Unwise Allocation of Traffics
Page 22
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Potatoes and Other Vegetables are Being Allowed to Rot Whilst the Railways Find Great Difficulty in Handling Sufficient Supplies of Coal. Road Transport Could Relieve the Position
By Tantalus"
THE stocks of potatoes in London and other areas Ate diminishing rapidly owing to lack of transport, and a definite shortage is threatened Arising out of this situation, the North Lindsey branch of the National Farmers' Union has passed a resolution urging the potato section of the Ministry of Food to arrange for road and water transport for all potatoes purchased.
In a recent issue of ' The Daily Telegraph,' the sbove statement was published, with the added informatien that large stocks are held in Lincolnshire and East Anglia. This provides yet a further example of the state of affairs obtaining asa result of road-transport restrictions and, particularly. as it affects those people residing in •the Metropolis. It may be •rememtIered that, some time ago, attention was drawn to the same influencing factor in relation to plums and vegetables. On that occasion, in one case the supplies were being dug in for manure, whilst in the, other bumper crops were rotting because Of the emba;go placed upon road haulage In the matter of the plum traffic however, the limited radius eventually was extended.
The public will not have forgotten the extensive propaganda campaign "Eat More Potatoes " which was sponsored by the Ministry of Food, as ale ■ the organized ' demOnstrations respecting various new ways of cooking this particular vegetable which, on numerous occasions, were intensified by wireless talks. All this was, done at great cost in an effort to induce the community to teat snore potatoes. Now there is warning of the danger of a shortage, and this owing to lack of transport.
It is incomprehensible that such a 'position ever should arise and more than difficult to understand the principles which govern decisions in these matters. However vital . are the various types of war production, they could not be undertaken without the distribution to the workers of adequate supplies of essential foods. So far as potatoes are concerned, it is not a case of shortage of the commodity, but simply lack of transport which threatens the. consumer.
Now turn to the, latest publicity announcement issued by the Ministry of Fuel and Power. It is headed, " Factory Coal—Urgent," and states that the.industrial coal situation is extremely serious and that nothing short of' drastic measures can meet the emergency. The statement continues that the demands of military operations on a vast , scale are putting an acute strain on transport. An appeal is directed to managers in industry to set rail trucks free with the least possible delay. • • Production Useless Without Transport
Whilst, admittedly, the humble potato is far removed from coal, nevertheless both are essential commodities and are equally dependent upon transport for their usefulness It is wasteful to produce either unless, in the one instance, the consumer can obtain the potatoes and, in the other. the coal can be delivered at the factories and on the warplant sites.
Then there is the important question concerning the uses to which the various forms of transport are put to serve the different national needs. Those engaged in road haulage claim that the facilities available are not used to the best advantage and that, in many ways, the repressive restrictions have impeded rather than accelerated the war effort. On the other hand, the railway companies, from time to time, assert by way of propaganda the large • extent to which war production depends upon their services. Whilst, undoubtedly, there' is much to be said in favour of the railways, there also is abundant evidence to support the claims of road transport. The latter, obviously, has not been permitted to function to the fullest extent and has. been deliberately prevented. from operating to the maximum capacity of its potentialities.
To revert to the industrial-coal situation. If this 13:
so extremely serious as stated, which, no doubt, it is, would it not be possible to divert some of the traffic from the .railways to road transport? Thus could some of the rail trucks be released for the transport of coal in the present emergency. Having regard to the large number of Vehicles now controlled and to the reports still being received that an unduly large proportion of such vehicles is either running light or with part loads, this should not be too difficult to arrange. In addition, there are the hired vehicles which, cumulatively, constitute a large 'fleet that could be fully employed. . Why should not' convoys be organized to relieve the situation and to prevent any possible " bottle-necks " which might arise out of the existing emergency? The problem regarding the, production and transport of coal is not one which has been thrust suddenly upon the Nation. On the contrary, it is one which has predominated through successive years. Therefore there is do excuse for those in authority and responsible for controlling national transport services not using to the fullest extent the resources at their disposal.
Road Transport Unwisely Restricted If road transport had not been so severely penalized, but had been permitted to operate unmolested for the good of the State, many of the transport muddles and jams never would have occurred. This in no wise would have prejudiced the position Of the railway companies, neither would it have prevented their facilities being used to capacity. It would, in fact, have provided better opportunities of handling the output of the basi,c industries which are so vital to the war effort.
There are grounds for assuming that,. in some industries, the railways have been and still areoverloaded by the weight of the trafficsthrust upon them; whilst, at the same time, road vehicles are idle or partially so. By no stretch of imagination can this state of affairs be regarded as best serving the national interest. Some light on the persisting Government policy towards'
✓ oad transport may be obtained from a perusal of the financial returns of the railway companies. An unofficial estimate of the past year's net railway revenue is given at 2120,000,000. For 1942 the figure amounted to 289,126,000, which left the Government with a windfall of 245,600,000. 10..1941 the net return was £65,125,000, o ut of which the profit to the Government was 421,600,000. If the estimate of 2120,000,000 for 1943 be realized, the Government profit will be 276,500,000. Whether or not the two totals be at too high a, level remains to be seen. In Some quarters an estimate of between 2400,000,000 and 2120,000,000 is given strong support. Whatever the final figure may prove to be, the Government is assured of a very: handsome profit. During the past three years it has received something like 2143,000,000, which means a generouscontribution to the National Exchequer,
What a striking contrast is provided by the experience of many hauliers during the same period; they know only too well the meaning of restrictions. Numerous are the hardship stories resulting from the repressive measures imposed. It would be illuminating to ascertain the percentage of revenue represented in the railway returns as a result of the restrictions imposed upon the road-transport industry. •
That one section of the industry should be allowed to flourish and prosper at the expense of another seems very unjust and contrary to all British traditions It is hoped, therefore, that in this fifth year of war, when the Nation. may be called upon for a supreme effort, road haulage may have its fetters removed and be permitted to play its fall part in the fight for victory.