Dutch Fleets Regain Strength
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BEFORE the German invasion, Holland had 4,500 buses, but immediately after the war the number was 508. By July 1 this year the figure had grown to 5,143; 225 were put into service in 1950 and 163 in the first half of this year. Twenty-four of these 163 were made in Holland.
From the date of liberation until July 1, 30,232 vans and 46,991 lorries were added to Dutch goods-vehicle fleets, many of which came from exmilitary vehicle dumps. The total number of vans and lorries in Holland on April 1, 1951, was 81,618, some 42,000 being new machines. Until this year, imports of commercial vehicles were as follows: 1946, 801; 1947, 646, 1948, 2,698; 1949, 3,081; 1950, 3,509; first half of 1951, 1,433. Dutch production had risen as follows: 1949, 122; 1950,988; first half of 1951, 745.
The decrease in imports is caused partly by protective measures for home industry and is reflected by figures for French, Swedish and German deliveries. Imports from Britain, however, rose in the first six months of this year and included 479 Fordson lorries, compared with 644 for the whole of last year.