British Oilers inaugurate State-owned Service in India
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RRAPID developments have followed the recent decision of the Government of Travancore State, Southern India, to purchase through Rootes, Ltd.-, a fleet of 60 Commer PNF5 oil-engined chassis with which to inaugurate a completely reorganized and State-owned passenger-transport service. The order was placed in August last, and all the chassis have now, been shipped, in unassembled form, to India, and a number of them has already been assembled and fitted with locally built bodies.
These vehicles will shortly be operating on the 60-mile route between Trivandrum and. Cape Comorin, which is to serve as a preliminary to a more general scheme of Government-owned and managed transport throughout the State.
The 60 dimmer chassis are equipped with Perkins Lynx oil enginet, and will provide an initial fleet of 56 buses and 10 lorries. Since fuel oil costs only one-third the price of petrol in Travancore, the benefits to be derived from the choice of oil engines, as regards economy in operating costs, should be considerable, Another point of interest c.onceming this order is that strong reserve resources will be available to the operators, inasmuch as the chassis are of identical pattern and' their bodies, both bus and lorry, as well as all spare parts, are interchangeable.
The chassis are being assembled by native labour under the supervision of Mr. C. G. Salter Superintendent of State Transport, at a plant which has been specially set up at the Trivandrum Customs House, where the bodywork is also being constructed.
Good progress is being made with the work of assembly and bodybuilding. The new enterprise is arousing widespread interest throughout the State of Travancore, as well as in Southern India generally, and many important Indian official§ have visited the . plant; to inspect the work in progress. His Highness. the Maharajah of Travancore is himself keeping in close touch with every phase of this important transport.scheme, and recently paid a visit to the assembly plant in company with.the Dewan, Sir C. P. Ramaswainy Iyer, K.C.I.E.