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IRU Publishes Study on Infrastructure Costs

12th February 1965
Page 37
Page 37, 12th February 1965 — IRU Publishes Study on Infrastructure Costs
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

QIMPLICITY is the keynote of he policy favoured by IRU on infrastructure costs. In a pamphlet published last month entitled " Considerations on Infrastructure Policy -. IRU expresses general support for any method which accounts for annual track costs on the principle of a simple, direct reimbursement of financial cost, as against the principle of payment to the State of an economic cost for the community, whatever the basis for its calculation and justification.

Of the three methods now being discussed by the E.C.E., the Union favours the "effective expenditure" approach on the ground that it can be explained easily in Government publications and is therefore more readily comprehensible to the road user and the man in the street. This method is based upon the principle of exact repayment, year by year, of the financial burden borne by the State and local authorities, the total amount of which is published and can easily he checked by the users.

In the view of IRU investment expenditure on roads for development areas should not be attributed to motor traffic, as it has not been caused by such users, but by the public authorities which decided on this type of economic activity for the benefit of the areas.

More contentious perhaps is the statement that no expenditure on what the Union terms (but does not define) "major repairs" should be allocated to motor traffic. It considers that if a carriageway is properly maintained (the motor traffic making its fair share of the costs of this maintenance) the carriageway will have a normal life, at the end of which it must be either resurfaced or repaired. Whether it is a new investment or simply a renewal, a fair share of the cost of these

operations carried out at the end of a normal life will he, apportioned to motor traffic, less the . share attributable to weathering in shortening its life: •In all this IRU maintains that there is no place for "major repairs which arise only as the result of "gross negligence on the part of the public authorities", and it is essential that the road system . he managed on sound business principles and not regarded as a recurrent national catastrophe as a result of the negligence due to the public authorities ".

it is obvious that IRU has been obliged to issue' this pamphlet as a consequence of the large Place now given in transport policy to problems affecting infrastructure and the important studies currently being made on those problems by the various 'international organizations and. in particular, the Common Market.

Unfortunately, the foreword to the pamphlet stresses that ERG is not in a position at present to adopt any complete and final views—a statement which must necessarily weaken. the Value and effect

of the publication. '

TRANSPORT BRAINS TRUST A T the Hotel Russell, Russell Square. .1-1 London, W.C.I, on March 9, the London Centre of the Institute of Traffic Administration is to hold a transport brains trust in which the panel will represent an exceptionally wide range of interests.

Invited to be members Of the panel at this function, which starts at 7 p.m.. are Mr. R. Butler, lecturer at London University; Mr. R. Gresham Cooke, Conservative M.P. for Twickenham; Lord Lindgren, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport; and Mr. H. B. Phillips, group transport manager, George Cohen 600 Group Ltd. and chairman of the T.R.T.A. vehicles committee.


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