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WHEELS of INDUSTRY
Page 64
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"The wheels of wealth will be slowed by all difficulties of transport at whatever points arising, as a carriage is iv As roughness of the roads over which it runs."—John Beattie Crozier.
Second Meeting of the National Conference.
On Monday last over 100 delegates from all parts of the country took part in the second meeting of the Conference of National Organizations, called together by the Commercial Motor Users Association to consider the Salter Report. The purpose of the meeting was to receive the report of the special committee appointed at the first meeting of the conference and which issued " The Case for Trade and Industry." The chair was occupied by Alderman Sir William Lobjoit, 0.B.E., J.P., and the following resolutions were adopted : (a) That this adjourned conference of national organizations interested in road transport thanks the special committee appointed at the last meeting for the reply to the report of the Conference on Rail and Road Transport which it has submitted to the Minister of Transport and which has been published, and adopts it as substantially representing the case of trade and industry against the report.
(b) That the special committees be reappointed to wait upon the Minister of Transport on behalf of the national organizations and to confer with Members of Parliament to take steps tc; establish a road-transport group in Parliament to watch the interests of trade and industry in connection with road transport.
Improvements in Rubber Roadways.
There are now 12 examples of rubber roadway in the country, including 1.200 sq. yds. of the Gaisman improved block, which was kid in August in Market Street, Huddersfield.
Sir Stanley Bois, at a recent general meeting of Rubber Roadways, Ltd.; referred to the rubber paving laid in New Bridge Street, London. The traffic in this street is probably the heaviest in the world, the census showing that it is 48,500 tons for the daily 12 hours, and, adding night traffic, would be in the region of 60,000 tons for the 24 hours. There is now a proposal to pave Lombard Street with the Gaismau block, but the Corporation of the City of London has asked for a trial of the improved Gaisman block in New Bridge Street, so that its behaviour under this severe traffic can be observed.
World Petroleum Production Lower.
Preliminary figures indicate that the world production of petroleum in 1932 will total about 1,300,000,000 barrels, or about 69,000.000 fewer than in 1931, according to a review of the world situation by the Henry L. Doherty Co. A decline of 61,000,000 barrels in American production is chiefly responsible for the fall.
The production of the Russian, Rumanian and Persian fields, which increased by some 42,000,000 barrels in 1931, will, this year, show an aggregate loss of about 11,000;000 barrels.
Amongst the outstanding developc22 ments of the year is the increasing cooperation in the United States in legislative matters connected with oil conservation in the most important states.
Revision of Insurance Terms.
A statement was recently issued by the tariff insurance companies concerning important revisions'in insurance policies and rates ,for motor vehicles. a.,The no-claims bonus for commercial vehicles is to be progressive, 10 per cent. after the first year, 15 per cent, after the second, and 20 per cent after the third. Rates for private cars are not being altered, but private cars used for business purposes, such as the conveyonce of samples, will be rated on the private-car scale with the addition of a percentage according to use, whilst the wider benefits accorded by the, privatecar policy will now apply.
Goods vehicles will be rated by their load capacity, and not oil the basis of horse power and value, as has hasp the case with the lighter types up to 30 cwt. It concerns only the ancillary user, who, in many cases, will pay less.
,Certain insurance companies already give a cumulative no-claims bonus, increasing to 20 per cent. in three years. For instance, this has been the practice of the Eagle Star and British Dominions Insurance Co., Ltd., and its subsidiary company, Premier Policies, Ltd., for the past seven years.
Mr. W. H. Gaunt Defends Himself.
Mr. 0. C. Power, traffic manager of the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd., presided at a meeting held last week under the aaspices of the City of Birmingham Commercial College, the purpose being to consider the Salter Report.
The speaker was Mr. W. H. Gaunt, a member of the Road and Rail Conference. He stated thatAle onigin of the conference was much —.more than a tussle between road and rail for the upper hand. The railway manifesto in January only brought to a head the feelings of others than the railways— local authorities, heavy basic industries. canal and coastal shipping—that, in one way and another, heavy commercial road users are being subsidized out of public funds, as against other interests.
The £60,000,000 road-cost figura., he said, was fixed by the conference only after a careful consideration of all the facts. He personally would not-'support a figure which would not provide for the steady development of roads, for tins would be harmful to road interests. The Royal Commission said, three years ago, that motor users might fairly pay two-thirds of road expenditure, and other users one-third. Since that time, motor users in number and weight and in petrol consumed had increased by 30 per cent, and, according to the A.A. census, there has been a 46 per cent, increase over 1928 in heavy traffic.
It was entirely for the Minister to decide how far the operations of publicservice vehicles entitled them to be viewed in a less logical light than other heavy commercial vehicles.
Replying to a question by Mr. Gunwell as to why all the bodies constituent to the Standing Joint Committee from which the four road representatives were appointed had opposed the report, he said that they did not go as representatives of any particular body They were warned repeatedly throughout the proceedings that they were not there as delegates, but were there to express their opinion as representative men. From the first, the Minister frowned on the idea of any Particular label for any particular man.
Mr. Gaunt also said that the railways were asked whether they considered themselves under any disability in regard to undue preference in classification and publication of rates and so on, and the answer was in the negative.
Our Next Issue.
The next issue of this journal dated November 18 will contain partici.larly interesting articles constituting a critique of the chassis and bodywork in the commercial-vehicle section of the Scottish Show. There will al.so be a commentary on the mechanically propelled exhibits at the Public Health Congress and Exhibition to be held at the Royal Agricultural Hall, London, Ni, from November 14-19.