Setting the Stage?
Page 3
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T seems reasonable to assume that the unexpected publication I on Wednesday (see page 9) of the Hall report on Britain's transport needs up to 1980 is linked with the Government's receipt of the Beeching bombshell and its pending publication later this month. Dr. Beeching's position has always been clear. He intended only to say what was needed, in his view, to put the railways on their feet. The political implications or decisions were not in his brief.
So the position is that Mr. Marples has, on the one hand, Dr. 'leeching demanding massive cuts from the rail dead and not-sodead wood and, on the other hand, Sir Robert Hall's group of economic experts forecasting (with a great many reservations) only limited success for the rail efforts to get more traffic during two decades of continued road goods expansion. Then, as a second force, Mr. Marples will have the Hall report's strong warning about the growth of road traffic (largely private cars) to somewhere between two and three times its present proportions. In addition, as was made clear in the Commons on Wednesday afternoon, the Minister has now made his mind up about the Rochdale report on our docks.
Mr. Marples seems to have in his possession more than enough major material to justify setting up a top-level inquiry into the country's transport needs. Is he, possibly, leading up to just that?