Not So Easy
Page 61
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I WAS. interested to learn from the Ministry of Transport I last week that not as much use was being made by C-licensees of the freedom to carry for one another as was once thought likely. They have apparently discovered that 'pooling is not as easy as it seems. I forbear to say, "I told you so," but it is pleasant to find official confirmation of the forecast made by The Commercial Motor on January 4.
Half a Loaf
1 AM sorry that the Transport Tribunal did not take the opportunity provided by the Robson appeal to pronounce upon the question of statements of intent in licence applications.
The view taken by The Commercial Motor is that if at any time during the currency of a licence an operator fulfills the statement of intent originally made, there is no ground for revoking or suspending a licence under Section 9(4) of the Transport Act, 1953. In the Robson case, the Northern Licensing Authority appeared to incline to the opinion that the intention must t e fulfilled throughout the currency of the licence.
It is satisfying to learn that the Tribunal allowed the Robson appeal, but a firm interpretation of the meaning of Section 9(4) Would have been even more acceptable.
20m. Safe Miles LAST week 1 attendedI a pleasant function in London at which safe-driving awards were presented to 47 drivers of the South Eastern Division of British Road Services. A quick calculation showed that these men between them had covered 20m. accident-free m;les.
Presenting the awards, Mr, A. J. Wright, divisional manager, had a special word of praise for septuagenarian Mr. A. W., McKenzie, who has 43 years' safe driving to his credit, Afterwards, Mr. Wright introduced me to another recipient, Mr. W. A. Prescott, who is also a trade-union representative. VVhen tackled on the question of the 20 m,p.h. limit for heavy goods vehicles, Mr. Wright reserved his opinion, but Mr. Prescott thought that it would be detrimental to road safety..
"At what speed, then, does a heavy-vehicle driver cruise now?" I asked.
" A speed consistent with the law as it stands at the moment," Mr. Prescott replied. .
But I saw him wink at Mr. Wright.
£12 Hoax APARTICULARLY stupid hoax was played last week on a London haulier. In response to a telephone call purporting to come from a shipping agent, who gave as a reference the name of a concern with whom the operator had friendly relations, he sent two lorries (one of them hired) to pick up goods from a manufacturer in Dunstable. On arrival there, the drivers found that the name and address were false.
When questioned, the alleged shipping agent said that he had never given the order and had never even heard of the haulier, who is £12 out of pocket. What fun anyone can have derived from such a futile prank I cannot imagine.
Motorists' Ruin
1k/tux and beer were the downfall of two Royal al Automobile Club members who last year called upon the services of the Club's legal department. One of them, rather like Jack the housebuilder, skidded on the oil that dropped from the sump of the van that mounted the milk churn that dropped from the lorry. . .
Beer brought disaster to the motorcyclist suddenly faced with 15 bounding barrels which had fallen from the lorry in front of him. It was a case of "one too many." He successfully negotiated 14 of them, but was brought down by the 15th.
Others came to grief on banana boxes. biscuit tins, barbed wire, slippery lime, glue and varnish. One really found himself in a jam—strawberry jam!
Cut-price Bodybuilding
BODYBUILDING is, I amtold, becoming increasingly competitive. In some cases prices are being quoted which cover only the cost of labour and materials, simply to keep the works going. The result is that a transport manager who has put a contract out to tender may receive a quotation of, say, £250 per body from one builder and £150 from another.
This is somewhat embarrassing. The transport manager knows that £150 is an entirely uneconomic price and that the bodybuilder will probably close down within the next 12 months. His directors, ,however, will no doubt expect him to accept it. When new bodies have to be ordered in the future, the directors will object to payingan economic price and will expect the transport manager to produce more £150 rabbits out of the hat.
Fishing for. ideas
A ANY bodybuilders resent the practice' of some operators al of asking for a full set of working drawings to be sent with quotations. There is always the suspicion that the order has already been placed elsewhere and that the operator is fishing for ideas.
The preparation of drawings is expensive and, I am told, is only too often rewarded by complete silence on the part of the operator. He gives the contract to another maker and does not even bother to notify the unsuccessful tenderers. The wise bodybuilder makes sure that he is not caught twice
Muscle, Hustle, Bustle
I LEARN from America that the new Ford pick-up "packs new muscle and hustle." It has quite a bonny bustle, too.
The Hawk's Selection
CLUTTER: A collection of cars carrying people who ought to travel by bus. LICENSING: A system for preventing others from doing what you already do.
NORMAL USER: A customer who wants the job done for less than cost.
ONUS OF PROOF: Something shouldered by either applicants or objectors according to whether their legal representatives have heard of the 1953 Act.
TON-MILE: Compound factor calculated by transport managers in reports to directors, who do not understand it either.
TIPPER . .