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Tanks and election tips

28th May 1983, Page 32
28th May 1983
Page 32
Page 32, 28th May 1983 — Tanks and election tips
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

Keywords : Haulage, Downer

IMaking a living with a 38-tonne lorry

THE TANKER and tipper men joined together at the Majestic Hotel for the first business session entitled "38 tonne operation". Its presenter, Dr Clifford Sharp, a lecturer in economics at Leicester University, is probably best known for his report Living with the lorry which was published some ten years ago.

The message of the first part of Dr Sharp's talk was that "public opinion is very important in transport" and he referred to the public reaction to Living with the /orryto illustrate his point.

Dr Sharp told the convention that following the publication of his report he had received many letters of abuse and even now he was frequently accused of the "crime" of loving lorries and being against railways.

He pleaded not guilty to both charges. "I would like to see a successful and efficient railway system firmly established in this country, but not at any price," he said.

Dr Sharp compared the public relations record of BR with that of the road haulage industry and came to the conclusion that rail had won hands down. "What other organisation besides British Rail, operating on routes that were the pride of midnineteenth century engineering, and which had been in almost continuous decline for most of the last seventy years could persuade people that "this is the age of the train"?

And he told the RHA that: "In the vital matter of public relations it seems to me that the record of the road haulage industry has been somewhat indifferent."

Then Dr Sharp turned to the specific problems created by the raising of the maximum weight limit which he described as a "somewhat mean present from the government that is attached to some unattractive tax strings."

He posed the question "Should hauliers accept the gift gratefully or say 'no thank you, I'll wait for 40 or 42, or even 44`?" In trying to answer that question, he examined the increases in loads that are necessary to justify the replacement of a 32.5 by a 38-tonne vehicle.

Dr Sharp was careful to point out that many of the figures he used in his charts came originally from Martin Downer and while the Plaskett/Downer, RHA/Freight Transport Association debate had not gone unnoticed, he reminded the delegates that it was concerned with the rates that should be charged, whereas he was dealing with changes in costs "not in absolute cost levels and their relation to charges."

The first chart showed the "break even" overall average loads (counting outward and return journeys) at load factors ranging from 40 to 100 per cent. For example, if the average overall load factor in a 32.5tonne vehicle was 10.5 tonnes (50 per cent) the load which would give the same cost per tonne mile in a 38 tonne vehicle would be 11.67 tonnes.

"It would be necessary to achieve a load significantly greater than this if substantial cost savings were to be made," said Dr Sharp.

Two more tables showed the effect on 32.5/38 tonne cost comparisons of interest rates and insurance charges and when the speaker said that in his calculation he had increased Martin Downer's insurance costs by a factor of ten it was clear from the audience's reaction that they too felt that Downer's figures were unrealistically low.

The table that the delegates probably took most notice was the one that showed breakeven loads for a 38-tor if all the "worst cases" were sumed (that is, interest at 20 cent, annual mileage 100,1 depreciation treated as a fling cost, and the Downer surance costs multiplied by 1 Probably the most signifit conclusion that could be dri from studying this table was ' if a haulier's average load fat at 32.5 tonnes was 10.5 tonne factor of 12 tonnes was requi at a gcw of 38 tonnes to m him slightly better off.

For the last part of his talk Sharp tackled the influence government on the road haul, industry, with particular phasis on the topical a contentious issue of track cos

He first identified two disti kinds of costs — those wt.' hauliers actually pay, and "true" cost to society of veh operations. "The 64,000 do question," said Dr Sharp, "is'


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