 1 123 vehicles to take part in the antinationalization: parade .staged by the RoadHaulage Association in the WeSt End of London last Saturday. The procession of vehicles followed a column of members of the Housewives League, who were marching in protest against the food and fuel position.

Some of the vehicles carried model guillotines to stress the inadequate attention given to the Transport Bill in the House of Commons. More than 100slogan posters, measuring 8 ft, by 3 ft., were displayed, and some of the vehicles bore loads representative of the work undertaken by road transport. • The police were most helpful in-the organization of the parade, which followed a meeting of the. Housewives League at the 'Albert Hall the previthrs evening. As reported in the daily Press, the meeting was marked by disturbances, and the police were ,called _in; consequently, little was heard of the nationalization of transport.

CONCESSION FOR TYRES OF LAND TRACTORS

DRAF. T regulations cOnceming the construction and use of land tractors are to be issued by the Minister of Transport as an amendment to permit, as a temporary and emergency measure, the use on roads of certainland . tractors, although the tyres of the steered wheels where they touch the road are less than 21 ins. in width.

The requirements that they should not be less than 2i ins. wide-and smooth soled ceases to apply to such Motor tractors registered on or before June 1,

1948. • 2,000,000 CIGARETTES STOLEN FROM LORRY •

LAST week about 2,000,000 cigarettes, valued at £22,400 at manufacturer's price, were stolen from a vehicle belonging to Archbolds (Freightage), Ltd., Leeds. The lorry was driven away from a cafe near Peterborough, in the small hours of the morning, and was later found on a by-road about two miles away. The cigarettes had been stolen, but the precision instruments that comprised the remainder of the load, were not touched.

Mr. D. K. Archbold has suggested to a correspondent of " The Commereial Motor" that vehicles engaged on night trunk services should travel in convoys, with guards supplied by the Corps of Commissionaires to watch vehicles while they were parked during halts. In future, -Archbolds (Freightage), Ltd., will send mates on lorries carrying tobacco.

TRANSPORT FOR FARMERS

ALIST of agricultural and horse shows to be held this year has been issued, in book form, by the four mainline railways. The book also contains a great deal of information on the conditions and cost of transport of livestock, horses and other agricultural loads.

GAS HEATING TO ACCELERATE PRODUCTION

POSTPONED from February because of the fuel shortage, the "Infra-Red Heating by Gas" Exhibition will be held at Gas Industry House 1, Grosvenor Place, London, S.W.1. 'from June 19July 31, The exhibition will illustrate the use of radiant heating by gas to reduce processing time in the production of many types of article, Radiant heat

is already being used to speed up the drying of paint in bus-bodybuilding shops.

FINE MAINTENANCE MANUAL

USERS of Thornycroft Sturdy chassis, types ZE/ER4 and ZE/TR6, have been provided by the maker, John I. Thornycroft and Co., Ltd., Basingstoke, with an excellent maintenance manual. It is divided into three parts. An illustrated description of the special tools supplied bv the maker for servicing

Sturdy machines forms Part 1. Part 2 deals with the petrol chassis, ZE/ER4, and Part 3 with the oil-engined machine.

Each part, dealing with chassis, is secLionized, and rapid reference is possible to any chassis component. The illustrations, which are numerous, are splendidly reproduced.

The manual is of the loose-leaf type and well bound. Copies are available from the vehicle maker, price El is.

EWER TO OFFER SHARES TO PUBLIC

TOWARDS the end of June, George Ewer and Co., Ltd., one of the largest independent coach operators in the country, will make available, through the usual Stock Exchange chan

nels, about 20 per cent, of its share capital. The existing capital of £50,000 has been split into ls. shares.

Accvling to the prospectus, a large part of the profits has for many" years been ploughed back into the business, which was first established in 1885. Apart from its large network -of coach services, the company also runs a shortdistance haulage business. Before the war, 83 coaches and 25 lorries were operated. Many post-war vehicles have been received and others are awaited. • SCHEME FOR PRODUCING PETROL FROM NATURAL GASES

PRESIDENT of the Standard Oil Development Co., of U.S.A., Mt, R. P. Russell, D.Sc., last week outlined a scheme whereby motor spirit would be made synthetically from natural gas at a price which would make it competitive with motor fuel from oil. He was speaking under the auspices of the Institute of Petroleum.

