HOLIDAY-MAKING BY MOTOR CHAR-A-BANCS.
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In Anticipation of the Demand This Season for Tours by Motor Coaches, Pickfords, Ltd., Have Prepared an Excellent Itinerary.
THE popularity of the motor chay-h-bancs for touring and sight-seeing reached its height last,year, and the season was voted by char-abanes proPrietors generally as a bumper one. If the works .activities of chassis manufacturers and body builders,during the last few months are a true indication of,the demand which is likely to be made by persons desiring a •roving holiday this year then the season of 1920 bids fair to outstripthe record set up last year. We unhesitatingly predict that the forthcoming, season will establish a new record both from the point of view of vehicles in use and passengers carried.
Touring by motor char-a-bancs affords the last word in holidays, and those people who have usually been content in the pa,stPto spend their •vacation in one particular seaside resort now realize that a holiday closely approaching the ideal can be speak in this manner. It is difficult to imagine anything more restint and divertingJhari a motor tour, for the person of moderate means, especially if the holiday-maker is spared the trouble of fixing hotel accommodation and other incidentals, and is assured of comfortable hotels and an interesting itinerary.
With commendable initiative, and under the capable direction of Mr, James, Pickfords, Ltd., the wellknown London Carriers, organised last year a series of char-à-banes tours, which proved to-be, extremely popular, and they justly claim to he the originators ofwmotor coach tours from London. During the summer season of 1919 the company ran four Tilling
Stevens petrol and electric vehicles for this purpose. These vehicles carried 1,0,50 passengers during the season, and in many cases travellers hooked for a second tour directly after the completion of the first —unsolicited evidepee of the personal pleasure derived and the comfort of motor coaching.
The four Tillings were found insufficient to meet the public demand, and as a result-were very hard worked. Two of them covered 11,000 and 10,200 miles
respectively durinvthe season. ' In anticipation of the demand for char-h-bancs tours which is likely to be made this year Messrs. Pickforels have ordered 16 vehicles of Tilling-Stevens make, which will be used solely for this service. They are all 23-seaters, some of them being 45 h.p. machines, and the others 65 h.p., those fitted with the more powerful engine being new Models specially designed for long-distance passenger carrying. In a short chat we had with Mr. James he spoke in. glowing terms of the petrol-electric vehicle for char-a-banes work and continued: "` Although they m`ay be a trifle 'slow on hills, whatever the gradient you can be sure they will get to the top: Some of the most difficult hills to negotiate are thoso in North Devon."
The 15 vehicles on order, all of w-hich will be delivered by the end of April in readiness for the first tour, which commences on May 17th, will be identical in appearance,.and will, without doubt, be one of the smartest and most luxurions fleets of char-à-bancs in use this season. • No trouble has been spared in the design of the body, as the plan view of the seating -capacity, which we reproduce, will show. Lounge arm-chairs, well-sprung and neatly upholstered, 'are 7.sed, and thetinside aide seat of each pair, on either side of the central gangway, is4isposed slightly behind the outer seat.' Only two doors .f or passengers, on the near side of the vehicle, are provided. This arrangement of seating, which is Messrs. Pickford's own design, undoubtedly provides the maximum, of comfort. The bodies are being constructed by the Argent Carriage Co., Ltd., Birch Brothers, and Tilling Stevens, Ltd., and when finished Will be claret coloured. Most of the machines will be fitted with disc wheels. A point that.is worthy of mention is that special,. attention Ilas been given by the chassis makers. to the brakes, so that no fear need be felt by the nervous-inclined when descending steep hills. Each vehicle is costing the companylittle short of 2.2,000, so that it is obvious that no expense. has been spared in an effort to make the tours a means of spending an enjoyablelioliday.
It will not be without interest to mention the tours which are scheduled for the coming season, the time oceupied, the road mileage covered., and the charge for each tour. They are as follow :—
Time Road
District. taken. Ind 2sge. Charge.
North and South Devon 7 days 560 14 guineas Devon and Isle of Wight 8 „ 550 16 „ Devon and Cornwall .... 14 800 25 „ North Devon and South ' 7 „ 500 14
Wales
North Wales 8 450 75
11
Wales ..-. 11 750 "24 Lake District and York14 11 800 26
shire Dales
English and Scotch Lakes 17 „ 1,000 33 „
From these few details it will be readily gathered that considerable attentionhas been given to the selection of the routes. The scenery embraced is of the finest in Great Britain.
The longest tour, extending over 17 days, includes, apart from the road mileage, a journey of 170miles by steamer and 70 miles by train. One or two of the other tours also include a short distance by steamer, and these trips should be especially weleonie; 108 miles is the longest distance -undertaken in a day. The hotels are the beat obtainable in every place at which a stay is made, and passengers are entitled to exactly the same attention as is the private guest without the necessity for worrying about the attendant arrangements. All gratuities at hotels are included in the charges.
Mr. James informed us that the vehicles cost approximately is. 6d. per mile to run last year, and that they .averaged about 8 m.p.g. of petrol consumed. On each vehicle sufficient fuel is carried to enable it to run 800 miles.
In answer to a question Mr. James said : "No, the vehicles are not to be used during the winter, months. So soon as the season ends on September 30th they will be garaged and completely overhauled and renovated for the following year. It is not wise to use a vehicle, designed for char-A.-banes work, as a goods-carrying lorry, one reason being that there is always a tendency to overload a goods lorry, and five or six months of this class of work might easily render the vehicle unsuitable for further passenger carrying."
Apart from these extended tours the company are also arta.nging for day trips, short excursions, and summer evening outings. The latter will form a delightful relief to a day spent in town, and should receive much patronage from business workers.