Comic Relief Eases Transport Problems in the Malay States'
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A LTHOUGH reports of official .t"%bodies rarely make anything but prosaic reading, a distinct exception is the report of the Federated Malay States Transport Board, which was issued recently. One can fairly see the twinkle in the eye of Mr, S. W. Nelson, chairman of the Board, when he thought of the reactions of British operators and Licensing Authorities to the conditions described therein!
Three years have elapsed since Mr. Nelson relinquished his position as clerk to the West Midland Traffic Commissioners and his first report, which covers the period from July 30, 1936, to December 31, 1938, makes it clear that his present position is not lacking in thrills and humorous situations.
When the Licensing Authority first made use of the service from Berserah along the sands to Trengganu, he " thought in his innocence that the six conductors carried const it uted a sort of guard of honour." At the first river estuary, however, he found that their duties were to wade in advance of the vehicle to find the shallowest crossing place and to push the bus out of the rivers or swamps! This situation IS typical of the many difficulties encountered on the practical side.
Legislation that Lacked Subtlety.
Nevertheless, it would appear that there was no subtlety in the legislation, for the report states that the 1934 Enactment was based on the recommendations of the committee appointed under the chairmanship of the Hon. G. E. London, and this Enactment " has its origin in the recommendations submitted to the ' London ' Committee by the general manager of the F.M.S. Government Railways, its primary purpose being to increase railway revenue by eliminating uneconomic competition with the railway by road transport.'' Subsequently, there was other legislation and later in the report it is pointed out that the Board has taken a wide view and has sought a solution for the benefit of the country as a whole and not necessarily for the railways alone. A further Enactment, in 1937, drastically revise(' the publictransport situatiQn.
For many years hire cars were a popular—if that be the word—form of transport. Having saved up about AIO, it would happen that a labourer would buy up an old private car, and perhaps spend a little more in fitting up a body to hold seven or nine passengers. A conductor was required by law to be posted at the back of each bus but, conditions being what they were, if the seats were fully occupied he was compelled to stand on the rear step and to hang on for dear life. Incidentally the first step after obtaining a load was to collect the fares so that the driver could buy petrol for the journey !
Starting in January, 1937, meetings were held with regard to each route, and the authority explained that in order to prevent wasteful competition and to avoid difficulties and dangers, only one road-service licence would, in all probability, be granted for each route. Operators were advised that if they would form a company, it would be granted a controlled monopoly on that route. Naturally, such proposals were not received with complete enthusiasm, and British applicants for licences, lacking concrete evidence, might take a tip from the petitioners in one district who argued against the proposals, prophesying loss of employment for their members, who, they claimed would, in consequence, be forced into a life of crime
Complete rates of fares have been laid down by the Board, on the standard of two cents per mile (equal to .56c1:in Great Britain),
Passenger-vehicle Operators Encouraged.
Passenger companies are being encouraged to go out for new business, and one operator has been successful in adopting the suggestion that it should cater for Malay wedding celebrations; in this case, one of the service buses is disguised with carpets, decorations and seat covers, with suitably embroidered or printed inscriptions in Jawi.
A similar arrangement, it is stated, has been made for Chinese functions, including funerals, on which it is customary to spend much money; the significance of the moon, in relation to Chinese festivals, has not been overlooked, as evidenced by the provision of coaches with sliding roofs !
At the end of last year, 348 road-service licences had been granted, together with 2,261 P.S.V._ licences. On the haulage side, a system prevails similar to that in England. At the end of 1938 there were current 477 A licences authorizing 795 vehicles, 619 B licences authorizing 834 vehicles, and 693 C licences authorizing 1,051 vehicles.