Passenger-Vehicle Topics.
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The Motor Ambulance Committee of Rawtenstall has now collected £600, Tenders are imited.
Edinburgh Town Council desires to receive tenders, on or before the 7th prox., for a .20 h.p police motor ambulance, to a specification which will be supplied, at a price not to exceed £500.
A New L.C.C. Attack.
The Local Government Committee of the London County Council is considering the question of a by-law, with a view to the abatement of the alleged nuisance due to mud-splashing by motor omnibuses. We hope that members of this committee will walk alongside some of the Council's own tramcars on a wet day, and will take care that the by-law applies to the wheels and grooved rails of their own electric-car undertaking.
The Council must not—as it did in respect of a by-law which was drafted a few years ago to pi ovide a clear look-out for drivers of horse vans—ignore its own sins, whilst seeking to put other possible delinquents right.
Sir John Benn's Progress.
Is Sir John Beim wavering in his allegiance to tramcars, or is he merely playing for position ? At last week's meeting of the Council, he certainly made a very moderate speech in regard to the proposals of the Road Board for the construction of a. great western highway.
We shall be greatly surprised if Sir John Benn's attitude does not change suddenly, when he appreciates the firm intention 01 the Road Board not to allow any such highway to be marred by the laying of rails. Sir John Benn can also rely upon this : that the Road Board will not allow the proceeds of motorcar taxation to be diverted for the benefit of electric traction, An additional resolution was adopted at this discussion, on the motion of Mr. Whitaker Thompson, to the effect that the Council should approach the Road Board with a view to ascertaining whether the Board would be prepared to cooperate with the Council in the execution of other improvements of greater value to the traffic of London. Thus, when the Improvements Committee prepare.s alternative schemes in regard to the great western proposal, many others will probably come op. We are glad to note this, as our third leading article indicates. The Road Board has made a mistake, we think, in shutting up its parse
for so long a period, regardless of the legitimate demands for genuine improvements, qua petrolvehicle traffic, from many London boroughs.
Chars-a-bancs in Winter.
A correspondent informs us that a Commer Car belonging to Messrs. _Butterworth and Son, Blackpool, recently left that town at 1.30 a.m. to fetch a. load of finTaiture weighing 14 tons, from a town 60 miles away. The load was delivered in Blackpool at 6.30 p.m. the same day. This particular machine is used for char-h-bancs purposes in the summer, and for removals during the winter month.
London Traffic, The latest example of Sir Edgar Speyer's activity is of only indirect interest to this journal In so far as the acquirement and union of the Central London and City and South London Railways by the Cederground Electric Railways Co. of Loudon may effect the removalof the tramcar incubus from our principal London thoroughfares we are interested in it. We do not enter into the detail terms of the purchase, or into the matter of the agreements which have been concluded by the same group for the so-called consolidation of the interests of the shareholders of the Metropolitan Electric Tramways (M.E.T.), Ltd., and the London United Tramways.
It appears to us that progress is rapidly being made towards one of two issues in this great traffic problem for London. Either the London County Council will have to acquire all surface undertakings for public passenger transport, or it will have to sell its tramcar undertaking to the Speyer interests. We cannot conceive that the. L.C.C. will pass a resolution in favour of the second proposal, so we must submit yet another possibility—that the L.C.C. tramcar undertaking will be wound up as its steamship undertaking was. That is a possibility which we have foreshadowed on an earlier occasion.
A new company, with an authorized capital of £3,250,000 (1,300,000 21 preference shares), has been registered under the title of the London and Suburban Traction Co., Ltd. The signatories are : Emile Garcke, J. Devonshire, E. R. Loames, W. M. Acworth, H. H. Stanley, C. H. Dade, A. L. Barber.