B.R.S. Wells Application Granted: Unit Buyers Face Competition
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A FTER a long hearing, Mr. S. W. Nelson, Western Licensing 1-1.Authority, last week granted British Road Services an A licence for 12 vehicles (51 tons 8 cwt.') to be based at Welts, Somerset. They were previously operated under a short-term licence and replaced 20 which had been bought from B.R.S. by Hackens Haulage, Ltd:, Salford, and removed from the district, Mr. Nelson said that having regard to the requirements primarily of customers, he was satisfied that the facilities to he offered by D.R.S. were more efficient, more reliable and adequate than those existing at the date of the application. The 1953 Act was intended to promote competition and the buyers of units should be prepared to meet it.
Mr. F. Lever, Bristol distriet manager oI B.R.S., had given an underlaking that if the vehicles had not been removed by Hacketts Haulage, he would immediately have surrendered the short-term licence. This had been granted to make sure that the business of customers was not disrupted.
itRs. Endeavours
During the hearing, Mr. Frederick Newton, director of Hacketts Haulage, conirmecl that they had bought the Wells depot of B.R.S. and assigned the vehicles to their associated company, Woodcocks Transport (Charley), Ltd., who had bases at Manchester, Glasgow, London, Rotherham, Liverpool and Swadlincote. After their tender had been accepted they visited Wells and it was made abundantly clear that B.R.S. would make every endeavour to maintam a service and keep the existing customers.
Mr. Herbert Guest, who, like Mr. Newton, was not an objector, said that last year he bought the B.R.S. Bath depot. He was annoyed to find that B.R.S. immediately opened another depot in Bath and still maintained a service after disposing of part of their Bath-based vehicles. If he had known this was their intention, he would never have purchased the depot.
£200,000 Invested .
Mr. F. E. Russett, director of Western Transport Ltd.. said that they had invested about £200,000 in their return to the haulage industry. Of this figure about 40 per cent was allocated as the value of special A licences. His company operated 80 vehicles. He argued that before B.R.S. were granted more vehicles, Western Transport, Ltd., aed other operators should have an opportunity of carrying the traffic.
Mr. T. D. Corpe, for the objectors, sa.d that it was never the intention of Parliament that the State undertaking, after disposing of vehicles, should be able immediately to replace them with other A licence vehicles. B.R.S. were substantially responsible for the removal of vehicles, because they had not handed over to the purchasers traffic which had formerly been carried,
He submitted 'that before additional vehicles could be granted, B.R.S. should produce evidence that they had no vehicles available at other depots, because their normal user had been described as "general. goods, Great
Mr. G. H. P. Beames, for B.R.S., submitted that a prima facie case had
been made Out and that the objectors' vehicle availability was no more than 4 per cent.
B.R.S. ORDER 30 MORE COMETS
AN order for 30 Leyland Comet tractors has been placed by British Road Services, bringing the, total of such units on order to 230. Twenty will have Scammell coupling gear and he suitable for gross train weights of 151: tons. Their overall length will be 14 ft. 4 in. and their unladen weight 31 tons.
The remaininQ. 10 will have a rating of 16 tons gross, and be 14 ft. 10 in: long overall. The unladen weight will be 3 tons 18 cwt.
STAFF OPPORTUNITY
THERE is a vacancy on the staff of 1 The Commercial Motor for a technical journalist of about 30 who has had sound engineering training. He roust have knowledge of the design of current goods and passenger vehicles, mathematical ability, good appearance and personality, and be able to write fluently and quickly. He must also be a. good driver. A knowledge of foreign languages, particularly French and German, would he helpful.