Transport the Complement of Industry 14) ECENT pronouncements by Cabinet
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Minis-1liters and by others holding responsible posts, show clearly that the traffic problem is being tackled altogether in the wrong spirit. This is not. peculiar to transport questions, but applies In general to the post-war official attitude towards Industry: as a whole. For many years it has been the fashion to regulate • and legislate nationally for. every small phase of • business, thus hampering those whose concerti it is to direct industry —and who are more• fitted by technical experience to manage affairs than are those' whose. trade is purely politics.
It is with regard to the future handling of the traffic problem that themanifestations of a " regulation complex" are most sadly apparent. , A recently published • " vision " of the Minister of Transport was to the effect that ear traffic, with limited exceptions, may be ' banned in the Metropolis in 25 years' time..
Whatever may be the type of self propelled vehicle, in London it is used In probably. 99 per cent. of cases to facilitate the earning of money. of to make possible -pUrehasing in accordance with modern standards of living. Therefore to restrict up-to-date forms of traffic Unit Would react upon hundreds of thousands whose earning and spending powers control) to a large extent, those of millions of others. To-day the traffic problem is still not managed to the full efficiency by those public servants to whom the nation allocates this duty ; if their minds fail to grasp that industry—the life blood of the nation—is dependent upon transport (with which traffic is inextricably bound up), what hope is there for a full trade revival? The governing body is placed in offiCe by the voters of the country to promote the public .weal, not to glorify the governmental machine. The first Parliament and Cabinet to realize' that the promotion of the good a ail forms of transport is the nation's need, will meet their_ due reward.
We must face vital facts in the light of economic requirements rather than that of political strategy. To restrict transport—or traffic—of really mode'rn type implies retrogression. Traffic, which must be handled from the point of view of the future and not Merely that of the present, is and must be a national asset, not an unpleasant liability ; wise Men develop every latent asset, those who cannot or will not see must suffer the inevitable loss. The sad pity is that the blind are trying to lead those of more acute vision. The first step in the " banning" programme will affect modern coach traffic. Action to regulate . out-ofdate transport units still hangs fire. The public pays for such mistakes, not the individual operator.
Using the Engine as a Brake.
ONE of the practices which are going out of -fuse, very slowly it is true, is that of employing the engine as a braking medium. In very hilly districts reliance is still placed upon the retarding effect of the engine when an indirect gear is engaged. On the level road, on the other hand, the higher modern standard of frictional braking has cut out a lot of use of the engine for retardation. From the point of view of the maintenance engineer there is much to be said for the modern tendency ; oil pumping when running against compression" accounts for much of the tendency rapidly to carbonize. Employment of a free-wheel device has helped to prOve this fact in cases in which the mechanism has been in use for sufficiently long periods to justify the expression of an opinion.
One of the surprising facts is that engine braking on top gear has been accepted as efficient for so long with very little question. The improvement of frictional braking has shown that the faith of olden times is misplaced to-day. particularly is this so when the engine of a Vehicle has a heavy flywheel. The up-to-date six-cylindered engine, having a very light flyWheel, slows down rapidly when the accelerator pedal is released and soon ceases to drive the Vehicle, allowing the brakes to work principally against vehicle momentum.
On the other hand, the engine with a heavy flywheel, such as the average compression'ignition unit, slows down gradually and acts against the brakes for a short period ; this is Suffi.cient to Increase the distance required to pull up from any required speed.
From tests of free-wheel vehicles or—in the case of conventional transmissionsby declutchSing at the time the brake is applied, we have found the retarding value of the engine, when top gear is in use, to be very much an illusory hope, so far as a rapid stop is concerned. For checking progress when descending a long gradient matters are different. The statement by those opposed to free wheels that their use will cause many accidents due to the loss of the engine brake in traffic is groundless and actually opposed to facts.
Possibilities of the Seven-seater Coach.
ASHORT time ago We drew attention to a seven-seater coach, produced with the object of providing a vehicle which would not be affected by most of the provisions of the Road Traffic Act, -1930, and yet would be suitable for motor-coach work with small parties. Already interest in this idea is being shown, and, there is a definite, if limited, field for its development.
Such vehicles are suitable for both long-distance and short-distance work, and are well fitted for the carrying of overflow loads, being handier and less expensive to run than 20-seater or 26-seater coaches. They have the advantage of resembling, in comfort, speed and appearance,. the modern private car, and the value of this resemblance lies in the possible attraction of a new class of traveller, thus widening the scope of the travel-by-road movement.
The 30-cwt, six-cylinder chassis of comparatively high performance forms a satisfactory fthindation for the seven-seater. The frame overhang can be utilized, to support a capacious and amply strong luggage locker, carburetter settings may be changed to suit the lightet load, an all-weather head can be incorporated without difficulty, and the complete vehicle will prove to be one 4pf comfort and attractiveness. We forecast that as the usefulness of this kind of fleet auxiliary becomes more widely recognized another phase of road travel will develop, a phase which, it may be noted, is already well established in several countries abroad.