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PARLIAMENT
Duties of Traffic Commissioners. Number of Goods Vehicles Increases. Glasgow-Edinburgh Road
By Our Special Parliamentary Correspondent
Tl3E Minister of Transport gives the following summary of the duties to be performed by the Area Traffic Commissioners:—
(1) The granting of public-servicevehicle licences and the inspection of such vehicles from the point of view of fitness and suitability.
(2) The granting and backing of road-service licences and the attaching of conditions thereto for the control and co-ordination of passenger services by road.
(3) The granting of licences to drive or to act as conductor of a public-service vehicle.
(4) The granting of consents to local authorities to operate public-service vehicles on routes outside their areas under Part V of the Act.
(5) Advising the Minister on orders made by local authorities under Section 90 of the Act in respect of the routes, stopping places, parking places and stands for public-service vehicles.
(6) All matters incidental to the above, such as :— (a) The holding of public sittings for the hearing of applications for, and objections to, the grant or backing of road-service licences and for other purposes.
(b) The collection of fees.
(c) The keeping of accounts and records.
(d) The presentation of an annual report, etc.
Danger from Road Repairs.
ATTENTION has been called to the ineffectiveness of the road controls established when road repairs are in progress, and the dangers resulting therefrom on main roads. Mr. Morrison pointed out that highway authorities' were under a statutory obligation to erect barriers and to light and guard repair works at night.
. Whilst he was not aware that they were under any statutory authority to provide controls, it was the practice to do so where necessary if they were carrying out the works themselves and to require the provision of such controls from contractors. Mr. Morrison had not received any complaint.
Increase of Goods Vehicles. ATAJOR GLYN has asked the Minis.131.ter of Transport whether, as the figures up to May 31st last show that there are issued 331,906 licences for good vehicles, being an increase of 61,305 since 1927, he would state how many of these vehicles have eapacities of three tons and over and how many are 30-cwt. machines.
Mr. Morrison replied in the following terms :—" A subdivision into weight categories of vehicles with licences cur rent in May last is not available. From the Census of Mechanically Propelled Vehicles, 1929; published by the Ministry of Transport, details of the numbers at the various taxation steps can be obtained in respect of vehicles with licences current during-any part of the quarter ended September 30th last.
"For the purpose of the comparison desired by Major Glyn it is necessary to exclude from the total quoted by him and from the corresponding total in the census return of 1929 the two groups designated as 'agricultural vans and lorries' and electrically propelled vehicles as the classification of these groups for taxation purposes does not include the three-ton and the 30-cwt. steps respectively.
"With the deduction of these two comparatively small groups of vehicles the number of goods motor vehicles with licencescurrent in September, 1929, was 325,947, and' 328,382 in May, 1930. Of the 325,947 vehicles inciuded in the census of September, 1929, 61,212 were goods vehicles of three tons or more in weight unladen and 63,278 were between one ton and 30 cwt.
"On the same basis the number of goods vehicles with current licences in September, 1927, was 281,542, of which 58,844 were three tons or more in weight unladen. No figure can be given for the number between one ton and 30 cwt., as the 30-cwt. step, for purposes of taxation, was not introduced until 1929."
Tay Road Bridge.
U
T NDERSTAND that the Dundee 1Harbour Trustees have agreed as to the practicability of a modified scheme for the erection of a road bridge over the
Tay. Questions affecting navigation are involved and the Minister of Transport recently stated that these had been discussed with the Trust by the engineers whose report was sent to Dundee Corporation for its information.
A conference of local authorities interested in the project will meet in Dundee, early next month, to discuss the
position. It is understood that the Government insists upon contributions from the local authorities to any scheme of such magnitude, if it be proceeded with, but the authorities are not clear as to the nature of the contribution that would be required.
With 'reference to the proposal to bridge the Forth, another meeting of the local authorities concerned will shortly take place to review the position.
Nearly 5,000,000 Licences.
T" number of motor-vehicle licences, excluding tramcar and trade licences, issued during the 12 months ended August 31st, 1930, it is officially stated, totalled 4,848,316, comprising annual licences, 848,039; part-year licence; 355,643; and quarterly licences, 3,644,634.
Glasgow-Edinburgh Road.
IT is anticipated that the full extent of the Glasgow-Edinburgh road will, with the exception of three short bypasses, be available for traffic before the end of the year. The final surfacing operations may not be entirely completed before the end of the year. The delay, Mr. Morrison explains, is partly due to negotiations with railway companies regarding bridges and partly to the fact that the constructional work on seven miles of the existing road was postponed until the cost of the other sections could be more closely determined.
Oxford City Traffic. Oxford City Traffic. NO application for assistance from the Road Fund towards the proposed scheme for the diversion of Through traffic from the streets of Oxford and involving the crossing of the river has yet been made to the Minister of Transport. Berks County Council has, however, submitted a scheme for the construction of a new road between South Hinksey and North Hinksey, which, Mr. Morrison states, would let traffic by-pass Oxford on the south. Tho county council has been informed that the scheme is approved in principle for a. grant from the Road Fund, and it is hoped that there will be no avoidable delay in the commericement of the work. The preliminary details of the northern by-pass are now being examined, with a view to approval in principle being given.
It may be added that the census of traffic taken at Magdalen Bridge, Oxford, in 1928, showed that the average daily number of vehicles was 22,584, including 1,218 motorbuses and motor coaches and 1,746 goods motor vehicles.
Road-surface Visibility.
• lUrR. MORRISON states that road ItLexperiments made by the department have not indicated which is the best road surface from the point of view of visibility at night. In his opinion it is doubtful whether any one material could be proved to be invariably the best from that standpoint.