Tribunal Uphold Refusal of C-hiring to "A" Transfer
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AN appeal by a haulier against the Scottish Deputy Licensing Authority's refusal to grant an A licence for three platform lorries, each of 3 tons unladen, formerly hired under C-hiring licences to seven customers, has been dismissed by the 'Transport Tribunal.
The appellant was Mr. W. U. Cruickshank and the hearing was reported in The Commercial Motor on November 2. Apart from the three C-hiring vehicles, he had two vehicles on A licence, three on special A licence and two on B licence.
The application was based on the wish of two main C-hiring customers-Caledonian .Mills, Ltd., grain millers, Aberdee-n, and Messrs. Watson and Phillip. food impOrterS,. bUndee-to giVe hp hiring because. they found . it inconvenient. TheyWere willing to employ Mr. Cruickshank as an ordinary haulier• to carry traffic which had previously been transported under C-hiring arrangements. At least three vehicles -were_ said to be needed for the work.
£154847 for C Hiring
Mr. Cruickshank said that in the 20 months to December 31, 1955, Caledonian Mills paid him £13,080— " mostly " for C-hiring. Watson and Phillip paid £3,102. of which " a good proportion" was for C-hiring. Mr. Cruickshank's total C-hiring receipts for the period were £15,847 17s., but he failed to show how much of that amount was obtained from the two main customers and ' how much from the other five.
At the hearing of the application, Mr.
Cruickshank, the two main customers and the Deputy Licensing Authority were all doubtful about the legality of the C-hiring arrangements. Contrary to the Tribunal's decision in the Allison case, the Authority did not inquire further into the matter to find out whether the method adopted was illegal.
[In the Allison case the Tribunal said that if the question of the legality of C-hiring was raised a Licensing Authority must ascertain whether a breach of Section 1 (1) and (3) had been committed by the applicant. If an offence was fq,und to ha v e been committed, the Authority should take it into account in reaching his decision on the application in the manner indicated in the Burton appeal.] No Assumption of Legality
The Tribunal said that they were under • no obligation, because the Authority did not find that the appellant's method of C-hiring was illegal, to assume it to be legal. The Tribunal were entitled to hold that an arrangement was illegal on the evidence adduced before the Licensing Authority, states the decision,
Mr. Cruickshank had not produced BR the detailed figures required to justify the grant of an A licence.
" It is clear from our decision in the Allison appeal case," said the Tribunal, " that a Licensing Authority, on an application of this kind, cannot be asked to make a grant based on a guess or a mere estimate unsupported by precise figures of the amount of traffic that would be forthcoming if a grant were made."
REARDOORS UNSUITABLE
DOORS on the rear platforms of buses used for city :services are unsuitable, Coventry Transport Committee consider. A double-decker with electrically operated rear doors has been oil trial in the city. Mr. R. A. Fearnley, general manager of the local undertaking, is to investigate means for supplying heat to rear platforms without doors and, pending his report, the committee are deferring consideration of the purchase of new buses,
GLOBE-TECALEMIT LINK MANUFACTURING arrangements have been concluded between Tecalernit, Ltd., Plymouth, and the Globe Hoist Co., Ltd., Brentford, Middx., a subsidiary of the Globe Hoist Co., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hoists will be made to Globe pattern by Tecalemit and be sold in European, Eastern and other markets.