Answers to Queries.
Page 18
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A British or an Ally's Taximeter.
12712] (Rochdale).—There are no English makers of taximeters. A French-made taximeter is supplied by the Metropolitan Fare Register Co., Ltd., 60, Belvedere Road, S.E.
Wants a Second-hand Chassis.
[2713] (Aberdeen).—We suggest that you make known your requirements by means of a small advertisement in this journal. No member of the Editorial staff at the moment has personal information concerning a second-hand motor hearse or chassis which is available for delivery.
Placing His Boy.
[2714] (North Woolwich).—A boy can usually be taken as an ordinary a.pprentiee at any motor works, on application especially at the present time. There is no payment' demanded for an ordinary apprentice. An application might possibly be made in the first instance to the Works Manager of J. and E. Hall, Ltd., Dartford.
Sinking into a Trench.
[2715] (Southerner).—Any gas company is initially responsible for making good and reinstating the roadway which it has opened for the purpose of attending to its mains. You may, in a particular case, find that, in the event of your entering a county-court action, it is advisable to join the local authority as defendant. Agreements frequently exist between the local gas company and the local authority. For example, recently, we noticed a case (reported in "The Gas World" of the 17th ult.) in which a motor-lorry owner had recovered £25 and costs, in the Dartford bounty Court, against the South Suburban Gas Co.,
i which company, n turn, proceeded to claim by way of recovery against the Erith U.D.C.
Motorbus Scheme for a Canadian City.
[2716] (Canadian).—Costs have gone down steadily during the past few years. Perhaps the best course we can follow is to ask your acceptance of a copy of a paper which the Editor read before the International Road Congress in London in the year 1913. This is mailed direct.
By the time you have got a British-made motorbus to Canada, it will probably cost you not far short of £700 for the chassis and tires, to which you must add the cost of the body. The London motorbus contracts for tires -are now down to 0.5d. (1 cent) per mile, and the performance on motor spirit averages about 7.75 miles to the gallon. You may take it that the present practice, in London, is found to result in an inclusive cost, as shown in the 1913 paper, of 7.1d. per motorbus-mile, with a revenue of about 10d, per motorbus-mile.
Bad roads add greatly to the maintenance charges, especially if speeds are excessive.
What About War-used Chassis ?
[2717] (Engineer).—There is diversity of opinion in regard to the ultimate method of handling war-used chassis. We do not believe that the English market will be swamped by thousands of such chassis, as is thought possible in some quartet's. Wastage centinues high despite good organization for renewals. Such wastage, of course, must increase enormously with any forward movement, and the incidence of total constructional loss must remain uncertain until disclosed by events. We take the view that the armies of occupation in Europe will continue to utilize heavy-motor transport for a considerable period after the cessation of hostilities, in part to help to repatriate arid succour the inhabitants of huge areas which have been subjected to all the ravages of war. We also take the view that the British Government will
n54 be persuaded hereafter to maintain a large motortransport establishment as a safeguard against its having to impress commercially-owned vehicles in the future. We have written at considerable length in foregoing issues, but this answer gives the essence of our opinions.
Three.tonners for Contract Work.
[2718] (London).—We have had pleasure in sending direct two copies of a reprint of normal working costs which appeared in this journal more than a year ago. We regard them as being still applicable. It is advisable that you should see a revenue of is. per mile run, reckoning light and loaded mileage together for any three-ton lorry or van which you hire
out; also, .as• a safeguard against low mileage, you should in any event have a minimum revenue of £13 per week regardless of mileage as the incidence of overhead charges becomes very high when the work falls lower than, say, 260 miles a week. As a set-off in favour of the hirer, you might reduce the charge per mile by lid. in respect of any mileage in any individual week in excess of 400 miles.
As regards English-made chassis, with a load capacity of three tons, of which you may hope to get reasonable delivery, we fear the prospects are not good. You might apply to the under-noted :— Alldays and Onions, Ltd., Birmingham.
Belsize Motors, Ltd., Clayton, Manchester, and Dean's Yard, Westminster.
Guy Commercial Motors, Ltd., Fallings Park, Wolverhampton.
McCurd Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Store Street, W.
Scottish Commercial Cars, Ltd., Glasgow.
Scottish Motor Traction Co., Ltd., Edinburgh. Star Engineering Co., Ltd., Wolverhampton.