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The Function of Bodywork in Developing Traffic.
Page 80
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TE body of a vehicle is the superstructure without which the invention, designing skill and engineering knowledge and capability that have gone to the production of the chassis would be so much waste effort ; and, considered from certain definite points of view, if the chassis can be forgotten in the admiration for and enjoyment of the bodywork; the compliment thereby paid to the chassis manufacturer is all the greater. There is an analogy in the magnificent office building, or hotel, mansion or public building; the foundations and their vital importance can be put out of mind provided they give no reminder of their existence by even a suggestion of fault or failure.
The bodywork of the commercial motor vehicle, therefore, offers a great deal Of encouragement to the designer to give the right expression to his ideas, and to the exercise of his ingenuity in making it of really practical use. Even the humble carrier of heavy loads of goads has given abundant scope for the production of just the right body for the particular job in hand, and there would be justification for expressions of surprise if a list could be presented showing the extraordinary variety which exists in body design for vans and lorries, of all capacities from 5 cwt. to the general maximum of 10 tons. Considerable ingenuity has been displayed in the design of the simpler tipping body and its operating mechanism, whilst in vehicles intended for municipal services the British manufacturer has made substantial advances in the past few years, and only in the matter of a complete prevention of the scattering of dust and refuse when it is being collected and taken to the tip is he, in our opinion, behind his rivals in Germany.
In bodywork for passenger-carrying vehicles this country is not excelled—even in the United States of America—because we have been quick to adopt any new idea that has been brought forth in that land of long-distance, fast road travel as well as to advance our own projects. The modern bus is a monument to the enterprise of the leading operators in this country and a tribute to their consideration for the comfort, convenience and well-being of their passengers. It is wonderfully durable, particularly when its light weight is considered, and in no single respect can it be said to fall short of any reasonable requirement. For years it has actually been in advance of public opinion or demand, and it is safe to say that bus designers and engineers are a long way from being near the end of their resources.
The motor coach has made such progress that it has completely altered the character of the coaching traffic. Up to and after the war the motor coach was merely a char-it-banes, something which offered the degree of discomfort and lack of refinement that were sufferable for no more than a short day. The advance has been remarkable, and even the half-day or day tripper now expects and insists upon amenities undreamed of six or seven years ago, whilst an entirely new clientele has been built up for long-distance journeys and tours. Just as railway travel has changed from the cooped-up •restraint of the suburban-train type of coach to the freedom, comfort and convenience of the corridor train, with its restaurant coach, so the motor coach has become an entirely different vehicle: it is a saloon with almost the amenities of a maisonette on wheels, and a good class of passenger has been created, able to pay a fare which is high enough to permit of the provision of a service suitable to that class. We are yet a long way from the full development of passenger carrying in this country, for it Is safe to say that the average number of journeys per head of the population could easily be doubled, which expansion alone would create a demand for twice the present seating capacity.