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Virtue Out of Adversity
SOME hauliers think that the prestige advertising campaign which the Road Haulage Association are to launch in October is months too late. It should have accompanied the repeal of the 25-mile limit, they argue.
But events are to be kind to the Association. The Government are to introduce legislation in the autumn to clear up the disposal of British Road Services, and the R.H.A. advertising campaign, presenting the case for free enterprise, will happily precede it. The copy-writers are to be afforded a topical slant of which, it is to be hoped, they will -take good advantage.
Training for the :Ministry?
nNE of the attractions—or tribulations, depending on how you look at it—of a bus conductor's job is the opportunity it presents of close and regular contact with a large cross-section of the public. To Mr. Roger Hall, of Paignton, it is a strong attraction, for he feels that his contact with people in his temporary job as a conductor with the Devon General Omnibus and Touring Co., Ltd., will stand him in good stead for the full-time occupation he is A28
shortly to embark upon—that of a Congregational minister.
Mr. Hall, who qualified as a minister last month and is to be ordained in September, so much enjoyed his three months as a conductor last year that he took a similar position this summer. He comments that the task requires considerable patience, and describes his contact with passengers as "a revelation."
Who Wants a Cup?
THE Road Haulage Association are looking for ideas for suitable events in which the Harold Firth Trophy can be awarded. A replica of it will go this year to the winner of the concours d'elegance to be held during the R.H.A. conference at Harrogate in October.
Other possibilities spring to mind. It might be awarded to the driver who, among employees of R.H.A. members, gains the highest number of points
in the "Lorry Driver of the Year" contest. It might also be put up for competition in a fueleconomy rally for commercial vehicles. Readers of The Commercial Motor may have other useful suggestions to make.
Road-over-Rail Plan Advocated
THE building of roads over railways, with the 1 addition of stations at suitable points for the use of helicopters, was suggested by Lt.-Col. S. Maynard Lovell, engineer and surveyor of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in a paper read before the recent Conference of Municipal Engineers, held at Brighton.
He also advocated the employment of moving footpaths to relieve congestion in certain streets by passenger transport vehicles.
As regards the first scheme, he considered that this would mean using the best possible engineering lines from the point of view.of travel. The land, except for relatively small areas where the railway lines went through tunnels or over high viaducts, was already available.
Of course, neither of these ideas is new, several drawings showing how one of our London termini aod the tracks leading from it might appear if roads
were built above them, were published in The Commercial Motor in March, 1929, one being reproduced in the Jubilee Issue of March 18, 1955.
Moving ways for carrying large numbers of people have also been suggested from time to time. It is interesting, however, to find an engineer of Mr. Lovell's calibre endorsing such plans.
Leyland Buses Popular in Madrid
THE July issue of the monthly journal of the British Chamber of Commerce for Spain illustrates one of the new Leyland single-deck buses which has now been in service on the streets of Madrid for some time. There are only 10 of these, but it is stated, as a general opinion, that they are the best buses used in the capital. The only complaint has been
the narrow gangway. As the vehicles are nearly always crowded, this causes some difficulty.