Aspects of the B.T.C. Report
Page 38
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
This Second Article Concerns More General Matters, such as Important Dates, Organization, Charges and C-licence Competition
DEALING with the general subject matter of the first annual report of the British Transport Commission, as distinct from those points which particularly concerned the Executives, and which were included in our article of last week, it may be of interest to refer first to certain vital dates,
Formal appointments to the Railway Executive were sealed by the Minister on November 21, 1947, those of the London Transport .Executive on ,December 2, and of the Docks and Inland Waterways Executiveon December 23. -The 'management and control of the former LondonPassenger Transport Board passed to the London Transport Executive on January 1, 1948, as did the Inland Waterways to their Executive. Members of the Road Transport Executive were formally appointed on March 8, 1948. All appointments of Executives are for periods terminating on September 30, 1952, and September 30, 1950, for whole or part-time members, respectively.
On April 15, 1948, came into operation the scheme by which the B.T.C. delegated to the R.T.E. the power to acquire, either by agreement or otherwise, road haulage and road passenger undertakings. Thus the Executive was free to maintain its contact with the public and its workers and carry on all day-to-day business without bringing in the Commission, but it remained the right of the Commission to give directions by which the exercise of its delegated powers could be regulated.
Limits on Executive Functions
For example, the Executives are required to submit to the Commission for approval proposals to incur expenditure of a capital nature upon new works or programmes of renewal beyond appropriate amounts, to appoint officers and fix salaries in the higher ranges, or to conclude agreements of a Major character in relation to salaries, wages or conditions of service, also to deal with land in excess of certain values. At the same time, the Commission looks to the Executives for assistance in the formulation of policy. In some cases, standing committees have been set up on which both thefl Commission and Executives have been represented.
The Commission emphasizes that it is impossible to achieve finality in the organization, and this must be adjusted as experience may show to be necessary. It has, however, divested itself of responsibility for the actual conduct of its various businesses, although in some directions it may provide a point of focus for the discharge of certain common services.
The 13.T.C. members have no specialist or functional responsibilities, the Executives representing the higher management of the concerns, the operation and maintenance of which are entrusted to them as agents of the Commission.
Encouraging Devolution of Authority
Within the organization of the Executives the Commission has encouraged the maximum devolution of authority consistent with the principle and objects of unification. Every effort is also to be made to secure the maximum degree of standardization and uniformity of technical development where continued divergence of Practice would entail unnecessary expenditure and hamper progress. It is obvious, however, that questions relating to wages and conditions of serVice affecting the whole of the staff must be focused at the centre. It is hoped that this devolution will be assisted , by the fact that there is a non-functional element in the person of the chairman of each Executive and certain other members of some of them, also a regional or divisional organization has been established in each Executive other than London Transport.
It is the Commission's desire that the staff should be brought into consultation at all levels, and their accredited representatives informed, wherever practicable of all proposals likely to affect them, and whilst responsibility for decision cannot rest anywhere exceptupon the management, . it is hoped that there will be great scope. for -participation of the staff in the development of a nationalized transport system. • With this end in view, there was established, towards the end of 1948, the British Transport Joint Consultative Council to provide regular opportunity of exchanging information and views on matters of common interest other than wages or conditions of service. The first meeting was held on January 25, 1949, and there have been others since. This is considered to be a vital link between employer and employed. The Commission is, however, considering other means whereby existing contacts between managers and men can be improved and the existing consultative machinery developed.
The Factor of Understanding It is recognized that the creation of satisfactory understanding between employer and employed is a vital problem of modern industry, and that in a national undertaking it exists in an acute form.
It is interesting to note that the Commission has received no formal directions from the Minister of Transport, although consultations with him have taken place on many questions. It, however, received in 1948 over 3,000 letters from M.P.s, representative bodies and members of the public, and 500 IVI.P.s have written to the Commission on 1,500 matters, A further development provided under Section 6 of the Transport Act was the formation, on December 17, 1948, of a Central Transport Consultative Committee for Great Britain. This has art independent chairman and representatives of agriculture, commerce, industry, shipping, labour and local authorities, but it is noteworthy that the members are nominated by the Minister and the B.T.C. This Committee may consider any matter (including charges) affecting B.T.C. services and, in particular, those points arising from representations by users of these. Recommendations from this Committee are notified to the Minister, who may give directions to the Commission concerning them.
As a result of grave transport difficulties in the winter of 1946-47. and severe arrears of maintenance, precautionary steps had been taken to divert traffic to the road, and it was not possible to retrace these until March, 1948. The Commission, states that the effect was to encourage many traders to use their own road transport vehicles or those of independent hauliers. It concludes that this is one of the contributory causes of the unsatisfactory financial results of railway operation during 1948.
Early in 1948, important groups of undertakings were acquired by agreement, to provide a framework into which others .coultibe fitted as they were taken over. In this way, a nucleus of operating units was obtained.
Compulsory acquisition was started on October 1, 1948. The companies acquired voluntarily have continued to operate as separate units, but will soon be merged in the, divisional and district organization of the R.T.E.
Nigger in the Woodpile
Concerning operation under C licence, the report states that there has been a remarkable increase in the number of vehicles so authorized, and although it seems that two-thirds of them are under 30 cwt. and, presumably, engaged in local retail distribution, their increased use is a circumstance which vitally affects the policy of the Commission in planning, in fixing charges and in the eventual integration of its services.
Of importance also are the references to charges. It is pointed out that it is clear that the charges policy will be the key to' effective integration. The Commission has to face great disparities between the level of rail fares and charges on the one hand, and road fares and charges on the other, as well as the problem of having to create a national system which can be applied with reasonable relativity but some degree of flexibility to all forms of transport.