Is C Licensees' Future in Doubt ?
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NXIETY over recent statements by ilSir Cyril Huicornb, Chairman of the British Transport Cominissicin, and Mr., Alfred Barnes,. Minister of TransPort; on the question of C-licence operation, was expressed it the annual dinner of the. Traders' Road. Transport Associa-. Lion, in London last" week, by Major E C. Cadbury, chairman of the Central Consultative.:Corrunitiee set up
under the Transport Act.. .
Mr._ Barnes wa. to have been the prindpai:guest; but at the last Moment he was prevented,froin attending, and his, place was taken by Mr. Alfred Robens, Parliamentary Secretary to the
Ministry of Fuel and Power._
• This change hampered . Major Cad bury, who had wished to seek frorn the Minister information _on the future
the C-licensee. He wished to know in what way the C-licensee was supposed to be transgressing. Encroachment on
the freedom of the ancillary user would. have serious effects, he said.
Major Cadbury revealed that most of his, company's transport was being undertaken by haulage concerns acquired by the B.T.C., and extremely good service was being given. MajorGeneral G. N. Russell, 'chairman of the Road Transport Executive, who was a guest, heard him say, however, that if the Executive became hidebound, the Cadbury organization would have to examine the question of increasing its C-licence fleet.
Big Saving By Road Major Cadbury added that he had personal knowledge of only one case in which there had been a large -transfer of traffic to C-licence vehicles. He had examined statistics in that instance, and was convinced that a big saving would accrue from the use of the ancillary user's own vehicles.
He also said that the Minister of Transport was determined that the Central Consultative Cominitee should work effectively, and its membets looked to the T.R,T.A. for assistance.
Mr. Robens said he would regret the creation of any. State monopoly that did not afford safeguards for users. The Nation had reached a period of .delegated legislation. 'Regulations..must be decigned to assist the -economy of the country, and in making them-, Ministers
' must. Atave the help of traders' organizations. •
Col. A. Jerrett; president of the AssocialiMi; also referfed. to Mr.. Barnes's recent speech in Glasgow on the qiiesdon of C-licence. operation. He quoted the case of a member in South Wales who moved 7,000 tons a week and whose cost of . transport would be doubled if the railways were employed.
He welcomed Dr. F. E. Spat, 'president of the International Road Transport Union (I.R.U.) and of E.V.O. (the
C-licence holders' organization), and Dr. A. Greebe, secretary of E.V.O. .Col. Jerrett said that I.R.U. had just' been appointed a consultative body. to .United ,Nations.
Other -speakers Were Mr. David R. Lamb (chnirinin of the Institute of
Transport), S. C. Bond • (chairman of the East Midland Area of T.R,T.A.) and Mr, Russell Vick, K.C. .
FREE SERVICE FOR PERKINS ENGINES
FOR the week starting next Monday, May 9, Halls (Finehley), Ltd., is holding a free service week for Perkins oil engines at its service station in Arcadia Avenue, Church End, London, N.3. Operators of vehicles powered by Perkins engines are invited to take their vehicles along for minor adjustments, tuning and technical advice.
There will be no labour charges, but operators will be expected to pay for materials.
During the same period, a special display of Seddon vehicles and Perkins engines is to be held at the company's showrooms at Odeon Parade, High Road, London, N.12. Sales and technical representatives of F. Perkins, Ltd., will be in attendance between 10.30 a.m. and 5.30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, inclusive.
EXECUTIVE AVAILABLE
AN electrical and Mechanical engineer with wide technical and sales experience, and now a general manager, seeks to exercise his ability in an executive position, or as sales manager, with a reputable concern affording ample scope and interest, either in London or the south of England. Letters should be addressed "Scope," care of the Editor.
Cleansing Vehicle Demonstration
THE Institute of Public Cleansing
announces that the vehicle demonstration during the Edinburgh conference will be held in the Waverley Market on the morning of Thursday, June 16. In the afternoon, delegates will be able to make a detailed examination and inspection of the exhibits. The following' manufacturers will be participating:—
Vehicles: Austin Crompton Parkinson Electric Vehicles, Ltd., Austin Motor Co., Ltd., Wm. Bunce and Son, Dennis Bros., Ltd., Eagle Engineering Co., Ltd., Ford Motor Co., Ltd., Glover, Webb and Liversidge, Ltd., Johnston Bros. (Contractors),' Ltd.,Karrier Motor Ltd., Lacre Lorries, Ltd., Messrs. Alex. Laurie and Sons, Lewin Road Sweepers, Ltd., Low Loading Trailer Co., Ltd., Scammell Lorries, Ltd., Shefflex, Ltd., Shelvoke and Drewry, Ltd., Transport Equipment (Thornycroft), Ltd., Vauxhall Motors, Ltd.. and Walkers and County Cars, Ltd.
• Appliances: W. and F. Archer, Ltd., Bristowes Machinery, Ltd., W. P Butterfield, Ltd., Lockerbie and Wilkinson (Birmingham), Ltd. McArthur and Co. (Steel and Metal), Ltd., Miller (London), Ltd., and Municipal Supplies, Ltd.
