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WEST MIDLAND SUSPENSIONS MoreSenrices T AST week, at a Section
Page 46
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178 inquiry at I—I Birmingham, Red House Motor Services Ltd., of Coventry, had three of their 13 vehicles licensed in the West Midland traffic area suspended for three months. They were among nine operators called before the West Midland Licensing Authority, Mr. J. Else.
The LA said that in the past year 11 immediate and five delayed prohibitions had been imposed on Red House vehicles. During a fleet inspection five immediate and two delayed GV9s were issued, but even after this the company had not recognized the "writing on the wall" that all was not well with its maintenance facilities.
Since January, when the fleet check was completed, no worth-while steps had been taken to put things in order, said Mr. Else. Evidence had been given of the difficulty of obtaining skilled labour, but this was true for the whole of the West Midland conurbation. However, it was not so much a matter of staff shortage as a lack of a proper system of maihtenance and replacement. Set against a total fleet of 70, the spending of £16,000 a year on replacements did not seem excessive.
In evidence, Mr. Whittaker, assistant secretary of the company, told of the delay in the receipt of replacement vehicles of the heavier type. Four Saunmell units and trailers had been on order for six months. The company had lost a manager and a foreman fitter and had been unable to replace them. Nevertheless, he agreed that the vehicles were not checked on a strict rota basis.
F. Hill and Co. (Hauliers) Ltd., of Dudley, had one vehicle suspended for two months. Mr. Else said that the company was last before him in September, 1965, following a number of prohibitions and convictions, and he had adjourned the case to give Hill a chance to put things right. But during a fleet inspection in February nine delayed prohibitions—two on the same vehicle—had been issued. Ministry examiner Mr. A. K. Pearce said that no maintenance records of any kind were available.
Mr. F. Hill said he had 14 vehicles in his fleet, mostly tippers. Three or four vehicles a week were checked for faults and maintenance was carried out on Saturdays and Sundays. He felt he was being asked to establish an impossibly high standard of maintenance.
Mr. T. A. Murphy, a coal merchant of Erdington, Birmingham, had one of his four-vehicle B-licensed fleet deleted from the licence. The vehicle examiner concerned said it looked more like a coal-burning chimney than a vehicle chassis. Mr. Murphy told the LA that he had now scrapped the vehicle.
Other operators either warned or whose cases were adjourned pending fleet inspection or further visits from vehicle examiners were; Wyrley Transport Ltd., Great Wyrley; Ford Green Aviaries and Livestock, Stokeon-Trent; W. H. Ewins and Sons, Henleyin-Arden; Latham Haulage Co., Ltd., Marton, Rugby; W. R. Rickards (Transport) Ltd., Coleshill; J. Cadman and Co. Ltd., Stoke-on-Trent. QEVEN applications by United Automobile
Services Ltd., Darlington, to run bus services in the Middlesbrough area have been granted. The applications were scheduled to come before the Northern Traffic Commissioners at Durham earlier this month, but were settled out of court.
A service between Middlesbrough and North
aileron has now been allowed following an agreement with H. Atkinson and Son (Ingleby) Ltd. Redcar Borough and Eston Urban Councils had objected to services between Middlesbrough and Redcar, Dormanstown and Whitby, West Hartlepool and Saltburn, Middlesbrough and Saltburn, Middlesbrough and Recicar and Saltburn and Whitby. Agreement has also been reached on these applications.
The application by Scotts Greys Ltd., Darlington, to run excursions and tours from Newton Aycliffe has been deferred. Objections have been received from United Automobile Services Ltd., Durham District Services Ltd., and Wilkinson's Motor Services Ltd.