Still Big Demand for
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Small Units A STRONG plea that the British ri Transport, Commission should continue to offer small units after the issue of List 7 was made by the National Conference of Road Transport Clearing Houses at a meeting in London on Tuesday evening. There was claimed to he a large unsatisfied demand for units of this kind, as well as for lots of 20-30 vehicles in good condition.
The Conference held that the Minister of Transport had been wrongly advised in finding that the demand for small units was now satisfied and urged that the basis of valuation, whereby the Commission told the Road Haulage Disposal Board the value of the vehicles and licences, should be altered.
It was claimed that many past bids had been extravagantly high.
Haulier members of the Conference were sharply critical of the constitution of units and of the condition of vehicles sold. Mr. H. Firth, who presided at the meeting, said that the type and age of vehicle offered in lists up to No. 6 had not been attractive to experienced ex-hauliers. He had asked that a unit of four 7-ton vehicles in a certain locality should be offered, but he had had no satisfaction.
Mr. J. F. Archbold declared that large vehicles should be offered individually. He understood that Leeds was to be one of the trunk-service areas of British Road Services and that few heavy vehicles were to be offered there.
. Mr. a Drake, of Stoke-on-Trent, said that the average age of lots of 20-30 vehicles so far offered was about 11 years. He quoted a case of a unit of 19 vehicles-10 petrol and nine oil— of six different makes with an average age of 13 years. The total unladen weight was 83 tons. The unit included " derelict" leasehold premises, the lease of which expired in 18 months, leaving the leaseholder with a heavy liability. A tender of £15,000 for this unit was, he said, rejected.
Mr. Firth cited a unit of four 5-6-ton vehicles, of an average age of 12 years, for which a tender of £1,200 was rejected when the lot was offered in List I. It was sold in List R2 for f1,500.. He said that two 1942 Bedford 5-6-tonners had fetched 11.250.
Hauliers expressed the fear that trunk services would become the monopoly of big companies and B.R.S.