Road Transport Topics in Parliament
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By Our Special Parliamentary Corresponderzt
• RECEPTACLES AS UNLADEN WEIGHT.
THE amendments to Clause 7 of the Finance Bill, dealing with the inchision of receptacles in the unladen weight of goods vehicles, the terms of which we gave in our issue dated July 16 as being acceptable to the Government, were agreed to by the House of Commons last week. Another amendment, the terms of which we also stated, relating to agricultural lorries was not submitted on the report stage as it was ruled out of order.
The proposal was that when a goods vehicle was not used regularly for the conveyance of animals, the detachable rack, falling loading door, tailboard or ramp, or other parts required for the use of a vehicle temporarily in compliance with Article 4 of the. Transit of Animals (Amendment) Order, 1931, should not be taken to he included in the unladen weight of such vehicles.
CONSOLIDATION OF ROAD LAW.
HOW many Acts of Parliament "containing how many sections" were at present in force, dealing with the use of the roads and offences relating to such use, how many Statutory Orders and Regulations had been made under the said Acts, and whether, for the information of users of the highway, their issue in consolidated form would he considered, was the gist of a question asked by Sir William Davidson.
Captain Hudson, in reply, stated that, so far as the ordinary road user was concerned, the principal Acts were 'the Road Transport Lighting Act, 1927, and the Road Traffic Acts of 1930 and 1934, but numerous provisions of the Highways Act of 1835 and the Town Police Clauses Act, 1847, remained upon the Statute Book. If an enumeration could be made of the Acts of Parliament relating to the use of the roads, and of the sections whereby offences had been created, it would give an entirely misleading impression, because so many affected only limited classes.
Changing conditions necessitated amendments from time to time, but considerable progress had been made with consolidating the several codes and the matter was one which was being borne in mind.
NO OBLIGATION TO FENCE HIGHWAYS.
ATTENTION was drawn by Mr. Macquisten to the losses of sheep and cattle, on the improved roads in the Highland counties, which could not be recovered from insurance companies. He asked whether the Minister would consider fencing all such roads.
Mr. Burgin stated that he was investigating the matter, hut explained that there was no obligation on highway authorities to provide fences alongside roads for the protection of animals. LONDON'S CONGESTED EXITS.
THE passing of the London Passen ger Transport Bill gave occasion to a number of peers to urge the need for a'survey of the distribution of population with a view to solving the problems now facing large centres.
One aspect of the subject was raised in the House of Commons on Monday, when Sir George Mitcheson asked the Minister whether he had had his attention drawn to the rapid grow4h of traffic congestion in the main exits from London, whether he had made any representations to the various highway authorities concerned as to plans for the Progressive widening of streets, and, in particular, whether they had been asked to ensure the setting back of the building line in respect of new buildings which might be erected in such streets.
In reply, Captain Hudson said the question was engaging the Minister's close personal attention, he was aikaiting with interest the report of the London Highway Development Survey and was looking to the. statutory authorities in London to make wise use of the wide powers they already possessed in regard to new buildings.
MISUSE OF CONTROLLED CROSSINGS,
AREQCJEST was made by Sir W. Brass for the removal of studs from light-controlled crossings in order that pedestrians might be compelled to follow the lamp signals instead of imagining that they had special privileges at those crossings, as was the ease at present.
Mr. Burgin said that markings on the carriageway at light-controlled junctions indicated a proper place for pedestrians to cross, to the advantage of both pedestrians and drivers. Paragraph 98 of the Highway Code instructed pedes= trians to cross, at controlled crossings, only when the 'appropriate line of traffic was held up.
LONDON'S TROLLEYBUS PROGRESS.
j.N reply to an inquiry as to the date ion which all tramcars would have been replaced within the London area: Mr. Burgin stated that London Transport anticipated that, with the exception of certain short sections, trolleybuses would be in operation in less than a year on the whole of the 219 miles of route for which the Board had already been granted powers.
It was seeking powers, in the present session of Parliament, for the conversion of the remaining 132 miles of tramways to trolleybus Operation. It was impossible to forecast the date by which all the tramways covered by the present Bill would be replaced-.
PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE OF "DANGEROUS PARXING." • THE Home Secretary (Sir S.. Hoare) stated that, during 1936, the number of prosecutions in the Metropolitan Police Area for dangerous parking, under Section 50 of the 1930 Act, Was 70. In the same year, prosecutions for exceeding the speed limit in built-up areas, in the case of motor vehicles not otherwise subject to restrictions on speed, was 45,633.
Sir W. Wass suggested that in view of the difference between the two figures the Home Secretary should impress on the police the importance of the provisions of Section 50, and should consider also whether the police might be armed with cameras in order to be'able to give first-class evidence of this dangerous practice. Sir S. Hoare said he did not think any further action was necezsary
FAVOURING THE RAILWAYS.
SPEAKING on the third reading of the Finance Bill in the House of Commons, Lieut.-Colonel MooreBrabazon aimed a parting shot at the Treasury and the Government in respect of their attitude towards road transport as compared with the railways.
In this Bill, he said, they discriminated in favour of one form of transport and against another. The railways were to beexempt from the National Defence Contribution Tax, although they benefited as much as others from rearmament, yet the road transport companies were to pay it. It had been said that the railways paid for their own track. So did road transport. It paid no less than £75,000,000 a year.
He wanted the representatives of the Treasury on the Front Bench to take a new attitude towards the road question. Many of the lives lost on the roads were del to the bad condition of the roads, the fault was theirs. Of the enormous sum taken from motorists, more should go towards the provision of better roads. Some £10,000,000 was put into the Transport Vote this year as compared with -R75,000,000 taken from motorists. At the general election an extra £100,000,000 was promised, but less than the ordinary expenditure was received.
SPECIAL WIDTH-LIGHTS FOR BIG VEHICLES I
THAT lorries and coaches, 7 ft. or more in width, should carry, orange width-lights, showing a light to the front e-nd rear, waS suggested by Sir Brass, in order that other drivers might realize the width of these vehicles when approaching or about to be overtaken.
Mx. Burgin answered that this proposal had been considered by his predecessor who was unable to adopt it, for a variety of reasons. He himself saw no reason to alter the decision reached by Mr. .Hore-BIisha.
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