46B .R.S. Becoming a Gigantic Clearing House
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IN a personal statement to The 1 Commercial Motor on the British Transport Commission's announcement, Mr. Bernard Winterbottom, national chairman of the Road Haulage Association, said on Tuesday that the formation of three separate companies to handle traffic in different categories was purely an internal matter.
Trade and industry would soon have to decide whether they would support these State-owned companies or the independents who are coming back into the whole field of road haulage. "I think the independent operator will be content to leave this decision with those requiring road transport," he said.
The whole tone of the Commission's notice sought to convey the impression A30 that when B.R.S. reduced their fleet to about a tenth of its present strength, that which would be offered in its place might not suit their present customers. For a short time there might be a few difficulties, but .-independents would quickly take up any slack.
"It is against the intentions of the Transport Act that B.R.S,, should be making these strenuous efforts to retain every ton of traffic, obviously with the idea of turning themselves into a gigantic clearing house," Mr. Winterbottom declared. "The Commission are at present engaged, along with the Disposal Board, in an endeavour to sell back something like 90 per cent. of their vehicles; and private concerns who purchase them expect, and intend, to obtain the traffic direct.
"To me it appears that B.R.S. are attempting to persuade industrial concerns that because it may be easier to telephone one B.R.S. depot to place all their traffic, they should continue to do so. This would allow that depot to pick the best of the traffic for whatever vehicles they were allowed to retain and to sub-contract the balance.
"Surely no industrial concern, or its traffic manager, working under competitive conditions, would subscribe to such an arrangement when restrictions on the industry are to be lifted and independent operators will again be able to compete in all fields. Much depends on the users of road transport in the next two years and if B.R.S. do retain in the coming months much of that traffic which should have gone with the vehicles they are selling, this will make the sale of later units more difficult."