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The Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution's recommendations For improving air quality ram home the message that the problem of air pollution and congestion won't go away. But they were bound to affract flak, and the latest response—from the Centre for Economics and Business Research—could hardly be described as hysterical (see news story, page 4). According to the CEBR, if the Commission's proposals for doubling fuel prices, increasing railfreight and halving spending on trunk roads and motorways were enacted, they would actually increase congestion. If this is true the problem could be even more intractable than any of us realised. And if this is the case, switching freight from road to rail, or cutting road building, would be a waste of time. If the DOT really wants to improve air quality and congestion all it has to do is focus on the main culprit, which means reducing the 22 million private cars which continue to clog up our roads. Will any Government really have the political will to pick up that hot potato? Don't be surprised if they prefer to concentrate on an easier target. Joe Soap Haulier, take one step forward...
• Nineiy years ago a new magazine was launched with the following editorial comment: "The Commercial Motor is a missionary and educative medium. It has possession of records which show how success has been made to attend users of the commercial motor in a great variety of trades and business. It has, in addition, records of failure and knows how to place the finger of discerning criticism on the cause and how to detect the sins of omission and commission. We shall give bald facts in details not merely nebulous outlines. We shall instruct the entrepreneur, the man who wants a new source of income. We shall solace at the disposal of the industry the force and influence of a well-conducted journal which has no divided interests. We shall work for the continued respect of The Commercial Motor and its reputation shall be the test of the solidity of the section of the industry which Great Britain has marked out for her own." Ninety years on we stand by the editorial pledges made by our founding fathers, although we hope they'll forgive us for updating their "mission statement".
CM's job for the nineties and beyond is simply to make operators more 'profitable, professional and legal. Here's to the next ninety years.
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