In Public Service.
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The total of licensed _motorbuses plying for hire on the London streets on the 28th of last month was 2993. This shows an increase of 123 over the preceding month.
Edmonton Guardians have de cided to replace their old horse ambulance by a motor, and to dispose of the old motor ambulance, which is not fit for further use.
A deputation from the Ceylon Planters Association is to wait upon the Governor of the Island to urge the need of introducing motortransport service in the colony, and of making the roads suitable for this purpose.
The Coventry Corporation has not succeeded in coming to terms with the Warwickshire County Council, and its services, which will be conducted by 12 motor omnibuses, will be only inside the city boundaries, and not beyond them.
Two new companies have recently been registered in New Zealand under the style of the Wallacetown Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd., and the ArcadiaTaxi Service, Ltd. Their respective capitals are £700 and £2487, while the offices are situated at Invercargill and Wellington.
The Earl of Radnor's Longford Castle Estate brigade in Wiltshire, is now equipped with an up-to-date Coramercar-Simonis motor fire-engine. The equipment includes escape, tender and first-aid outfit, whilst a 350-gallon pump is also included. The engine is of 50 h.p., eight, men are carried, as well as 1200 ft. of hose.
Bristol Taximeter Troubles.
Mr. F. P. BoIslam, Chief Inspector under the Petroleum and Explosives Act for the city of Bristol, reported that during the past year, 431 taximeters have been submitted for examination with the result that 108 were found incorrect either in time or distance, or that they could be fraudulently manipulated. Considerable extra work, he states, has been entailed during the year in connection with the testing of 17 1 taximeters on motoreabs, owing to the discovery of various methods which have been devised to permit taximeters to be manipulated by the driver in such manner as to defraud, in most instances, their em
ployer. Several inuenions contri
vances have been adopted which undoubtedly have been the work of a ,killed mechanic rather than a taxi driver. Continuing, the chief officer states that, as an outcome of the frauds committed, it has been necessary to in improvements in the cable connections to the taximeter and the flag-indicating mechanism.
Blackpool has not yet made up its mind to buy a motor fire-engine. It appears to he waiting until the horses die.
W. A. Stevens, Ltd., has been requested by the Warrington Corporation to fit St. Helens tires to the new motorbuses it is constructing under contract.
Glasgow Corporation has for some time been considering the use of motorbuses in conjunction with some of its tramway services, but the matter still remains in that stage.
Garristown (Co. Dublin) is to be served by commercial motors, via Finglas, 'Si. Margaret's, Kilsaliaghan and Oldtown. The Rev_ joseph P. Wade, the parish priest of Garristown, largely deserves the credit for the institution of these services, which will begin on the 1st prox., and will be carried out with Com merca r machine,.
Dennis Bros., Ltd., has successfully tendered to the Metropolitan Asylums Board for the supply of three 10-passenger motorbuses for
I 480. The Board's contracts with the Avon India Rubber Co., Ltd., Dunlop Tyre Co., Ltd.' . Englebert Tyres, Ltd., and the Shrewsbury and Challiner Tyre Co., Ltd., have again been extended for a further period of three months. The latter contracts were similarly extended last January to allow the comparative merits of the tires supplied by the firms mentioned to be ascertained, but it was found that the period was not long enough.
Liverpool Corporation has accepted the tender of Leylands Motors, Ltd., at 2510, for the supply and delivery of a petrol motor tender, ..:\yr Town Council recently bought an old Shand Mason steam lire-engine, which was constructed some 11 years ago, from the Glasgow Brigade.
Recent interesting company registrations in India include: Gauliatis Shillong Motor Transport Co., Calcutta, capital 300,000 Rs. ; District Motor Service Co., Bombay, capital 100,000 Es.; Panskura Tamluk and Maitisadal Motors, general carriers, Bengal, capital 100,000 Rs.
In his annual report for the past year, the general manager of the Liverpool tramways remarks upon the satisfactory manner in which the motorbuses obtained from W. A. Stevens, Ltd., in November last, have worked. "They are," he states, " operated at a much lower cost than the ordinary motorbus, and are greatly appreciated by the public owing to their smooth running and comparatively little noise."
Associated Omnibus Co.
This company, rescued by the London General Omnibus Go., Ltd., shown a loss for the year 1912 of £31,407. The total balance of the debit of profit and loss account is 242,498. The company is none the less on a sound commercial basis, both now and prospectively. It may be recalled that the L.G.O.C. sold 55 modern motorbuses to the concern in •exchange for 150,000 of second debentures. These vehicles will be worked and maintained by the L.G.O.C. at a fixed price of 8.5d. per mile—upon which it may be fairly concluded there is a satisfactory profit—until the 31st October, 1932, the original vehicles being replaced by new ones when and as required. Any excess of revenue, subject to averaging, is profit for the Associated Omnibus Co., Ltd.