S PEAKING at the annual dinner of the West London sub
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area of the Road Haulage Association at Hounslow last Friday, Mr. F. Wheeler, chairman of the Metropolitan and South Eastern area, said that it might surprise the public, but was certainly no surprise to the R.H.A. that on so many topics, British Road Services and members of the R.H.A. thought very much alike. A further example of this was provided by the news that B.R.S., in its evidence to the Geddes Committee, had put forward recommendations very much on the same lines as the R.H.A.
"The R.H.A. licensing study group, of which I was chairman, are naturally very pleased to hear this," said Mr. Wheeler, "but it does, of course, bear out what from our point of view is merely common sense. We believe that a licensing system for road transport is essential, not merely to protect operators against the evils of completely uncontrolled and uneconomic rate cutting, but also to enable those operators to keep up standards of operation and of conduct which can play an important part in the constant struggle to improve road safety."
On the following day, speaking at the annual dinner of the North London sub area at Hendon, Mr. F. Wheeler said that in spite of warnings from hauliers, the Government seemed determined to press on with the construction of a Channel tunnel rather than a bridge, and to restrict the use of the tunnel to rail-hauled vehicles, although some road vehicles would be able to go through on flat trucks.
"Why are we dissatisfied with this?" asked Mr. Wheeler. "First, we suspect that the dimensions of the tunnel will prevent many road vehicles from using it and this problem will become more acute when more generous vehicle dimensions become law. Second, even those vehicles which can go through the tunnel may find themselves held up in a queue which may make even the worst of the dock delays we now experience seem little more than a tea break."
Quicker Frontier Crossing THE simplification of customs formali
ties for goods transport was urged by the Inland Transport Committee of the Economic Commission for Europe when it met in Geneva last month.
The Committee also received a provisional report from the group of experts set up to consider the apportionment of road construction and maintenance costs between lorries and light vehicles; this is mainly based on the A.A.S.H.O. two-year tests on specially built roads in the U.S.A. which cost 5.27 m. A final report is to be prepared for the committee in April.
Studies for the improvement and standardization of national regulations for the transport of dangerous goods were progressing satisfactorily, the committee was told.