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Ministry Sponsors Railway Propaganda

7th February 1936
Page 71
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Page 71, 7th February 1936 — Ministry Sponsors Railway Propaganda
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

FROM Press reports of the new road-safety propaganda film, "Death on the Road," which is being sponsored by the Ministry of Transport, we imagine . that "Hysteria in Whitehall" or "Melodrama at the Ministry" would be more fitting titles.. In the hest tradition of American terrorism, the film opens, it is stated, with a gruesome display of a skull. This is followed by some gratuitous publicity for the railways; in fact, the public is subconsciously urged to leave the roads if possible and travel "in safety" by rail.

A heart-rending scene depicts the massacre by a c17 motorist of a weary railway signalman who is wending his way home on a bicycle. Are we to assume from this incident that railway officials are marked down by road users for premature death? Or does the Ministry wish, by the employment of bodyline tactics, to dissuade the public from travelling by road?

Later in the film machine-gun fire is introduced to emphasize the "slaughter on the roads." Whether this is intended to suggest war between road and rail interests is not clear, but the general effect is not calculated, in our view, to inspire mutual confidence between all classes of road user.

It is difficult to see how much farther this veiled propaganda for the railways can be carried now that it has gained an entrée to broadcasting and official documentary films.

In view of the spate of " murder " publicity aimed at the motor driver, it seems almost useless to point out that very few drivers are not fully aware of their responsibility towards safety on the roads. Furthermore, the pedestrian and cyclist have been shown to be the cause of many accidents. Would it not have been better to have produced a film of a more sympathetic character, laying greater emphasis on the part that must be played by every road user to reduce the toll of accidents?

The introduction of the "murder motif" and the railway propaganda will, we are afraid, do much to antagonize many motorists.

British Passenger Vehicles Must Remain the Finest

WE -discuss, in this issue, on the one hand, possibilities of future developments, and, on the other, colder probabilities.

The first named are considered in an article from the pen of a well-known engineer contribu tor, whose fertile brain often produces ideas of such an advanced nature that they arouse, in some quarters, a certain degree of scepticism. They are, however, by no means the exaggerated dreams of an idealist. Their originator may view the future through rose-tinted glasses, but he is a man of wide practical experience, and his suggestions are all technically workable.

The article dealing with probabilities is not of the speculative sort, but is a reasoned review of the, possibly, more-immediate prospects, based upon actual advancements. In this case the author argues with sound logic that the forward steps of 1935 will be followed on the same lines by similar progress in 1936.

In a sense, the views of the one are complementary to those of the other, whilst both articles are unquestionably instructive.

The writer on probabilities remarks, with truth, that the public is scared of anything revolutionary. The feelings of the masses in this respect must be reflected in the manufacturer. Accordingly, one may expect the most striking departures from present practice to emanate from the most courageous of our vehicle makers. That there is no absence of enterprise within their ranks has been evidenced again and again.

The fact that British passenger machines are acknowledged to be the finest in the world gives their builders a reputation which none of them would willingly jeopardize. It is the duty of the leader, however, to set the pace, and who is better situated to take up new ideas than the one whose position at the forefront—gained by sheer excellence of craftsmanship—is undisputed?

This journal puts forward suggestions which we are .confident are practicable. It is up to the British manufacturer to show his courage by adopting them.

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Organisations: Ministry of Transport

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