Ensuring the Safety of Human -Freight.
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CON SI])ERABLE attention 'is usually paid to the safeguarding of delicate merchandise and other valuable goods which Might suffer through careless handling or accidents, but is sufficient attention paid to the most precious freights of all—men, women and children? Life must be considered as-the most valuable of all assets, and everything possible should be done to preserve it inviolate. That in certain cases this care is taken is shown by our informative article on the training of the drivers and conductors who man London's buses, but • should it rest with a company to instill the principles of cautious driving and consideration for other users of the road, as well as for pedestrians? Certainly. the police, both in London and in cm-Lain neighbourhoods outside the Metropolis, have inaugurated tests which drivers of public service vehicles must pass before they may be licensed, but in the majority of cases the coach driver is accepted without any such proof of his efficiency and capabilities.
Why this should be so it is difficult to understand. The coach driver is perhaps in an even more responsible position than the bus driver. The latter travels over familiar routes, and is thoroughly cognizant of the traffic conditions, but the coach driver may be called upon to take his vehicle to any part of the country, practically at a moment's notice. In many cases the routes are strange ; steep hills, blind turnings, and other difficulties of the road cannot be known beforehand, particularly if the driving be done by night when the usual warning signals are difficult to .observe.
We do not suggest that the licensing authorities or the police should themselves undertake the teaching of the drivers, but we believe that they should enforce the thorough training of drivers by those who own the. coaches. This training should' not merely include instruction in driving, but should be so thorough that the driver will be able to perform any small running repairs. that may be required, and be sufficiently qualified to make a thorough examination of his vehicle in order to detect any small.weaknesses or need for adjustments which may exist. .
White on the subject of examining coaches, it might be as well to point out the urgent necessity for more ' frequent inspections of the chassis by competent, engineers. Considering the number of coaches in operation, accidents are comparatively few, but they should he fewer still. Brakes, especially, should. receive the strictest care, as upon them depends the.
• safety of the passengers. Certain municipalities R17 have appointed inspectors, one of whose duties is to pass the coaches as being mechanically fit before they are relicensed. This is quite a good scheme, but it must be remembered that licensing takes place only once a year, and examinations should be made far more frequently than this. In many districts a few irresponsible owner-drivers who do not pay sufficient care to their machines may easily spoil the market for those who are more con scientious, The public, whilst enjoying riding in coaches, will only do so if they can rely upon the safety of the vehicles, and it is essential to foster and engender confidence in those whom they wish to attract and upon whom they rely for their livelihood.
The Control of Petrol and Oil Pumps.
LAST WEEK we published a short article dealing with some tests of petrol measuring pumps recently conducted by inspectors of the London County Council. Some 68 pumps of two patterns, both approved by the Board of Trade, were examined, and only 23 were found to give correct measure, or measure within the limits of error permitted under the Board of Trade regulations for conical petrol measures of similar capacity. In certain cases the quantities delivered exceeded those indicated, the maximum excess being one and a half pints, but against this there is the fact that deficiencies up to one pint were also observed in a comparatively large number of cases, and that 31 of the instruments gave short measure either all the time or intermittently.
In any case, these results are highly unsatisfactory and are by no means calculated to impress the public with the benefits which are supposed to be derived by it through making use of the new facilities provided in many quarters throughout the country. That this should be so is most unfortunate, for that there are reasonably correct and otherwise satisfactory pumps and measuring devices no one can deny, and it is manifestly unfair that they should all be made to suffer under a . burden of doubt through the shortcomings of the minority. Legislation for dealing with the difficulty is already being sought by the Board of Trade in order to bring all petrol and oil measuring pumps under propel control and subject to periodical inspection ; but, so far, this has not been obtained, in spite of the urgent need. It is certain that makers of really good instruments are convinced that it is to their advantage to have the matter placed on a really sound basis, and the public can well afford to dispense with the doubtful service rendered by those pumps the indicated measurements of which may be questioned. In the meantime, at least one measuring device has been submitted to the National Physical Laboratory, and the makers of other pumps might well follow this example, although even the satisfactory results obtained in these tests do not guarantee that these pumps will continue to function correctly after a period of use ; it is only by constant supervision that the buyer can be protected, and until this is given he may be excused for entertaining doubts as to meter veracity.
Do You Read the Papers ?
WE had a lesson in care and thoroughness the other day, which we thought would bear being passed on. We met the chief designer of a big concern in the motor industry and, in the course of conversation, asked his opinion upon a matter which was prominently referred ta in the then current issue of Tke Commercial Motor. He seemed to know nothing about it and goon was compelled to admit that he "did not the read the papers so much as he would like. Of course, he had important items marked and the papers laid on his desk, but
that week he had been busy ,.. B iS
We were rather tired of listening to his apologies, as a matter of fact, but the sequel was very curious. Later in the day (it was at one of the big shows) we met the managing director of the company employing the designer to whom we have referred, and he himself broached the selfsame subject, saying he had been intensely interested in the article in this journal. "And," said he, "I am going to discuss it with our drawing. office, for I believe there is the germ of something good there and I want to know how they view the matter."
Instantly we felt sorry for the chief designer, for we knew that he would have to confess that he had not read the article and we scented a severe lecture, of which he would be the recipient. The engineering department, the body-building department and the sales department should all make it a part of their business to read the papers dealing with the industry in which they are engaged. It is essential to each that everything which is going on in the particular part of the trade in which they are concerned should be known. A lead in this direction is best set by the managing director, who should insist upon a study of the journals each week, with a comment to him by each department upon any new move, line of thought or policy or development that may promise importance.
Recently we were going round the works of one of the leading concerns in the industry, our guide being one of the directors of the company, and we were surprised and gratified (we say it without hesitation) to find that he must be a close reader of this journal, for he made four or five references to matters which had received attention in its columns, and, in one instance, remarked, as he led us to a vehicle which was going through one of the shops, "This should interest you, as showing what we are trying to do to meet a certain need. You will remember that a little while ago you said —," and so on. We could not help offering up the hope that this same spirit of keeping closely in touch with modern thought was more general in the trade than we had hitherto suspected.
Criticisms of the War Office Transport Vehicle.
LETTERS continue to reach us regarding the transport vehicle specified by the War Office and considered by it to meet the requirements of the Army in all possible spheres of activity, and which it is' hoped will become popular amongst ordinary users so that there will be a large number of vehicles upon which to draw in the event of national emergency. We publish a certain number of these in another part of this issue, and it will be noted that, whilst a few makers are satisfied with the proposition, the majority consider that it might have been improved upon in many respects. It is only natural that makers should not entirely agree with all the points contained in a design which differs from those of their own vehicles. There are usually a good many ways of performing a task, and as to which is chosen is greatly a matter of individual judgment. The criticisms we have received, however, are in most cases of considerable value, as, generally speaking, they are unbiased and should prove a useful guide in the event of any modifications of the original design being permitted either now or at some future date.
It appears that, as we mentioned last week, the problem of designing a satisfactory vehicle which will embody all the details laid down by the War Office and yet will keep within the weight limit of 29 cwt. is, perhaps, the greatest obstacle which has to be overcome, and it is also one which is bound to increase the cost of manufacture, as cutting down the weight limit means that the amount of machining that has to be done must most certainly be increased, and machining is the most expensive item in the manufacture of any vehicle.
Criticisms of the War Office Transport Vehicle.