Rethinking the role of the commercial vehicle in London
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Astrong hint that the Greater London Council may take action to cause operators to provide off-street garaging for commercial vehicles in London was given by the GLC highways and traffic committee chairman, Mrs. Ian Phillips, in London last week. She was speaking as principal guest at the annual luncheon of the TRTA London and Home Counties Division.
In the course of an impressive survey of the fundamental causes and effects of the London traffic problem, Mrs. Phillips pointed out that, even to build sufficient roads for central-area traffic would cost an unjustifiable f1,500m., quite apart from loss of amenity and the destruction of historic buildings. But surveys had shown that 30 per cent of Central London traffic had no need to be there, and concentration on bypass roads would therefore be one of the most rewarding lines of attack.
The major basis of London road planning, she said, would be the London Transportation Study—she preferred to call it the Stott Report, which would be "much better than the Buchanan Report". Mr. P. F. Stott, GLC's director of highways and transportation, was a fellow guest at the luncheon.
Mrs. Phillips pointed out that people like the TRTA were in the privileged position of running vehicles whose movements really were essential—but in a car-owning world they were public enemy number one; whatever lorries did was wrong in the eyes of the motorist.
We were faced with the need for a complete rethink about the place of the commercial vehicle in our society, she continued; the whole question of where they could be allowed to go and what they could carry had to be examined. She asked TRTA members to think very carefully about their use of what was rapidly becoming a very rare commodity—London road space.
In making a re-examination, said Mrs. Phillips, one started by asking about the garaging and parking of commercial vehicles in the capital, and she instanced a case where large refrigerated vehicles "parked all day" in Stepney streets were permanently blocking the light in adjacent houses. She felt there was a lot of selfishness by some lorry operators in their use of roads and streets for parking.
It was now too late to rebuild shopping areas to provide universal off-street access and loading bays at shops and business premises, she said, though some existing access-ways were misused. One answer was a co-operative group approach to deliveries —one possibility being communal unloading depots in congested areas. Night deliveries could play a part, but small shops could not provide staff both night and day to receive consignments. Another problem was noise at night.
Mrs. Phillips affirmed that many London boroughs were now anxious to tackle the provision of lorry parks, and to discuss them with GLC, which had offered some finance towards this. She spoke of a start being made in dock areas towards the establishment of "lorry motels" where drivers could have overnight accommodation close to their vehicles which might be carrying valuable loads.
A better image She promised that special problems, such as caterers' need for twice-daily deliveries, would be dealt with area by area and not by enforcing some overall GLC plan.
One thing she thought essential was a return by lorry drivers to their earlier image of safety, responsibility and consideration, which she felt they had largely lost in recent years.
On national topics, Mrs. Phillips said people should "not be alarmed" by Mrs. Barbara Castle's numerous committees and studies. For the first time all the people would be given a chance to state their transport interests; the Ministry could sift these views and the planners could make a real 20th-century transport plan respecting all interests. "Barbara Castle is a hustler", commented Mrs. Phillips, and the reports would not get bogged down.
The reference to Mrs. Castle's committees was primarily in answer to earlier comments by the London and Home Counties chairman, Mr. D. H. Joyce, who felt that because neither the Geddes nor the Hinton reports had produced a plan of action accept able to the current administration, Mrs. Castle had created a large number of advisory committees on the basis that one of them simply must come up with the "right" answer which was politically acceptable.
The TRTA, he said. "saw the seeds of danger" in the developing transport situation, but the Association ought to welcome any improvement in nationalized transport. This, however, must be on the clear understanding that the twin principles of freedom of choice by users, and the right of ownaccount operators to run their transport, were not adversely affected.
On an immediately practical point, Mr. Joyce commented that the sheer number of official committees was placing a strain on the TRTA in providing representation adequate to protect members' interests.
(It is understood that the reference to "lorry • motels", while indicating possible developments, at present relates to such facilities as guarded lorry parks with hoitels within easy reach, such as in Aldgate High St.)
New Securicor link
SECURICOR Ltd. is to become a joint partner of Eurocard Ltd. for British operations. Announcing this on Monday, Mr. Keith Erskine, joint managing director of Securicor, said it was believed the scheme would be of great interest to road transport operators. Card holders would possess a widely recognized credit status identification so that anyone needing accommodation or vehicle repairs on a journey would receive the service required.
Eurocard Ltd. is associated with Eurocard International SA which was formed in 1964 to associate two national travel card systems —the British Hotels and Restaurants and the Scandinavian Nordkonto. United Dominions Trust Ltd., it was stated, was a principal backer of Eurocard Ltd.
Conference for Co-op Managers
SIX papers will be presented at the annual conference of the National Co-operative Traffic Managers' Association in Blackpool this year (May 14-17). Transport management will be the subject for Mr. H. M. Dick, manager of the SCWS transport division, while transport's contribution to efficiency will be examined by Mr. G. D. Martin, Vauxhall's fleet marketing manager, on the same day.
On the next day (Monday) BMC and BorgWarner experts will talk on the pros and cons of automatic transmission, and Michelin's senior technical adviser will give "a tyre side chat." He will be followed by a lecture on traffic law enforcement by Lancashire's deputy chief constable.
Tuesday's business opens with a lecture on regional warehousing by Mr. D. Barber, management accountant of CWS, and this will be followed by a general discussion.