The exhibition of protective clothing has been abandoned because of supply and labour difficulties.
EDITORIAL REPRESENTATIVE REQUIRED
AVACANCY exists on the editorial staff of "The Commercial Motor" for an enterprising, well-educated man of 25-30, who has a grasp of road transport operation, including law, trade politieS and history. The successful applicant must be able to ' write good, plain English and work quickly. He must also be able to recognize news when he sees it.
Applications, giving full particulars of experience, should be addressed to the Editor of "The Commercial Motor," Bowling Green Lane, London, E.C.I, and marked -"Personal."
Platform Mishaps Prevented
SINCE the special safety device invented by Mr. George Rock, general manager of Lincoln Transport Department, was fitted to a bus in December, 1947, there has been no platform accident on that vehicle. The device, which was seen on a Guy bus at the Commercial Motor Show last October, consists of a warning light which indicates to the driver That a passenger is holding the handrails on the platform. •
TM( week Lincoln County Council was asked to approve the installation of the system on all the municipal buses. In a report to the Transport Committee, Mr. Rock said that there were about 27,500 platform accidents a year on • trams, trolleybuses and motorbuses. The average number of motorbus passengers per accident was 299,000, but the Lincoln bus equipped with this device had already carried more than 1,000,000 people without mishap. Three instances of the avoidance of accidents by the operation of the device had been reported.
HAULIER FINED 055
A SHEFFIELD haulier, Harold CA Smith, of Carlby Road, was fined £355, with £50 costs, at Sheffield City Court, last week, for a series of road transport offences. These included eight concerning insurance, for which defendant was fined £25 in each case and disqualified from driving for 12 months.
The other, fines were:—£10 on each of 10 charges of failing to comply with the conditions of licences; £25 for using a contract defence permit with intent to deceive; £5 on each of two charges of altering records; £5 for failing to cause an identity certificate to be fixed to a vehicle; and £5 on each of three charges of failing to preserve records.
£100 FOR DRIVER'S GALLANTRY
AT a meeting of Lanarkshire County Council, in Glasgow, last week, Mr. John Dempsey, a driver employed by the council, was awarded £100 in recognition of "a gallant action in face of danger."
When a fire broke out at the county salvage store and Scavenging department's garage at High Blantyre, the firemen were hampered by the presence of several vehicles which they were unable to move. Mr. Dempsey drove them out, although debris was falling and nearby was a large petrol tank.
TRANSPORT COMMTI1EE FOR . LONDON
REPLYING to a question in the House of Commons on Monday, the Minister of Transport, Mr. Alfred Barnes, said that he had decided to set up a Transport Users' Consultative Committee to cover both passenger and goods traffic in the area of the London Transport Executive.
Steps would shortly be taken, said Mr. Barnes, to consult representative bodies regarding the appointment of members.
c2 RUNNING A SERVICE STATION COMPLETELY revised and greatly ‘...dettlarged, the fifth edition of "The Service Station Manual" has recently been published. The book is divided into three parts. The firs deals with the general principles in the design and organization of service stations. Legislation, 'management, accounting and costing fall in the second part, whilst in the third part, information is given on service plant and equipment.
The book is well printed, and contains-a number of excellent half-tone reproductions of typical service-station frontages. It is published by the Penton Publishing Co., Ltd., 2, Caxton Street, Westminster, S.W.1, and the price is 15s.
Periscope Measures Bus Height -
AN extending periscope, built by tl apprentices to a design roughed out by Mr. V. W. Pilkington, director of engineering, is now being used by Leyland Motors, Ltd:, to measure the height of double-deck buses. Formerly it was measured by a movable crossbar supported at each end by a pillar.
The instrument is about 14 ft. long and is mounted on vertical hinges on a wall. The top portion is raised or lowered by means of a hand wheel, the drive being taken through a long rod and worm gears. A graduated scale near the base records the height of the periscope.
When checking the height of a bus, the vehicle is driven on to a level elevated runway, which is also used for under-floor inspection. An inspector operates the periscope by looking through the viewing mirror and turning the adjusting hand wheel until the top faL, the bus coincides exactly with a datum line on the periscope mirror, By turning the periscope horizontally, the whole of the roof line can be surveyed.
" BUS OPERATION" REVISED QTUDENTS of road passenger trans port will welcome the new revised edition of "Bus Operation," a valuable contribution to road transport education.
The author, L. D. Kitchin, assistant editor of "Bus and Coach" and "Motor Transport," has incorporated a number of suggestions from students themselves, and modifications have been introduced where necessary to record the latest developments in operating technique.
In this edition an appendix is included giving some practical advice on how to study and how to tackle an examination paper.
"Bus Operation" is published by Iliffe and Sons, Ltd., at 10s. 6d.
-Big Single-deckers for Peak Loads .
