International Co-operation in Transport Progresses
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NINEIEEN nations have signed a new, international road traffic convention in Geneva. Thus ended the world road transport conference which had. been sitting from August 23 until September 19, and on which 33 nations were represented.
The provisions of this convention, discussed in "The Commercial Motor" on August 19, provide a detailed codification of the rules and regulations covering all aspects of international road transport. Technical specifications for roads as well as motor vehicles have been drawnup, basic rules of the road, and vehicle and driver certification systems have been standardized, and the new convention is more comprehensive in its scope than any .previous one.
Guidance is given to road users, manufacturers and governments, and almost every, feature of international and national L road movement has ben considered.
One aspect of the conveotion which occasioned .much -discussion, was the framing of international standatd technical provisions, extending to maximum permissible weights apd dimensions. Not unnaturally some countries were unwilling to accept dimensions and weights -much irtexcess of those pertaining at present.
Greater .Freedom However, the standards accepted do ensure that, provided a vehicle complies with the law of the country in which it will operate, it will not be refused admission on technical grou In other words, in the case where high-. ways are designated as " international," the standardized dimensions will apply, but in general they are a domestic matter.
Maximum dimensions agreed upm include: Overall length 72 ft. for a combination of vehicles with two trailers; overall width 8 ft. 21 ins., and maximum height, 12 ft. 6 ins. Maximum weights adopted by the convention agree with those permitted by most of the nations represented at the conference, and are based on the present condition of the roads in the countries concerned.
Thus a maximum axle weight of S metric tons has been approved. Regional agreements may be reached between individual countries to permit anaxle weight of 13 tons. The discussions on the protoCOl on road signs and signals, which was not signed by Britain, revealed that, in general, the Latin countries of the Continent wished to maintain their own pictorial system, and the American SIRtes favoured their own type of sign.
Standards for S:gns
A decision was reached laying down the general shape of the. various types of sign, and emphasizing that symbolic signs should be adopted wherever, possible, in order that the signs should be understood by drivers unfamiliar with the language of the country in which they are travelling. Uniformity in the technical requirements of vehicles was stressed in the conference. As a result of the decisions reached, the vehicles of some countries will have to fulfill more severe conditions when going abroad. It is hoped that the conditions agreed upon will' encourage manufacturers to produce vehicles conforming to • the international standard'