The oil industry, be said, to meet the twofold demand for a greater yield of better-quality petrol, had turned to processes for the catalytic cracking of gas-oils and the fluid catalytic process represented 8 per cent. of all catalytic cracking capacity outside Russia.

It was estimated that a hydrocarbon synthetic plant to make about 380,000 tons of petrol and 40,000 tons of gasoil per year from natural gas, would cost about £7,600,000. The plant would also produce about 39,000 tons per year of organic chemicals.

If these chemicals were valued at the same rate as petrol, and natural gas was charged at 3d. per 1,000 cubic ft., petrol could be made at 3.9d. per gallon. Petrol of the same high quality, made from crude petroleum, at to-day's crude prices in the United States, costs about 6d. per gallon. If coal were used as raw material instead of natural gas, the capital cost of the plant would be approximately double.

LONDON APPEALS NEXT WEEK THE Appeal Tribunal returns to I London hearings next week and will sit at Halifax House, Strand. W.C.2, on June 17-18, at 10,30 am.

On the first day the appellants will be Mr. W. S. Hunt, Ben Stanley,Ltd., P.H.R. Carriers, Ltd.. and Hay's Wharf Cartage Co.' Ltd., against a grant to Mr. J T. Quirk by the Metropolitan Licensing Authority: On June 18 the Tribunal will hear an appeal by 'Mr. W. I'Lawson against a decision of the Yorkshire Deputy Licensing Authority, the L.N.E. and L.M.S. Railway -Companies will be respondents

TYNE VEHICLE TUNNEL TO BE STARTED IN 19497

A LTHOUGH the Minister of Transr-Iport last week cut the first sod on the Tyne tunnel project, work on the vehicti-• tar tunnel is unlikely to be started for at least two years. Two separate tunnels are to be built for pedestrians and cyclists, and these will be completed before the vehicle tunnel is begun. The tunnels for pedestrians and cyclists will

take about two years to construct. ,

The 'main tunnel will carry a 22-ft. roadway and will be approached by dual carriageway roads about four miles long. ' Direct communication between Jarrow and Howden will be opened up and economic development will be accelerated in an area which, before the war, had a population of 1450,000. • Seventy-five per cent. of the estimated cost of £3,600,000 will be paid by the Ministry of Transport.

ACTION WANTED—NOT WORDS

I NSTEAD of spending money on road

safety propaganda, if would be better to devote it to the removal of danger spots, suggested Mr. Rees Jeffreys, chairman of the Roads Improvement Association, at the 60th annual general meeting last week.

He declared that road policy was controlled by the Treasury, which was not sympathetic towards road interests. The Cabinet had adopted the Treasury view, and the Cabinet was supported by Parliament. Similarly, he said, the public was not interested in the roads, otherwise it would have insisted that thel, should be made safe.

FREE ADVICE ON SAVLNG SOLID FUEL TN the endeavour to save solid fuel, the i Ministry of Fuel and Power has for some time been offering the free services of engineers and stoker-demonstrators of practical experience to any concern, large or small. These men are prepared to advise on the means for obtaining maximum output with minimum consumption. They have already paid 70,000 visits and have assisted industry in saving some millions of tons of coa' per year.

NEW WORKS FOR GLACIER

ON Jun 16, a new factory at Kilmarnock—the first to be completed on an individual site, since the war, by the Scottish Industrial Estates Co.—will be opened by the Glacier Metal Co., Ltd. It covers 45,000 sq. ft. and will employ about 600 workers.

As a war-time expedient, two factories—one at Ayr and the other at Kilmarnock—were established by the Glacig concern. The Ayt business, now being Used as a service depot, will eventually be incorporated in the Kilmarnock organization. IN A LINE OR TWO One of our small advertisements is for a chief engineer for a Devon bus company.

More than 70,000 road signs have been erected by the R.A.C. at the Club's expense.

Grace and Sutcliffe, Ltd., commercialvehicle specialist at Keighley since 1900. has opened a branch depot at Thornbury Garage, Leeds Road, Bradford.