AWISH to run longer single-deckers carrying more than 40 seated passengers was expressed by Mr. Raymond W. Birch, M.1.Mech.E., chairman of the Potteries Motor Traction Co., Ltd., at the company's annual general meeting, last week. He said that this type of *Vehicle would solve many peak problems, particularly on those routes where low bridges precluded the use of double-deckers. He hoped the Minister of Transport would realize the need, for a more up-to-date outlook on public service vehicles. After referring to the effect of the Transport Act on road passenger transport, Mr. Birch said that more than 200 employees of the company. had had at least 25 years' service, and some 40 years. He wondered how they would feel if, as the result of an area scheme, they found themselves employed by "a great soulless undertaking covering a tenth of the whole country. Already," he added, "under railway nationalization, many of the rank and file are sorely disillusioned."
Mr. Birch also mentioned the importance of providing catering facilities at bus stations. He said the snack bar at Longton bus station had had a most satisfactory year's trading and was greatly appreciated by passengers. Reconstruction of the café-restaurant at Newcastle-under-Lyme had nearly been completed.
"RETURN-LOAD" CASE: CONVICTIONS QUASHED
APPEALS by two company directors sentenced in the "return load" case at Leeds Assizes, last December, were allowed' in London on April 29 by the Court of Criminal Appeal, which quashed the convictions and sentences.
The appellants were Harry Goodman, of Derby Road, Nottingham; sentenced ' to seven years' penal servitude on four charges of receiving stolen property, -and Montague Keith Napier, of Middleton Boulevard, Nottingham, sentenced to five years' penal servitude On five charges of receiving. Presiding at the appeal court, Mr. Justice Oliver said the appeals would be allowed because the court held there had been misdirection of the jury by the Commissioner of Assize at the trial.
N.A.F.W.R. CONFERENCE "THE Role and Policy of the 'Furniture Warehousing and Removing Industry Under the Transport Act, 1947," will be the subject of an address by Mr. K. B. Lalonde, of Bristol, on the opening day of the annual conference of the National Association of Furniture Warehousemen and Removers, at the Park Lane Hotel, London, W.1, on May 18. Other business that day will be the annual general meeting, an extraordinary general meeting to consider the amendment of the articles of association, a luncheon, and the annual dinner.
After the annual meeting of the Furniture Warehousemen and Removers' Benevolent Association on May 1-9, Mr. H. C. Balm', of Bournemouth, will speak on "Insurance in All Its Aspects."
CONSULTANT AVAILABLE
A MEMBER of the Institute of 1-1. Transport with a wide knowledge of traffic and distribution problems, and a specialist in road transport matters (goods and passenger), is avail'able to act as consultant. Letters addressed E.P., care of the Editor, will be fbrwarded.
KING'S PARDON FOR A DRIVER
THE King's Pardon has been granted to Mr. F. W. Oakey, of Bridle Road, Stafford, in respect of a conviction and fine of /2 for negligently driving a van by opening the door when
it was stationary and causing a cyclist to run into it. Some months ago the . Lord Chief Justice held that a man could not be said to be driving a vehicle that was stationary.
IN A LINE OR TWO New buses are to be introduced in Karachi under the Sind Government's nationalization plans.
Middlesbrough Corporation is introducing a new seven-mile bus service to link up the western and eastern districts of the town.
From June I, petrol allowances for hire cars and taxis will be increased by an amount equal to the standard ration for private cars for June, July and August. * * * Carmo (1929), Lid., Vauxhall and Bedford main dealer, of Leighton Road, Kentish Town, London, N.W.5, has taken over the Cardiff concern of N. W. Nash and Co., Ltd.
The International Road Transport Union is to ask governments to conclude a long-term convention for the 'freedom of international commercial road transport, to replace the present short-term agreements.
Midland Red Tries• Power Doors A FTER carrying but research for some time, the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd., has placed in service its first bus with power-operated doors. A rear-entrance double-decker has been fitted with double jack-knife doors, and to meet Ministry of Transport regulations, an emergency door has been built in the rear panel.
The mechanism controlling the jackknife doors is of C.A.V. manufacture and is electrically driven through a clutch, and controlled by press-buttons in the driver's cab. There are emergency buttons on the platform in a position where they are out of the normal reach of passengers, and another emergency button is located outside the vehicle near the doors. The driver has before him a warning light which indicates that the doors are open. He closes them when he receives the starting signal from the conductor and does not open them again until the vehicle has been brought to a standstill. The time required, to open and close the doors totals six seconds (three seconds for each operation). Should the current fail, the doors can easily be opened manually.
If road tests be satisfactory, the company will adopt power-operated doors as standard equipment, at least on all new buses. The Midland Red has also installed an Essex bus washer at its Oldbury garage. Others are likely to be introduced at the company's garages throughout the Midlands. Mr. D. M. Sinclair, general manager, saw several types of washer during his recent American tour, but he has selected a British machine.
ALL ABOUT LUBRICATION
AN excellent illustrated treatise entitled "Road Vehicle Lubrication" has just been published by C. C. Wakefield and Co. Ltd., 46, Grosvenor Street, London, W.I. The book is
being distributed free. Among other matters, it deals with the properties of oils and the lubrication of engines, clutches, gearboxes, propeller shafts and finaldrives, and chassis components. Another section is conierned with lubrication of electric and steam vehicles. Lessons in the value of efficient lubrication, learned from the repair shop, are also described. Equipment for maintenance and oil storage is dealt with in a further section.