Some Good Haulage Performances.
Page 10
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0 NE of the best-known fleets of motor furniture vans in the Merseyside towns is.that employed by Mr. Alfred Harding, of Birkenhead, whose fleet of 14 machines includes three 4-ton Maudelays one 4-ton Pagefield, and one 5-ton Daimler, all with the vans fixed to the cha,ssis, instead of lift vans, as is more usual with furniture removers. The other nine vehicles are motor chars-a-bancs, three of them being Leyland 28-seaters, two Daimler 28-seaters, two Leyland 28. seaters and two Daimler 3-5-seaters, to which another 28-seater coach will shortly be added.
Some excellent performances have been made by Mr. Harding's machines, and
what he speaks of as a record was made. by a Pagefield wagon which made a return journey to London, a, matter of about 400 miles, in 26 hours. One of the longest journeys made by his furniture vans was to Falmouth (320 miles), and the contract was executed without any untoward incident. On, a 176-mile journey to Clevedon one long day sufficed for the job, and the motor travelled at a speed which averaged 15 miles an hour. A recent week's log of an old Halley wagon included (1) a load of furniture to Bristol, (2) Bristol to London, (3) return load London to Birkenhead, (4) Birkenhead to Kendal, returning to Birkenhead.
Equally interesting is the recent
record of a Maudslay, which left Birkenhead on a Tuesday morning for Southampton. After calling at Severmaks on the caaturn journey, it was back at the garage again by Friday. Another good day's -running was a return journey to Huddersfield (about 170 miles), including loading and unloading and returning to the garage at night—a performance which was certainly satisfactory.
Sometimes, after unloading 'furniture at distant towns, return loads are obtained, but discrimination is exercised. in their choice. Light and bulky loads are accepted, but not heavy and awkward freight liable to cause damage to the vans.