The Board of Trade announces that the Plastics Material Section of the Rate Materials Department has been removed to Horseferry House, Horseferry Road, London, S.W.I.

A prize of £100 was won in a Concours d'Elegance, held at Measham last week, by Mr. W. T. Wright, of Amesbury, Wiltshire, who entered a Lincoln Zephyr utility in the class for the best commercial vehicle.

HAND PRIMER TO ASSIST STARTING

TIE introduction of a finely atomized SIpray of fuel into the induction manifold will usually prove of assistance in starting' up an engine which is normally obstinate. A recent addition to the range of specialities produced by the Hymatic Engineering Co., Ltd.. Redditch, Worcestershire, is a priming pump, the purpose of which is to inject a quantity of fuel; in a finely divided form, direct on to the inlet valves, or into the inlet port.

The device is quite simple to install. as the use of a Simplifix union fitting eliminates all soldered connections. It costs £2 8s., and we understand that immediate delivery can be given. NEW VAN CARRIES 750 DINNERS

FIFTY vans are being put into service by the London County Council for carrying dinners from cooking depots to schools which do not have kitchens of their own. Hitherto, this work has been done by former Civil Defence lorries and converted ambulances, which were not specifically designed for the purpose.

All the vans are of an identical type, being based on a standard Morris-Commercial 30-cwt. chassis. The bodywork was designed by officials of the L.C.C. Meals Service, in collaboration with the council's transport officers, and the adaptation of all the vehicles is being carried out at the L.C.C. repair depot at Battersea.

Each van is required to transport 750 school dinners, comprising two courses. From experience gained in London, it has been found that 750 dinners form a normal economic load. Fifty-five insulated containers are necessary to hold the food and occupy 80 sq. ft. of floor space.

There is a deep raised platform at the front of the van, with shelving continued on each side to the rear. Ample gangway space is available for loading and unloading.

Aluminium panelling on ash framing has been used throughout. At the rear and on each side aluminium roller shutters are fitted. Interior lighting is provided at four points, and on the body sides glazed advertising panels are fixed.

Having regard to the projected expansion of the school-meals scheme all over the country, other local education authorities are taking a great interest in this transport enterprise of the L.C.C. BIG PISTON RING MERGER?

A NEW company, Associated Engineering Holdings, Ltd., proposes to acquire the capital of the British Piston Ring Co. Ltd., Hepworth and Grand age, Ltd., and Wellworthy Piston Rings, Ltd. Provisional agreement has been reached between the various parties. It is proposed that each of the three operating companies should nominate three directors to the board of Asso

elated Engineering Holdings, Ltd. The first directors nominated are: Messrs, A. H. Jarrard, V. W. Oubridge and A. W. Blunt (British Piston Ring Co., Ltd.); G. R. Hall Caine, W. Hepworth and E. Hepworth (Hepworth and Grandage, Ltd.), and .1. W. Howlett, G. Fisher and A. J. Woolcott (Wellworthy Piston Rings, Ltd.).

GRANTHAM TRACTORS AGAIN A GRICULTUR AL tractors are to be ri produced in factories Nos. 2, 3 and 4 by the purchasers of the assets of Grantham Productions, Ltd., Grantham. The Board of Trade has agreed to this arrangement. The former Grantham concern initiated the manufacture of t ractors.

N.S.W. WILL HAVE 1,000 BRITISH BUS CHASSIS

TWO important Australian transport officials, Mr. A. A. Shoebridge, assistant commissioner, of the New South Wales Department of Road Transport and Tramways, and Mr. S. B. Berry, of the same department, are studying London's transport system and ,investigating progress with orders for

British bus chassis. The department runs the buses, trams and trolleybuses of Sydney and Newcastle.

In Sydney, the number of passengers since 1939 has risen from 3,800,000 a year to 5,600,000. To deal with its traffic problems, New South Wales is making extensive purchases of British buses. In the past two years 445 chassis have been ordered, of which deliveries are in progress, and negotiations are proceeding for 300 more chassis.

Further orders to be placed in the near future will increase to 1,000 the total number of British bus chassis bought by New South Wales.

