Some Unjustified Fears Allayed D ESPITE the efforts of The Commercial
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Motor, the Associations, the Licensing Authorities and the Ministry of Transport to educate goods-vehicle operators in the requirements and administration of the Road and Rail Traffic Act, 1933, there appear still to be hauliers and ancillary users who are ignorant of the basic provisions of this important measure.
Some owners who have been granted short-term licences imagine that they have only a few more months of security before them. They fail to realize that such licences are, in the first instance, granted only for the purpose of spreading over the year the work of the Licensing Authorities when the full-period licences become due for reconsideration We have knowledge of cases in which hauliers have accounted their licences .as good as lost because a.railWiy company objected to. the granting of them. If those operators kept a watchful eye upon proceedings before the Licensing Authorities they would appreciate that the railways are not being allowed to rule road transport.
Again, some operators appear to feel anxiety in replacing horses by motors, because they fear that a possible objection by a rival owner or railway company will be upheld. They fail to remember that Col. Headlam, late Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport, has announced that applications for licences in respect of motors to replace horses would be favourably considered.
Whilst fear of loss of livelihood seems to be prevalent amongst many small operators, some of them do not take adequate steps to safeguard their own interests. -For instance, they place themselves in such a position that the Licensing Authorities are able justifiably to criticize the mechanical state of the vehicles to be licensed and the working -conditions and wages of employees. In at -least one Traffic Area the Authority refuses to license discretionary tonnage vehicles in cases where drivers are paid 'lesg. than £2 per week.
If a goods-transport'operator conducts his business in an exemplary manner, maintaining his vehicles in an efficient state and. employing his staff under reasonable conditions, there is, as a rule, little call fen.anxiety concerning the activities of the Licensing Authorities.