Appeal Decision Not Known :
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6 6 B.T.C. Favoured" WHEN, before the North Western TV Deputy Licensing Authority last week, Mr. A. W. Balne, for the British Transport Commission, quoted the decision of the Transport Tribunal in the Williams Bros. appeal. Mr. E. A. Whitehead, for T. Hesketh, Ltd., Widnes, said that he had never heard of it.
Appeals were not published, Mr. Whitehead stated, and untilthey were available to everyone they should not be used by the Commission, who were in a favourable position' to obtain them. There might be other decisions having a bearing on his clients' case.
The company applied for the renewal of an A licence for a vehicle of Si tons unladen weight with a normal user of " all classes of goods, Liverpool, London, Widnes and as required." Mr. Whitehead explained that Mr. T. Hesketh was granted an A licence for an articulated outfit in 1948. . Subse quently a rigid vehicle was substituted for it and was taken over by T. Hesketh, Ltd. When the licence was renewed in 1951, the normal user was all I.C.l. goods as required." I.C.I. work had now ceased and the former normal user was sought.
Mr. J. A. Williams. senior partner of Messrs. J. A. Williams and Son. Liverpool, said that his firm acquired the shares of T. Hesketh, Ltd., in 1954. 'Work for 1.C.1. was not continued gild the vehicle was brought to Liverpool because it was wanted for other work.
Mr. Balne said that the application should be refused. The facts were almost identical with those of the Williams Bros. appeal decision. A vehicle had been purchased with the intention of abandoning the purpose for which it had been licensed.
The Authority said that he supported Mr. Balne's view, but would adjourn the case to give Mr. Whitehead time to study the Williams Bros. decision. Mr. -Whitehead asked for a sufficient adjournment to enable him to communicate With the Tribunal on the question of unreported appeal decisions.
This was the sixth adjournment of the case. The previous hearing was reported in The Commercial Motor on January 11.
[Decisions on all important appeals are circulated by the Tribunal to the Press and are reported in The Commercial Motor.]
SUCCESS OF BRIDGEMASTER IN WALSALL
AA N• A.C.V. Bridgemaster doubledeck bus which has been operating in Walsall for the past three weeks is reported to be giving excellent results. Mr. R. Edgley Cox, general manager of Walsall Transport Department, told The Commercial Motor last week that the suspension of the Bridgcmaster was particularly notable.
The bus has been operating on the 12.6-mile route between Walsall and Hednesford, via Chasetown, a service with high passenger loadings. The vehicle's low centre of gravitY and improved suspension are said to be valuable on rural sections of the route. and on roads affected by mining subsidence..
NEW SHOT-BLASTING PLANT
rAA NEW mechanized shot-blasting department has been built by Leyland Motors, Ltd., to deal with the increased flow of components, such as camshafts, bevel wheels and pinions, pivot pins and king-pins, required to meet the rising rate of vehicle output. Quality of the finish of treated components has been improved, it is claimed, and a night shift is no longer necessary. Working conditions have been improved,
Rail Receipts Up 14.4m. in a Month
IN the four weeks ended January 27— a period in which fuel rationing was already in force—British Railways' freight receipts increased by 11 per cent. fi2.8m.) over those for the corresponding period last year. Similarly, passenger receipts were up by 22 per cent. (X1 .6m.).
These figures are contained in statistics issued by the British Transport Commission last Friday.
Of the freight traffic, the two groups, merchandise and livestock (17 per cent.) and parcels by passenger train (11 per cent.), show the greatest increases. The other three groups—minerals, coal and coke, and collection and delivery—have increased uniformly by.7 per cent.
The B.T.C. estimate that 6 per cent. of the 17 per cent, expansion in merchandise and livestock traffic is the result of higher charges not in operation a year ago. Only 2 per cent, of the rise in coal and coke receipts is attributed to diversion from road to rail. The return of long-distance traffic to rail has, however, increased.
RAIL COSTS HIGHER: TRAFFIC WILL RETURN
WHEN the House of Lords discussed the Transport (Railway Finances) Bill last week, Lord Lucas of Chilworth said that those traders who had had to transfer their traffic from road to rail, because of fuel rationing, had found that delivery times were longer and rates from 50-200 per cent. greater.
" Undoubtedly much of the traffic which now goes by rail will go back to the roads when petrol rationing ends," he said.
Lord Hurcomb, former chairman of the British Transport Commission, welcomed the Bill, which seeks to underwrite the railways' losses to a maximum of £250m. by means of loans.
The Bill passed its second reading.
TWO OUT OF THREE GRANTED IN a reserved decision the Yorkshire i Licensing Authority has granted an addition of two vehicles to the A licence of Mr.' Hamilton Bell/Halifax. Three extra vehicles had been sought.
As reported in The Commercial Motor on January 11, the Authority had been told that Mr. Bell's 18 vehicles were engaged mainly upon. parcels work, and four additional vehicles were kept unlicensed for maintenance purposes. The system had become uneconomic because of increasing business, JOINT SERVICE IN GLASGOW? TALKS between Glasgow Transport I Committee and the Scottish Omnibuses group have, it is understood, resulted in a proposal that the two undertakings should operate a joint service for the Easterhouse housing estate in the east end of the city. The proposal has to be approved by the corporation.