Passing Comments
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ACLEARLY worded mail card is being sent out to vehicle owners by the C.M.T.T.A.. It sets forth the dangers to hauliers which are threatened in the Road and Rail Traffic Bill. The personal touch resulting from a direct mail campaign may do much to arouse the thoughtless.
IN an unobtrusive way heavy-oil vaporizers have
made considerable progress in the past 12 months, many of the early difficulties of incomplete combustion having been overcome. The experiences of the more enlightened operators in connection with alternative fuels are worth watching.
ONE of the difficulties with automatic brakes of
-the type which is held on by springs, is that the poWer diminishes as the length of pull increases, owing to wear, etc., which is just the reverse effect of that required.
DURING a chat recently with Mr. 0. D. North, of Scammell Lorries, Ltd., he predicted a big future for the needle-roller-bearing type of universal joint, which, we understand, will soonbe manufactured in this country. •
THE use of caravans behind private cars may be
satisfactory if the driver exercises care, but the other day, on the Great North Road, we saw a large caravan being towed at 45 m.p.h., and it was swaying from side to side of the road in a most alarming fashion.
WE are not enamoured of the suggestien Of the secretary of the National Safety First Association that mass use should be made of mobile traffic police, who would swoop on to particular areas to reap a crop ofoffenders against the traffic laws. On the commercial-transport side, at least, we already suffer far too much from police activity.
ONE of the most useful activities of the Associa tion lies in the education of the young, and in this connection one of the best efforts which we have yet, seen is the new talkie film entitled "Alert today—Alive to-morrow," which has been presented to the Association by Mr. Gordon Stewart. It is a film which will also be appreciated by adults.
THE road-transport associations are seriously con sidering the possibility of stabilizing rates, realizing that these must be improved before January 1 next. Those hauliers who persist in rate-cutting may then find themselves in a very awkward position.
IN view of the rapid growth of the nil engine, it
is interesting to note that there will be 10 papers on fuels for high-speed compression-ignition engines at the forthcoming World Petroleum Congress. There will be nine items dealing with alternative fuels and two on dilution.
THE railways in Great Britain traverse many dis tricts of unparalleled beauty of scenery, but in few cases can it be appreciated to the best advantage. The holiday season is now at hand, and the countryside is looking at its best. Whether for a long journey from point to point, or for a short tour in a scenic district, a more intimate aquaintance of the locality can be made, and its charms seen to the best advantage, from the windows of the motor coach.
TUB, Road Haulage Association has written to • the underwriters association suggesting that the insurance companies should marshal their forces to obtain a point of principle in respect of the responsibility of road authorities as to the gritting or such other treatment of roads as may render them safer. In one or two instances lately damages have been obtained against authorities where accidents were shown to be due to skidding on treacherous surfaces.