A.E.C. Chairman Calls for New Roads Policy A T the annual
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general meeting of the Associated Equipment Co., Ltd., held on Monday last, Mr. C. W. Reeve, the chairman, said that the fiveyear road programme, as at present revealed—important as it is—is still in the nature of a half measure. It eases little and -cures nothing ! T he need for an entirely new system of roads is not yet being treated with the urgency it demands, or upon the scale which the gravity of its nature makes so imperative. He expressed the view that nothing short of a new network of roads, planned on a national basis with a single central authority responsible for it, will serve appreciably to reduce the number of people killed and injured.
Ile commented on the effect of the tax on oil fuel, and said that it was apparent, in reviewing the year 1935, that there was a distinct decline, directly attributable to the tax, in the new registrations of heavy lorries, although in the case of passenger vehicles a slight increase was recorded. This increase, Mr. Reeve regarded as a purely temporary one, occasioned largely by the action of operating companies in
expediting their renewal programmes.
• In the year under review, 83 per cent. of the company's output of vehicles were equipped with oil engines. He stressed the need for encouragement in the design, development and sale of oil engines. I-le thought it disconcerting for those who had pioneered this type of power unit in this country to discover that, in spite of a start of several years, they were now being overhauled by foreigners in markets overseas.
Mr. Reeve made reference to the prominent part played by the company in the development of the trolleybus and, in referring to the fact that over 11,000 trams are still in use, said he hoped that they would, in the course of years, be replaced by the more modern type of vehicle.
Business overseas continues to be hedged about with tariff, quota and currency restrictions, although there are welcome signs of relaxation in this direction. The company has consolidated its position and made substantial progress in certain markets, although big efforts are being made to increase the volume of overseas trade.