BUSES ALLOWED . TO DRAW ONLY PRODUCER TRAILERS W AS there any
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objection or hindrance to attaching trailers to buses, where road conditions rendered this possible, asked Colonel Carver in the House, last week.
The attachment of trailers te buses except for the purpose of gas-producer ‘traction, answered Mr. Noel-Baker, was prohibited by the Public Service Vehicle (Equipment and Use) Regulations, 1941, and in view of the difficulty of manceuvring such combinations and the conditions under which bus services operated, he did not think it would be wise to permit their use.
YOUTHFUL DRIVER GETS SUPPORT OF COURT
LABOUR difficulties led Bolton Bench last week to decide not to impose a driving disqualification on a youthful driver of heavy vehicles. 'Good drivers are not easily picked up these days," said the youth's employer and industrialists on the Bench needed no convincing on that point. It was stated that 90 per cent. Of the employer's -haulage work is for the Ministry of War Transport.
LIAISON BETWEEN R.T.C. AND C.D.
HOW many. officers and their staffs were posted to the 12 Civil Defence regional offices to be avai!able for consultation with the commissioners, but not under his orders, asked Sir Ralph Glynn in the House of Commons last week, and, what expenditure was involved?
There were no officers of the Ministry of War Transport posted to the. Civil Defence regional offices explained Mr. Noel-Baker. In each region there was one officer on the staff of the Reg'onal Transport Commissioner, part of whose duty it was to act as liaison officer with. the Regional Commissioner. This officer was part of the normal staff of the Regional Transport Commissioner, and the liaison duty occupied only a small part of his time. No additional expen • diture was involved.
JOINT BUS BOARD NOT FAVOURED AFTER ALL
FURTHER to a paragriph appearing in last week's issue, we now learn that Bedwas and Machen Council, at a meeting a few days ago, rejected, on a division, resolutions submitted that the council, in conjunction with the Caerphilly and Gelligaer Councils, should apply in the next session of Parliament for an Act to constitute a joint board for running public-service vehicles.
DURHAM COUNCIL'S NEW BYPASS NEARLY FINISHED
ANEW by-pass road built at Birtley by Durham County Council, at a -cost of £350,000, is nearing completion and will be opened shortly. The road will enable through traffic to by-pass the built-up areas in and around Birtley. Work on the road was started in January, 1939, and was allowed to proceed after the outbreak of war.
REPORT OF SMITH'S STAMPING WORKS "
IN the period from August 2, 1941, to 1 August 1, 1942, Smith's Stamping Works (Coventry),; Ltd., made a net profit of £19,394, and after a 10 per cent, dividend, less tax, has been paid (L12,500), there is 271,100 to carry forward, as contrasted with £64,506 brought in. The subsidiary company, Smith-Claytoe. Forge, Ltd., shows a net profit for the period of £16,700,_which has been carried, forward in the accounts of that concern.
PART-TIME CONDUCTRESSES TO OVERCOME ABSENTEEISM
WITH the object of maintaining its W service for war workers, the Central Scottish Motor Traction Co., Ltd., has conducted an experiment with parttime conductresses on the routes from Glasgow to Balloch and Helensburgh. The scheme has proved so successful that the company intends to extend it and employ another 50 part-time conductresses.
These part-time employees will be expected to work 30 hours a week, and as they will be women with domestic responsibilities they will be able to choose their hours of duty.
The company has been seriously troubled with absenteeism, and the average number of employees 'off duty on the routes concerned in the experiment is 16 per cent.
It is pointed out that. National Service officers have discovered that there is little absenteeism among part-time women employees, one reason being that they do not have the same shopping difficulties as those at work all day.
ARE LIGHTING RESTRICTIONS PROPERLY ENFORCED?
THE many motorcars with illadjusted headlamp masks which .dazzled other road users by throwing a beam above the horizontal, was the subject of a request made in Parliament last week by Mr. Brooke for action by the Minister for Home Security. Miss Wilkinson; however, suggested that no action was necessary, because headlamps, mis-adjusted as described, were illegal under the Lighting (Restrictions) Order, 1940, and the polic9, made every effort to enforce the law in this respect.
Mr. Brooke was sceptical on thiS point, and asked Miss Wilkinson to note how unsuccessful the police " at the moment were being."