From Our Australian Correspondent.
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Extras and Back Charges.
I recently had the pleasure of a drive in a FIAT. taxicab fitted with a roomy limousine body, and at the same time of a fairly-long chat with the driver. As there were five of us travelling in the vehicle, I managed to get up beside the man at the wheel, and by the way he drove from the commencement I came to the conclusion that he must at least have a substantial interest in the car. My surmise proved correct, as he informed me that he was the owner of it, which led me to seize the opportunity of discussing the Sydney cab trade with him. If he had a grievance at all, it was with respect to registering extras and back mileage. It appears that the drivers are not entitled to charge baek mileage anywhere within the metropolitan district, and that extends from 10 to 15 miles from the centre of the city. In some cases, it undoubtedly inflicts hardship, as one will readily understand that 10 miles from a small city like Sydney already brings one out into country, and it is decidedly hard to be compelled to travel some 20 or 30 miles at what is, in effect, a rate of 6d, a mile. On the other hand, of course, indiscriminate charging of back mileage would lead to the strictly-limited use of cabs, and would probably result in a large deerease in the takings. This man's suggestion was that back mileage shordd be charged for greater distances than five miles, but I am afraid that that hardly meets tire case.
In the matter of registering extras, he informed are that there was no taximeter at present on the Sydney market which permits this to be effi( iently done, although it is quite practicable to do so for luggage carried outide. The difficulty arises when more than two passengers are carried, as the regulations permit the men to charge an extra 4d. per mile for each passenger over two there is no taxi which enables that amount of extra to be registered. Turning to other questions, he told ins that he reckons it costs £12 a week to run a cab, and that his takings amount to between £22 and £2:3, which is a quite-satisfactory margin. The week's running usually comes to approximately 400 miles, which means that the working cost of the one cal) amounts to about 71d. per mile. Petrol consumption is almost exactly 15 miles to the gallon, and that is paid for at, the rate of Is. 4d., although 0.760 spirit might with advantage be used which would only cost Is. 1d.
The above facts will serve to prove that running taxicabs in Sydney is quite a paying proposition, although, when more appear on the streets and takings fall from rather over El a day to, perhaps, under £2, considerably-more attention will need to be paid to the working costs, which, I am
convinced., could easily be materially reduced. Before leaving the subject, I might refer to a certain hardship that the men feel in strictly adhering to the traffic regulations, which require them to cross busy thoroughfares at a speed of six miles an hour, and to turn corners at hut four. Most of the traffic constables interpret these regulations in the spirit of the law, but one or two endeavour to adhere to the letter, and anybody having any knowledge of motor traffic knows the extreme difficulty of slowing right up to speeds of six or four miles an hour every few hundred yards. It is almost easier to stop dead and start again, The time is rapidly coming when Sydney traffic will need as careful handling as that of the City of London.
0.780.
The other day I had the pleasure of a very interesting chat with the local manager of the British Imperial Oil Co., when we discussed the merits and demerits of Shell and other motor spirits. At the time of writing, the British Imperial Oil Co. is the only firm importing 0.760 spirit, and, in discussing matters. I hoped to get a very-fair idea of the total mileage being run by commercial motors in and around Sydney, as I naturally concluded that by now everybody would be going to the British Imperial Co. for petrol, but I was indeed surprised to find that such is not the case, and that, although Mr. Potter, the manager, is satisfied that rather more than three-fourths are using 0.760. there are still a Dumber who persist in using benzine, and there are others who have not got beyond the naphtha stage. As naphtha has probably been dead and buried for some years so far as English motorists are concerned, it will be as well to remind them that it was the stuff that people tried to insist on seven and eight years ago and were compelled to run on in the old days of surface car buretters. For some years, I believe, motorcyclists continued to demand it, and paid an extra 2d. or 3d, a gallon because it was easier to start up on. Now, at present, the relative prices of these spirits are: naphtha is. 4d.; benzine Is. 2d.; and 0.760 is. ld, Of course, the last-named gives most power. There is no doubt that one or two users of commercial vehicles who are using naphtha are paying as much as 1s, (id. per gallon for it, and it is difficult. to see how they can hope to make motors pay well under those conditions. As a matter of fact, I have little doubt but that the larger vans and lorries could be made to run just as satisfactorily on paraffin, which can he purchased locally at 80., a saving of4,id. a gallon on 0.760, which is a consideration. As a matter of fact, in advising the purchaser recently of a 4-ton lorry, I recommended him to start by running on paraffin and to abandon it only after he had proved that it was impracticable. I am convinced that, if the matter is intelligently handled, he will not abandon it. This climate is much warmer and less humid than the English one, and I know that, if one can start up on 0.760 spirit with the magneto on abitterly-cold morning in December or January in London, one can do it with very-little difficulty on paraffin out here. T hope to find cases shortly where the experiment is being tried.
More Taxicabs.
Most people one meets are waiting and wondering when the vehicles for the Australasian Motor Cab Co. are going to arrive. There are still, however, quite a lot of enterprising people. putting taxicabs on the streets, and many of these are driven by their owners. Until recently, most of these had been on the generally-approved' lines with an extended canopy overtire driver's head, and either with or without accommodation for luggage. But, a few weeks ago, an ordinary Bayard touring ear with Cape-cart hood fully extended appeared on the rank with a taximeter to the extreme left. I cannot help thinking that the enterprising owner of this vehicle made a mistake in putting the instrument where he has, as there is a carefully-upholstered bucket seat between the instrument and the driver. It appears to me that, if he and his passenger have a difference of opinion on the road, all the passenger would need to do would be to give the flag an occasional " wag " while the driver was negotiating some difficult corner.
About Wear and Tear.
The American cabs are fully represented on the ranks, yet it has always struck me that the percentage of these in service has been nothing like as high as it should be, and whenever I visit the leading garages in the town there are usually one or two of them to be seen there, although I am usually told they are merely " not in service." However, the other day, I found one with its engine dismantled (it had only been in service two or three weeks), and I had an opportunity of examining the inside; it was a four-cylinder, 20 h.p. engine, and I was astounded to find that its big-end bearings were scarcely more than an inch in width and plainly white-metalled at that. I need not say more than that the rest of the machine appeared to be built on the same flimsy lines, and I eeuld not help feeling that unless a number of new cabs appeared on the streets in the near future there would be a noticeable decrease in numbers before many months are over. It is true that the machine I am criticizing is a cheap one and avowedly sold for twelve months wear, but I cannot help feeling that an extra £100 or C150 would be well spent in purchasing a machine to stand up to its work.
The other side of the picture may he seen in the dismantling of Ashwood's Albion, which has now been in service for just over 12 months, except for the time that it has been in the shed wait ing for new tires. It has not been well treated, in that it has often been overloaded, whilst the quantity of dirt that had to be "dug off " before the chassis was " found " suggested that more time might with advantage have been spent in cleaning it. Yet the condition of the engine and gears was suggestive of little, if any, wear. One of the big-end brasses, which I examined carefully, had obviously been running against a piece of grit which had scored a line right around it; but, apart from that, there was practically nothing which needed attention. None of the gearwheels showed any wear, except. the first-speed one, which was slightly burred at the points of engagement. I do not pretend to know how far the machine has run, but the description of its work, which appeared in your pages on the 11th November last, suggests that it has been kept fairly steadily at it It is another example of the excellence of die material from the Scotstoun shops.
E. KB.