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A New Move by Railway Interests.

1st March 1927, Page 40
1st March 1927
Page 40
Page 40, 1st March 1927 — A New Move by Railway Interests.
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

IN Scotland the Railway Stockholders' Association has sent round the fiery cross! It was handed first to the Corporation of Glasgow, whence proceeds a great deal of activity in promoting and furthering local government projects. Municipalities and railway companies do not always see eye to eye, but the stockholders are evidently seeking to combine with the representatives of the ratepayers in an effort to increase the burdens on road transport.

The proposal is that when the Convention of Royal Burghs in Scotland holds its annual meeting in April the representatives of Glasgow Town Council should table a motion and open a discussion on the question of the upkeep of the roads and the burden on the ratepayers. It is contended, on behalf of the stockholders, that the burden of the maintenance of the roads, "the damage to which is mainly caused by commercial road traffic," is falling increasingly on the ratepayers and the commercial road users are not paying their share of the cost of upkeep. Reference is made to Mr. Shrapnell-Smith's endeavour to make out a case to the effect that commercial road transport is now too severely taxed, but it is asserted that the opposite is the case and that this contention is clear from statistics

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and the large dividends paid by conunrcial road transport companies.

The facts, of course, are that road transport pays more than its due in respect of road maintenance, and if it is run at a profit this is due to the inherent economy of transport by the most modern of means—by individual units from dOor to door—to excellence of management and to absence of unavailing overhead charges.

The stockholders, however, urge that the ratepayers should make a stand against the continual increase of the road rates for the benefit of those making profit out of the -use of the roads who are not, in a general sense, ratepayers. It is pointed out that, for example, bus companies running into Glasgow from within a radius of 40 miles may pay a relatively small proportion of the local rates in respect of a garage at local headquarters, but they pay no rates in respect of the roads by which they operate into Glasgow, and vice versa, in the case of heavy transport operating from Glasgow into the country—an argument which, of course, will not hold water. The intention is to have the matter brought up at the Convention of Royal Burghs, with a view to calling a special conference of local authorities to consider the whole subject, presumably in order to frame a policy and to submit it to the Government.


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