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'Switch Heavy Traffic to Rail'
Page 9
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FROM OUR INDUSTRIAL CORRESPONDENT
DiRECTION of heavy traffic from the roads to the railways in the interests _of road safety and road costs was advocated last week by the County Councils Association. In a letter to the Minister of Transport giving its first views on the Beeching report the Association seeks an assurance that all possible steps will be taken to secure the transport of heavy bulk goods by rail, perhaps through licensing procedures.
" The increasing use made of the roads for the long-distance haulage of mineral and other traffic, due largely to the favourable rates charged and the superior loading and unloading facilities offered as compared with rail, is causing many highway authorities serious concern", the Association stated.
"The Association seeks an assurance that consultation with such authorities will precede any closure which will have the effect of increasing the amount of such traffic on trunk and classified roads and that in addition to the licensing measure suggested all possible steps will be taken to secure the transport of such traffics by rail."
Commenting that the Transport Users' Consultative Committees in considering rail closures could only deal with issues of hardship, but that the Minister's powers were wider, the Association asks him to ensure that all other considerations are taken into account, including inconvenience which might fall short of hardship.
It also sought an assurance that when the Minister required the Railways Board to provide a substitute bus service in the place of a closed line, the Board should be obliged to maintain it; even if it became uneconomic while remaining socially necessary.
Special considerations must apply to holiday areas. The economy of holiday resorts is geared to the seasonal influx of visitors and the withdrawal of rail services may have the most damaging effects upon a town's existence. The Association urges that consideration should be given to the need to retain such services even though their seasonal nature makes them uneconomic."
R.H.A. Dinner THE Road Haulage Association's annual dinner and annual general meeting will be held on May 15 as arranged, regardless of whether a rail strike takes place at that time. Special car-parking arrangements are being made for the benefit of Association members.