The Effect of Taxation on Coach Doings
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THE hardship "of. the present method of levying taxes on motor vehicles, so far as the motor coach owner is concerned, is now obtruding itself very clearly.. On Thursday last, the third licensing period came to an end, and motor coach owners were faced with the .problem : should they pay for each "vehicle a further tax"einounting (in the case of a 32-Deafer) to 236 (243 4s. in the Metropolitan area) foethe next six months, or should the vehicles be laid up until March 24th next, when the next profitable running period (as defined by the
licensing periods) would begin? .
In .-,our correspondence columns there is a letter from "Durham," which pseudonym conceals the personality of a prominent coach owifer in the North. As he puts his case, the tax" will mean 22 per week outlay for the next six months, paid in advance (and there are interest charges which cannot he ignored!), whilst it is not possible to average more than two runs per week, and, then, mainly with football teams as, the most likely passengers at 28. or 3s. per head.
We doubt very mucliewhother there will be,a sufficient volume of business, even in our warmest counties in ,the south-west, to justify the licensing of more than a small proportion of the fleets during the next six months, whereas, as " Durham " puts it, were "the" tax levied upon the petrol used, coach proprietors would endeavour to encourage traffic, thus serving to keep the vehicles on the road and to maintain
employment. .
The effect of the system of taxation must be to keep motore coaches off the road in the winter time, and herein, as was fully foreshadowed "by us and other opponents of the system, lies the weak spot and the evilflIf it. It would be interesting and extremely informative if the Ministry of Transport would ascertain and announce the number of motor coaches for Which licences were not renewed ,on -September 29th. We are convinced that the figures would bear out , our statement that an enormous proportion. has been laid up for the winter months, whereas some relaxation. of the method of taxation (such, for instance, as the issue of monthly licences at proportionate fees) would' have.had• a useful effect through 'the mouth of October", at least.
The object of the taxation being to provide
revenue for the improvement of the roads and the maintenance of the surface, the Minis-try should now do everything.in its power to increase the revenue by such relaxation (within legal limits) as will keep' motor coaches in. commission.
Four Cyclists in Five Acting Foolishly.
AWEEK ago we made a journey over a heavilytrafficked main road (from Tunbridge Wells to London, to be exact) afterlighting-up time, with the definite purpose of observing the manner in which cyclists are utilizing their freedom from Dora's regulation in the matter of rear lighting.
We overtook, in that 35 miles' run, '87 cycle riders, and 117 passed our vehicle travelling in the opposite direction. Of the total of 204, no fewer than 162 exhibited no rear light, the remaining 42 continuing the use of the warning signal.
These figures show the extent of 'the evil created by a certain section, prominent in the circles of the Cyclists' Touring Club. Cyclists are deliberately advised by this section to discontinue the use of the rear light, and they are invited to gloat over the " freedom " thus secured and' at the discomfiture of the motor drivers. We are not able to understand the attitude of mind that will prompt any one to incur the sort of risk that these 162 foolish people. were willingly inviting. Nor could weiseesthe logic of one cyclist in every five differing from his fellows in his estimation of theaisk.
There is no argument in the letter published in our "Opinions from Others" page over the signature of Mr. R. E. Dewberry; with which we disagree. The motor driver is not the callous, inconsiderate individual as represented by the cyclist. He desires to injure or to interfere with nobody; what he does ask for is common-sense in traffic laws and by-laws. There is no sense in rear lights being shown by faster vehicles and not by slower ones; it should be just the other way about. The rear light-oil a motor vehicle is .the only troublesome accessary to any motor driver, but there is no agitation in motor circles for the discontinuance of its use, because what is required of every obstruction on the road is a warning of its presence, front and rear.
We urge upon the Ministry of Transport the need for early legislation to compel all cyclists to show a light to the rear during the hours of darkness, otherwise we are convinced that there will, this winter, be many accidents that could have been avoided. •
Are Goods and Passenger Vehicles Fairly Taxed? .
THE figures concerning the licensing' of motor vehicles for the first three quarters of the ,year, just issued by the1 Ministry' of Transpert, are interesting because they show that; already, the proceeds of the taxation have mounted to £01876,105, which is a substantial advance upon the eight millions sterling which the motor community was asked to find for road improvement and maintenance. By the end of the year the ten millions sterling mark will have.easily been turned.
