March Registrations Out of Step
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Goods Vehicles Still on the Down Grade, but Hackneys Make a Better Showing. Market Possibilities Revealed by the Latest Official Returns
THE tendency which was revealed by the opening months of the year, so far as new registrations of commercial vehicles are concerned, continued in March, when, as briefly mentioned in our issue for last week, there was a Material drop in goods vehicles from 8,446 in March, 1936, to 7,910 a year later, although this was partially offset by an increase from 887 to 973 in hackney vehicles. The total number of new registrations for the month made an improved showing, this year's total of 55,746 contrasting with 52,909 a year earlier.
The drop on the goods side was completely accounted for by the fewer registrations of petrol vehicles, the fall being 609 to a total of 7,557 for March last. In only one section up to seven tons was an increase to be noted, that being the 1-14-tonners, which rose from . 680 to 776, the -falls in the other divisions, ranging from quite a few vehicles in the heaviest classes to 301 vehicles in the section for machines with an unladen weight from 12 cwt. to 1 ton.
Chief Goods-vehicle Registrations.
Other than this class, the major registrations took place in the following categories, last year's totals being given in parentheses :—Not exceeding 12 cwt., 1,681 (1,781) ; 14-2 tons, 1,319 (1,485) ; 2-2i tons, 2,322 (2,371) ; 23 tons, 247 (294) ; 3-4 tons, 164 (171).
Goods oilers made a good showing and, at 168, improved by 60 on last year's comparable return. In the four categories from three tons to seven tons, there was little to choose between the registrations in each class, 141 being the total in these divisions.
In the first two months of the year, the electric-vehicle registrations fell, but they picked up slightly in March, with. attotal of 78 registrations, compared with 68 a year earlier, 44 being in the 12-cwt.-1,ton class. It is worthy
of note that there were four 4-5-tonners licensed.
Included in the goods-vehicle returns were 12 vehicles licensed for drawing trailers, as compared with 27 for the previous year.
There seems to have been a little steadying in the figures for six-wheeled vehicles, and the drop in both rigid and articulated classes appears to have been somewhat arrested. For instance, there were 86 rigid six-wheelers registered in March last, as Compared with 80 a year ago, and although the articulated type did not show up so well, with 42 registrations against 59 a year earlier, the fall was not so considerable as in recent months. Out of a total of 21 eight-wheelers, 12 were 6-7-tonners, which continue to be a most popular type in this division.
Under the heading of miscellaneous vehicles, 653 Government owned machines were licensed, as contrasted with 1,007 in March, 1936.
Registrations of agricultural vans and lorries were fairly stable, the total of 94 for March, 1937, having to be set against 89 for the corresponding month of last year; once again, all these machines were equipped with petrol engines.
Under the heading of tractors, 35 registrations took place, 13 being or the agricultural type and 22 for general haulage, last year's aggregate being 25, made up of four of the former, 20 of the latter and a showman's vehicle.
Hackney Oilers a High Spot.
The outstanding feature of the hackney registrations is the upward trend in oilers, the total of 480 for March last showing an advance of well over 50 per cent, on the total for 1936 (301). This year's figure has two high spots-147 26-32-seaters and 210 4856-seaters. Another class which was well to the fore was the 32-40-seaters, with 92 registrations.
In view of the advance in oilers, one might reasonably expect the petrol machines to have fallen to a marked degree, but more than half the drop of 83, from 566 to 483, was brought about by taxicab registrations. The chief registiations took place in the categories for 26-32-seaters (149), and 20-26-seaters (89).
The number of trolleybuses licensed was 10—half last year's comparable total.
The total number of goods vehicles registered in the first quarter of the year was 21,800, compared with 22,685 for the previous year, the correspondingreturns in respect of hackney vehicles being 1,868 and 1,843 respectively.