J AN US Co-operation has established itsel f as a word to be reckoned
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AT the recent conferences of the Traders Road Transport Association and the Road Haulage Association hardly a word was said about the imminence of a general election and the possibility of re-nationalization or something very much like it if the Labour Party emerge as victors. The same verbal restraint marked the preceding political conferences. Even the Labour Party had nothing more constructive to put forward than the promise of a general inquiry into transport and the equally nebulous threat that hauliers would be laid waste by an encroaching British Road Services.
In spite of the avoidance of politics even by the politicians, the line of battle for the next election and beyond has been clearly laid -down. The two sides will clash under the banners of Integration and Co-operation. In some ways this may seem to the public nothing more than the old quarrel between nationalization and free enterprise, and plenty of use will continue to be made of these two antonyms. But the main argument will tend to be less concerned with ownership and more with the choice of the best method in which individual operators and different forms of transport can work together.
Co-operation has established itself as a word to conjure with. Dr. Beeching as usual set the stage at the T.R.T.A. conference when he took as his theme the wish of the railways to collaktorate with road users as well as compete with them. Two weeks later, at the R.H.A. conference, the chairman, Mr. D. O. Good, was saying the same thing from the opposite point of view. The hauliers proceeded to discuss two resolutions, one concerned with co-operation among themselves and the other approving the steps already taken for co-operation with the railways and B.R.S.—the so-called tripartite machinery, A COMPREHENSIVE PICTURE The merit of the first of these resolutions lies not so much in its novelty as in its presentation of a comprehensive picture of what co-operation will involve. The resolution asks for further consideration of the details, no doubt by an appropriate committee or sub-committee, and does not therefore commit the R.H.A. at this stage; but it does contain the positive statement of belief that " the free enterprise road haulage sector of the inland transport system could increase its own stability and competitive power ". Taken as it stands, the statement could apply equally to B.R.S., and indeed to any undertaking or industry. Its special application to independent hauliers is bound up with the proposals for co-operation which follow.
Hauliers accepted the statement all the more readily because they were aware of what had already been done. No complete record is available of the.various groups of operators who are now combining together for various purposes. There may well be several hundreds of examples, and these leave out of account the more casual contacts which are continually being established and dissolved when one haulier requires the assistance of others in dealing with a particular and often temporary problem.
B46 At the other end of the scale are the financial groups, virtually amalgamations, where the companies which are taken over keep their identity and continue to operate with considerable freedom as separate units.
From among existing groups examples could easily be found of each item in the resolution. The first proposal was the formation of co-operative units of hauliers who would keep their identity and enjoy the advantages of inter-working, joint repair, maintenance and administrative services and combined strength. The next proposal was for a nation-wide network of freight exchanges to replace the more familiar clearing houses. There would also be
specially created commercial organizations" which would give operators credit facilities at favourable rates, discounts . on the purchase of equipment and supplies, emergency repair facilities away from base, legal aid, and overnight accommodation for drivers and vehicles.
A GENERAL PATTERN
In one or two respects certain operators may already have gone even further than these bold and sensible recommendations. The wool gatherers of Bradford, for example, have formed a group and have sought agreement among themselves and with their customers on the key 'problem of rates, a subject not specifically mentioned in the resolution. On the Whole, however, the proposal now put forward skilfully presents for acceptance a general pattern of what has so far been accomplished in fits and starts, and reaches the limits of what hauliers would find tolerable. The one possible point of disagreement comes at the end of the resolution with a further proposal that the constitution of the R.H.A. should be amended, presumably tb permit the Association to set up the national and regional. machinery which would be needed if the complete pattern were accepted.
The resolution does not say this in so many words. The caution is understandable. It has become a platitude among hauliers that their association should represent their interests but should play no part in running their businesses. Whether this is sensible or not in present circumstances, the likelihood is that the resolution, and the discussions which will ensue throughout the road haulage industry, will lead in the first place to the rapid formation of new groups, as varied in their purposes and functions as the existing examples. The ultimate effect may be to bring all the groups together, possibly under the aegis of the R.H.A., but such a step will certainly take place long after the next general election.
Of more immediate importance is the fact that, thanks to the recent discussions and official pronouncements, co-operation, and especially co-operation between road and rail, has become an important issue. Fortunately for hauliers, it is one on which they need not hesitate to make a firm stand, knowing that it makes sense to all providers of transport, to trade and industry, to most politicians, and even to the general public, whose lack of knowledge on transport matters does not prevent them from holding decided opinions.