Taxation Investigations.
Page 1
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We comment at length, on this page and the next, upon the latest phases of the taxation proposals in respect of motorbuses. We also refer, on other pages in this issue, to certain questions and answers in the House of Conmvons which hear upon tlle! same vital subject. The significance of these references, in so far as they are in some cases confined to motorbuses, must not lead to misapprehensions on the part of those of our readers who are solely interested in goods
vehicles. They must not allow themselves to he lulled into a sense of false security. Their interests are almost as closely touched as are those of motorbus proprietors by efforts to create precedents rrn authority for the levying of local taxes by authorities other than the central authority of the country. Given a sufficient succession of records of approval by Parliament for the levying of local tolls upon motorbuses, it might not prove a difficult matter to carry such levies into another sphere of commercial-motoring activity, and to impose comparable charges upon motorvans and other self-propelled conveyances which deal solely with inanimate loads. Chaos and delay must then reign supreme.
We have, throughout the various periods of controversy, proposal arid counter-proposals happenings in which stages we have consistently recorded and traced since the date of the announcement of the petrol tax by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in April, 1909, given our support to the view that nothing detrimental to the best interests of the motor industry and of conarnercial-motor users at large will be allowed to find its way upon the Statute Rogok. Recent utterances by Cabinet Ministers have thoroughly justified that optimism. Nothing is to be done without, so far as motorbuses are concerned, further examination by a Joint Special Committee of the two Houses of Parliament, and nothing, so far as other heavy motorcars are concerned, without a technical ineosti, gation by a Departmental Committee of the Local Government Board. The sooner all the points at issue are settled the better.
Sheffield Motorbus Terms: Three-eighths of a Penny per Omnibusmile Diminishing to Nothing.
The long fight before a Committee of the House of Commons, over which Mr. Middlebrook presided, concerning new powers for the Sheffield Corporation to run motorbuses on neighbouring county-council highways, came to an end last week. The Committee has sanctioned certain new routes in Derbyshire, and has allowed the Derbyshire County Council to make a charge for road-maintenance purposes of d. per omnibus-mile, subject to certain far-reaching conditions. It has to ho recalled that the Derbyshire County Council has an almost-negligible mileage of modern tar-bound or bituminous-bound macadam roads ; practically the whole of its road system is constructed —very largely of limestone macadam—according to methods which will be discarded in the future. They
have already been abandoned in many counties.
Yet, as this further decision in regard to Derbyshire proves, id. per omnibus-mile is held to be a maximum figure for purposes of re-coupinent. That decision, it must be noted, concerns the roads as they are, and is to be varied so soon as the National Exchequer begins to pay over-the new grants for road maintenance to the County Council.
We quote from the announcement by the chairman of the committee on Thursday last :—
" The Committee had come to the conclusion that Sheffield should contribute three-eighths of a penny per car-mile--that figure being subject to revision either by agreement between parties or, in the event of failure to agree, by arbitration at intervals of three years.
" Their view was that the Corporation should contribute, after the first three years, in the event of arbitration, 50 per cent. of such amount as the arbitrator might decide to be the extra cost of upkeep of roads due to the additional traffic of the motorbus services.
" Coming to the question whether any Imperial grant should be taken into account in arriving at the amount which the Corporation should contribute, the chairman said that, in the view of the Committee, if such grant should amount to one-fourth of the total cost of upkeep, the contribution of Sheffield should then be only one-half of what might be found to he the figure
in the absence of any Imperial contribution, and in the event of the Imperial contribution being one-half of the total cost of the roads, Sheffield's contribution should be considered to be coveied by the grants from Imperial sources, which were made on the hasis of the general public service
" There was one further point connected with the condition
of roads, which, adapted to the needs of traffic in the past, were not equal to modern traffic, which was now being added to. That necessitated to some extent the reconstruction of these roads, at. all events the raising of the standard of the condition of the roads for bearing the added traffic. The Committee were of opinion that no contribution should be made towards capital outlay for that purpose by the municipality, nor should it be taken into account in calculating the actual cost of maintenance if it came to a question of arbitra: tion. Nor should any contribution be put upon Sheffield in respect of any widening which might take place at various points on any of the routes,"
We desire to offer our congratulations to Mr. A. R. Fearnley, tramways manager to the Sheffield Corporation, and to other officers of the Sheffield Corporation, as well as to the active members of the Sheffield Corporation Tramways Committee, all of whom have worked restlessly to make good their case, that they should have won such a signal victory over opposing forces which were ranged on the side of mulcting motorbus services according to exploded standards of road construction and maintenance. The
attempt to impose on the motorbuses for all tune has failed dismally, and this fetish of the older school of road surveyor has virtually received its quietus. The prospects of provincial developments have been
enormously advanced and brightened by this assur
ance of a firm pprecedent.i for cancelling the contribution altogether n respect of main or No. 1" highways under the new Governmental classification, upon which the Road Board is so busily engaged, and of reducing it to 3-32d. in respect of " No. 2 " roads.