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BIRD'S EYE VIEW

2nd October 1964, Page 157
2nd October 1964
Page 157
Page 157, 2nd October 1964 — BIRD'S EYE VIEW
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

By The Hawk

Not To Be Missed Very gratifying to see the

number of people at Earls Court on Saturday afternoon (Show, of course, not shopping). It was good to see so many young there taking what appeared to be an intelligent interest in the exhibits. While walking along the iunnel from tube to Show it rapidly became evident what was the most effective publicity venture in the area—the yellow carrier bags with Guy Big J emblazoned on them in bold black type. In the evening they were still to he teen, clearly visible the length of a railway platform—as far afield as Orpington.

International Week Quite apart from the C.M.

',..‘ortference and the Show opening, last week was a very nternational week in road transport: hot on the heels of he own-account meeting of IR U in London, at which heT.R.T.A. were hosts, came the London meeting of the )rofessional hauliers section of IRU at the invitation of he R.H.A. The informal lunch after the latter meeting

as a most lively and inspiring event, and Herr Lothar Zaucamp, the section's president, spoke stirringly of road ransport: hauliers were no longer merely artisans of trans)ort, he said, but an industry; and road transport was low something more than an industry—a complete nedium of transport. This, he suggested, would be a great ielp in facing the competition from the railways which sad been discussed at the meeting.

kbsent Friends The sense of international

!omradeship at this extremely enjoyable lunch was quite • emarkable; may it flourish. The only regrettable note vas the absence of the R.H.A.'s national chairman, Mr. R. Butt—who has been laid low with a slipped disc. Everyone will wish him a speedy recovery, I know, but can assure him that he was very ably represented by ice-chairman Mr. H. Bell last week.

Vlodern Times! Motoring along one of our

much-vaunted motorways--M4—en route to the Commer!jai Motor Show, I was contemplating the improvement hat the Chiswick/Langley section would, when finished, make to a colleague's daily journey to the office. The traffic stream, moving along nicely at about 60 m.p.h., suddenly came to a halt. When movement was resumed it was of the dreaded recurring stopand-start variety. I cursed for not having taken my usual route—along A40—to the big city.

After an age (actually something like 16 min.) I arrived at the cause of all the trouble. Not a major pile-up, not a large stretch of road under repair—just a single, solitary roadworker. There he was sitting on his backside in the middle of the motorway— painstakingly digging a very small hole with a 41b hammer and a chisel. Much shaken, I proceeded on my way.

If you drive a lorry North of the Border I suggest you start polishing up your Russian. An agreement to develop friendly relations has been signed by the Scottish Commercial Motormen's Union and the Transport Workers' Union of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The occasion was the flying visit during the summer of the Russian union's general secretary, Mrs. Alexandra Kanayeva.

As well as exchanges of information about lorry drivers' working conditions and trade union activities, exchanges of delegations are envisaged. As a start I offer " Za vasha zdorovye tovarishch! "; our tame linguist assures me that it means "health to yon, comrade" but I think I'd be careful how I used it, all the same. Comrades New Venue The Simms annual dinner

seems to have lost none of its traditional spirit in being transferred to London's West End from parts more local to the Corporation's native Finchley, I'm glad to report; the move to larger premises for this very man's-night-out affair was appropriate for a year in which the chairman and managing director, Mr. Cr. E Liardet, reported record business, expanding production—and, intriguingly, a large new original-equipment contract with "a diesel engine manufacturer" for the Minimec injection pump.

Quaglino's provided just the right food and mood to go with the evening, which was complete with cabaret as usual. And it didn't take any great deductive powers to associate Alan Hess with the splendidly produced menu card. Just one example: he illustrated "a welcome to our guests" with a picture of a terrified man dodging injun arrows!

Timely Gesture Some people are likely to

find it a bit difficult to get used to the new 24-hour clock timetables being introduced in many quarters. So it's nice to hear that Ribble Motor Services have made an offer to help schoolchildren in the north west become familiar with the new system. The company has offered to supply schools with leaflets explaining the 24-hour clock and to supply them with copies of timetables.

Mr. George Brook. Ribble's general manager, recently sent a letter to directors of education in the area offering them this service.


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