Manufacturers Break All Output and Export Records
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DURING 1950 the British motor industry handsomely exceeded all previous figures for the production and export of commercial vehicles. Output rose to 263,312 units (including pedestrian-controlled vehicles), compared with the previous best in 1949 of 218,375. The figure for 1948 was 177,169.
Last year the value of exports increased to £65,241,017, as compared with £44,377,114 in 1949 and £38,983,141 in 1948.
The number of units shipped during the year was 153,572, which includes industrial trucks, road haulage tractors and trailers. The comparable figure for 1949 was 102,079.
From the following table, the figures • in which have been taken from statistics compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, it will be seen that, whilst the production of vehicles of up to 6 tons was well up, other categories were down:
In 1950, of the 263,312 vehicles produced, 164,932 were intended for overseas and 98,380 were for the home market.
During December, 22,856 vehicles were built (excluding pedestrian-controlled units), of which 13,449 were for export and 9,407 for home users. The average weekly production figure for December was 4,571 units.
The export of agricultural tractors showed a slight drop from 90,411 in 1949 to 83,909 in 1950. The total value was £28,421,524.
In value. British Commonwealth and Empire and the Irish Republic took 58 per cent, of complete commercial vehicles and 73.2 per cent, of chassis. Australia again represented our best market overseas, followed by British West Africa, British East Africa, Belgium, India, Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, and the Netherlands. Australia spent £18,487,713 on commercial vehicles, almost double the figure for 1949, and nearly four times that for 1948, Used commercial vehicles exported numbered 2,975, valued at £2,264,315. whilst 2,577 track-laying tractors (f1.835,782) added to the volume of exports.
Overseas sales of the motor industry totalled £232,094,655 for 1950, over £60,000,000 more than ia 1949.
"USE REPAIR TRADES SERVICES" riA NATION-W1DE campaign to encourage all vehicle owners to take fuller advantage of repair and maintenance facilities offered by the trade has been initiated by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The Society has issued an appeal to hauliers to adopt the policy of regular inspection and maintenance.
T.R.T.A. DECENTRALIZES
ASEPARATE area administrative organization has been set up in the West Midlands by the Traders Road Transport Association. Mr. Leonard Patrick has been appointed area secretary and will take over his duties on March 1. '
CONFIRMATION OF AGREEMENT
TO confirm an agreement on the compensation payable by the Road Haulage Executive to Gilchrist Road Service, Ltd., the Transport Arbitration Tribunal will meet on February 19 at 9. Belgrave Square, London, S.W.I.
B.R.S. Earns £624. m.
L 1 AST year, British Road Services
earned a revenue of £62,481.000 and carried 3.272,000 tons. Vehicle mileage amounted to 50,271,000, of which 41,787,000 was loaded and 8,484,0(X) empty. No definition of a loaded mile is given. The figures for tonnage and mileage do not include those vehicles hired out under contract.
The British Transport Commission's provincial and Scottish passenger transport interests earned revenue of £37,979.000, compared with £35,101,000 in 1949. London Transport's receipts dropped from £56,536,000 in 1949 to £55,893,000 in 1950. Bus, coach, trolleybus and tram receipts fell, but London Transport's railway revenue rose slightly.
The B.T.C.'s revenue from all its undertakings was last year £540,267,000, compared with £495,369,000 in 1949.
$200.000 ORDER FOR WHITSON
WORTH approximately 200,000 VT dollars, an order for 65 bodies has been placed with James Whitson and Co., Ltd., West Drayton, by the United States Air Force authorities in Great Britain. Ten of the vehicles will be observation coaches based on Crossley chassis and will seat 35 passengers. They will be 30 ft. long and 8 ft. wide.
The other 55 vehicles will be 29-seater buses based on Austin chassis and will have full fronts, tubular seating and driver-controlled power-operated doors. Parcel and baggage accommodation will be provided alongside the driver. Delivery of the vehicles, the bodies of which are in production in the new factory recently completed by the Whitson concern at West Drayton, will be at a rate of five a week, beginning early in March.
Mr. A. E. Whittit. managing director, believes that this order is an indirect result of the New York Show last April.
SURCHARGE ON PART-YEAR LICENCES
AN order covering part-year licences has been made by the Minister of Transport and came into operation on February 12. It provides that a licence for a vehicle for the period from March 22 to June 30, 1951, shall be issued at 27m, per cent, of the full annual rate of duty, plus a surcharge.
The duty payable on a licence issued from March 22 to December 31, 1951, is three-quarters of the full annual rate, plus 5 per cent, and a surcharge. ht the case of commercial vehicles, the surcharge is 10s.
These provisions are contained in the Road Vehicles (Part Year Licensing) Order, 1951.
DAVID BROWN MERGER?
A CONDITIONAL offer has been 1-1 made by the David Brown Corporation to purchase the issued capital of David Brown and Sons (Huddersfield), Ltd. The corporation was formed recently to amalgamate the businesses carried on by two groups of companies headed respectively. by David Brown and Sons (Huddersfield), Ltd., and David Brown (Holdings), Ltd.