Progress Versus Licensing
Page 34
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OLLAPSIBLE tanks for the haulage of liquids in which can be carried on normal platform and drop-sided vehicles and rolled up into a small bundle when not required, are already being employed successfully in the United States. They are now being offered at a low price on the British market. Their introduction opens up several possible licensing problems.
The question arises as to whether the tank is to be regarded as a container in the accepted sense, and included in the unladen weight authorized under carriers' licences. It is, in effect, a large bag and might reasonably be treated as part of the load. There is, however, scope for argument on the point. Containers of the present size are light, but if they are produced in larger capacities, weight may become important.
An even more important question concerns normal user. This new technical development enables the general haulier to enter the bulk-liquid business with low-cost equipment. If he does so without seeking a change in his normal user he may find himself in difficul ties when his licence is due for renewal. He would be wise to seek advice from the Licensing Authority before becoming deeply committed. • Another licensing problem created by technical development concerns the lightweight eight-wheeler. It is now possible to purchase an eight-wheeler with a payload capacity of about 18 tons and weighing unladen little more than a four-wheeler with a maximum gross weight of 14 tons. There seems to be nothing to prevent an operator from seeking to replace the smaller model by the larger one without a public inquiry, so long as there is no material increase in the unladen weight, and thereby securing extra payload capacity of up to possibly 9 tons.
Ultra-lightweight eight-wheelers are too new a development for an instance of this nature to have come to light, but enterprising operators may obtain a large unopposed expansion of payload capacity by this means. In all probability, the Licensing Authority would not be aware of it.