A further matter of interest is the fact that the number of commercial goods vehicles, hackney carriages, road. locomotives and road tractors registered at thessend of August had grown to 215,170 of which 128,200 are commercial goods vehicles, 82,800 are hackney carriages, 2,650 are road locomotives, and 1,520 are road tractors. Agrimotors number 16,000, whilst there are 75,200 licensed tramcars in the country.
The total received in taxation from the 215,170 vehicles mentioned was 24,342,100, and we believe that there is some agitation in the ranks of the private motorist because the amount paid in private vehicle taxation has turned out to be more than this, namely, 24,856,778. The 284,100 received for general identification marks should, probably; be. divided in the proportion of three parts to private vehicle makers and agents, and one part to makers and dealers in commercial vehicles, but, being small in comparison, need not enter into the dispute.
It may be contended that, considering the degree c14 of road wear occasioned by the heavy vehicles, the proportion of the total amount of tax paid by them is low. Our own contention is that, whilst commercial motors and hackney carriages are, in the main, in constant use and the private vehicles only used intermittently, thelatter are better able, on the score of luxury, to bear quite as large a proportiqn of taxation as the vehicles used in course of trade or business. Any attempt to alter the basis of taxation to the detriment of the heavy vehicle and the public-serviee vehicle must, therefore, be resisted.
Chain or Live-axle',Drive ? '
THE NEWS that Krupps, the famous armament ' makers of Essen, are to produce a four ton chain-driven vehicle is a matter of more than passing. interest. Announcements of new designs, tor some years now, have, shown a distinct trend of development in the direction of live-axle drives; and, one by one; British makers have. abandoned their allegiance to the chain, until but a few makers DOW turn out vehicles with this type of transmission. Now we _have, a, Gorman fiena taking what seems, on the face of it, &retrograde step. In the war, of course, the majority of German army lorries were fitted with chain drive, and, for war purposes, there is no. doubt that the chain had certain advantages. It was simple, easy' to repair, the rear • axle was lighter than the, other type (a •consideration in the war areas), and theggear could be altered easily to cope with the local difficulties which were encountered. There was one disadvantage, in that, on soft ground, where the rear wheels of a heavily-laden vehicle had a. tendency to 'sink in, the chains would often come in contact with the soil. Chaincases prevented this actual. contact, but merely formed a support for the rear of the vehicte on the .ground, enabling the drive still 'to be transmitted tot the wheels, which; in consequence, in certain'. circumstances, merely churned grooves in the soil, to complete the " hogging" of a lorry. In use, that undoubtedly is one of the disadvantages of chain drive. The proximity of the underside of 'the chain to the ground may lead to embarrassing difficulties in bad country. Noise, of course, is another, disadvantage, hardly worth consideration in freight-carrying Work, but of importance if the vehicle is to' be used for_passengercarrying purposes. From the point of view of maintenance, th-e question of chain wear and replacement arises, and the live-axle:' lorry escapes this expense. such as it is. From the repair shop point' a view, however, there is no doubt that the chain-driven v6hiele scores all along the line. The tim,eg and labour of repair are obviously much smaller, and economical expedients, such as the reversal of the, pinions, so that the unworn side of the teeth can be used, are possible. So far as the manufacture is concerned, there can be no question but that a, chain-driven vehicle should be cheaper to produce than one of the liveaxle variety.
One is, therefore, impelled to ask why the wholesale adoption of the live axle ever came about. Was it a case merely or slavishly copying pleasure-car design, or were manufacturers—unconsciously, perhaps—unduly influenced by the regard for appearance, of neatness and cleanliness in design,. which has become almost a fetish with the car designer? It would be interesting to know.
Moreover, it will be more interesting to observe whether, under the stress of competition, and the necessity of reducing costs all round, any' British makers will follow Krupp's example. Perhaps the ive-axle type of drive has, as a selling paint, been too thoroughly imprinted on the public mind. Perhaps the 'dual purposes of 'freightand, passengercarrying which many vehicles have to serve will prevent it. Developments, in any case, will be well' worth watching.