THE END OF THE ROAD
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S.T.R. Contributes his Last Article of a Series that has Run Since 1920 and Looks Back Over 37 Years of Road Haulage
/AM proud of my nom de plume. More people know me as S.T.R. than those who refer to me by my real name. This article brings to an end a series which began in 1920. It will now be continued by another author and under a different title. Nevertheless, the service given to the road transport industry under the heading of "Solving the Problems of the Carriers' will carry on its 36 years of tradition.
The change in authorship is brought about by that inexorable factor, " Anno Domini." Last. month I celebrated my 71st birthday. Now the editor has asked me to relate to my readers and friends in the industry how this series began, and to recount some of the highlights.
One day in December, 1919, I was having lunch with the editor of The Commercial Motor, at that time Mr. George F. Sharp. I prophesied in the course of our conversation that many thousands of members of the motor transport section of the R.A.S.C. returning from the 1914-18 war would be anxious to make use of the knowledge of transport they had learned in the Services, and be spending their gratuities on the purchase of one or a few lorries, with the idea of making a living as haulage contractors.
I pointed out that whereas the returning soldiers would be well able to operate their t vehicles and keep them roadworthy, so far as commercial knowledge was concerned they would be almost completely ignorant. They would have almost no business experience and would be unable to reckon the proper charges which would make their operations profitable. I suggested to Mr. Sharp that The Commercial Motor should run a series of articles to help such men gain commercial acumen.
He agreed, and commissioned me to write these articles, the first of which was entitled " Hints for Hauliers" and appeared in the issue of The Commercial Motor dated January 6, 1920. Naturally, Mr. Sharp wanted to know what I knew about costs and rates and how I would deal with the subject. Up to that time my contributions had related to the servicing and maintenance of vehicles.
Solving Problem the Ca
My answer was that some years before, I had been employed in the vehicle department of Walker Bros. (Wigan), Ltd., makers of Pagefield lorries, whose first goods vehicle was a sturdy 2-tonner with a two-cylindered engine, For its day it was a good vehicle and gave satisfaction to its users. However, there was one vehicle which was always in the repair shop and it occurred to me that its cost of running must be rather high. Pursuing an idle thought, I called for the book in which were recorded the individual histories of each vehicle and looked up the data referring to this one, trying first to find out the operator's initial capital expenditure on it.
From that time on 1 continued to collect figures on the operating costs of different types of vehicle, obtaining the information from various sources, including friends who were running lorries and coaches of all kinds. Indeed I made quite, a hobby of it, with the result that by 1920 1 had over 10 years collected an appreciable amount of useful information. My first article dealt with a simple accounting system for the recording of operating costs. The wisdom of my choice of subject may be shown by the fact that in response to recurrent demands the topic has recurred many times in the intervening years. Response in the form of correspondence—always a significant mark of appreciation—cane quickly. Letters began to flow into my office and thereafter never ceased. My next series dealt with commercial aspects of running what in those days were called chars-à-bancs; now we call them coaches. The vexed question of licences came up, and this matter is still familiar. In those days, however, it was much more complicated than it is now, believe it or not. Another early series was devoted to the payment of bonuses to drivers. I have re-read it recently and it holds good today. 1 suggested that ,the basis of a driver's bonus scheme should be economy and safety,. and coupled with it a warning against the abuse of vehicles_
Even in 1920 the serpent, in the form ot the rate-cutter, was rearing its ugly head. I had severely to censure a haulier for charging as little as 2s. a mile for the operation of a 3-tonner, and I gave him facts and figures to show that his minimum rate should be 2s. 9d. Next followed a series on bow to get business, including advice on painting. and lettering vehicles, advertising and the design of letter headings—matters a little outside my main subject of costs and charges but nevertheless interesting.
Rose by Another Name
By 1925, the title of my series of articles was altered to "Problems of the Haulier and Carrier," and in this year changed my nom de plume. Until then I had used the name "Skotch." A play on my middle name, it was intended to indicate that my purpose was to save the haulier from running back downhill. One article was signed " Scrutator," but it was discovered that someone else was using that name in one of the daily papers.
Although he was not dealing with anything so technical as road haulage, I decided not to continue to use the name but I was nevertheless reluctant to abandon it. So I decided to use the first, middle and last letters of the same word, thus arriving at "S.T.R." I have used it since, and hope that this explanation will bring to an end the seemingly endless stream of inquiries I have received as to bow T came to use these mystic three letters.
Various trends in the road transport industry owe their origin to me. In June, 1920, 1 strongly, advised hauliers to form local groups, to band themselves together in an Informal manner and deal with the problems of rate-cutting and return loads, I recommended that these groups, when formed, should elect from their membership a central committee to deal with bigger problems.
do not claim to have originated The Commercial Motor' Tables of Operating Costs." They were in existence before the 1914-18 war, although in a much more simple form than they are today. It was not long before 1 realized that some sort of schedule including not only costs but
also rates was required to supplement my articles. In October, 1920, I therefore produced a set of tables which, whilst not as extensive or comprehensive as those of today, nevertheless established a standard as regards layout and form which has not since been changed.
In December of that year, I followed the publication of the Tables with articles dealing with establishment costs and profits, and drew up some supplementary tables which, combined with data for expenses, indicated what customers should be charged
Origin of the Tables
About 1932, it occurred to me that direct contact with hauliers would help me attain my object, namely that of educating them in ways of costing and assessment of rates so that the tendency to cut rates could be diminished. At first my suggestion to do this failed to obtain acceptance. Perhaps I was wrong in my method of approach. However, I eventually won through and in February, 1934,1 delivered my first lecture on charges to the newly formed Cambridge and Ely Sub-area of the Road Haulage Association.
I remember the occasion well, because two Cambridge undergraduates learned of My intended visit and invited me to call upon them. 1 did so and found to my surprise that, notwithstanding that they were students at the university, they were also running a coach business. 1 had dinner with them in Hall before proceeding to my lecture. They have since established themselves firmly in passenger transport.
By 1935, the lectures "caught on," and I continued to address contractors all over the country until the war broke out and made the holding of such meetings impracticable. I thoroughly enjoyed this work. In one week I delivered as many as eight lectures. I made hundreds of friends, most of whom still refer to me as S.T.R.
It is all over now, and by some strange chance the end, as the beginning, was lunch with the editor, now Mr. G. Mackenzie Junner, at the Royal Automobile Club.