SOUTH AFRICAN EXPANSION HINDERED

' THE big expansion programme of the South African Railways' road motor passenger service is being retarded because of difficulty in obtaining vehicles, according to the road transport officer at Durban.

He said that 113 complete 41-seater luxury buses had been ordered from Canada, and that orders would shortly be placed in the United Kingdom for an additional 200 bus chassis. The first 13 Canadian buses were expected in the Union in August. The remaining 100 would start to arrive in -March next year. Three buses from the United Kingdom were expected in June. The railways' bodybuilding programme was well under way at Johannesburg, and it was expected that by the time the chassis arrived all the bodies would be completed.

UNION IN STATION DISPUTE THE Transport and General Workers' Union, representing employees of Halifax Passenger Transport Department, has protested to the corporation at the delay in the provision of a bus station in the town, and has supported the proposal-twice rejected by the council-for the provision of bus stands in the now-widened George Street, pending the'construction of a station. The cost of adapting GeorgeStreet for the purpose would, it is said, be £16,000.

REGENT MARK III STABILIZER IT should be noted that the A.E.C.

stabilizer, as fitted to the Regent Mark III double-decker chassis (described in "The Commercial Motor" dated May 30) is provisionally protected, the application numbers being 13941,46 and 37047'46. HIGH WAGES SMOOTH OUT STAFF PROBLEMS

ACCORDING to Alderman Hodgkin. rt son, Coventry Corporation is in the fortunate position of having been able to attract more than 300 men to the passenger transport undertaking. Staff difficulties have apparently been overcome by offering high rates of wages.

At a meeting of Coventry City Council last week the following comparisons in wages were made:-CovEr.rritv: For fitters, £6 17s. Id.; drivers, £5 14s. 6d. to £5 17s. fid.; conductors, L5 9s. to £5 12s. BIRMINGHAM: Fitters, £6 115. 3d.; drivers, £4 19s. 6d. to £5 1 Is. 6d.; conductors, £4 13s. to £5 4s. LEICESTER: Fitters, £5 . 16s.; drivers £4 18s. to £5; conductors, £4 15s. 6d. to £4 18s. WOLVERHAMPTON: Fitters, £6 5s. 10d.; drivers, £4 17s. 2d. to £5 Os. 10d.conductors, £4 13s. id, to £4 15s. 10d.

It was stated that Coventry's cost per bus-mile of 19.568d, compared with 19.31d. in Birmingham, 19.6d. in Leices.

• ter, and 18.16d. in Wolverhampton. Coventry charged a Id. fare for 0.77 mile, whereas Birmingham, Wolver hampton and Leicester adopted a lid minimum.

At the meeting, certain Labour councillors criticised the absence of a depreciation account from the financial statement. It was stated that although renewals of vehicles would cost £372,000, only £179,000 was available to pay for them. The municipal transport under. taking is free from debt.

LOOKING INTO THE PAST

AN exceptionally substantial rear-view mirror has been specially designed for public-service vehicles by Desmo, Ltd., Scholefield Street, Nechells, Birmingham, 7. It is also suitable for any heavy goods vehicle.

Known as the Desmo No. 74 mirror, it has a simple but stout bracket, providing a universal action, whilst the mirror case itself is waterproof. The overall size of the case is 9 ins. by 5R ins., and the reflecting surface, which is convex, to give a greater field of vision, measures 8 ins, by 41 ins. Retail price is 37s. 6d., plus a purchase tax of 9s. 5d.

BOLTON TO SPEND £900,000

BOLTON Transport Department is budgeting for a capital expenditure of £494,860 next year and £410,600 the year after. In 1948-49 the transport department plans to spend £197,000 on buses and £200,000 on a new garage. In the following year £374,000 will be allocated for the purchase of trolleybuses.

200 FOR MANCHESTER WITH an order for 100 bus chassis VV already in hand, Leyland Motors, Ltd., has received a further contract for 100 double-decker chassis from Manchester Corporation. One hundred of. the buses will have 125 b.h.p. oil engines and synchromesh gearboxes, and 150 will be 8 ft. wide.

The only objection to Bradford Cor= poration's proposals to increase fares is by Shipley Urban District Council. The Ministry of Transport inquiry will be held to-day (June 13).