PROVINCIAL PARADES.
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Before this Movement Extends Further, as it Certainly Will, " The Inspector " Urges the Need for Standardization of Marking and Other Regulations.
THIS year has seen a remarkable extension of the parade idea, and it is more than likely that as time goes on we shall have parades of commercial motor vehicles organized in every big induatrial centre.
It is hardly necessary to remind the majority of the readers of The Commercial Motor that the Commercial Motor Users. Asseciation initiated this very useful scheme some 14 years ago in a very modest way, and for years, up to the beginning of the war, these parades in the Metropolis were held regularly and with a great deal of success, culminating in the last one before the war., which was a very remarkable display on the Tate Gallery site on the side of the Thames, when no fewer than 509 vehicles were ranged up to be judged as to their condition and perform
ances in actual working service. Since then, of course, the organization of the Commercial Motor Users Association itself has increased tremendously. The London parades, however, have necessarily been on a more modest scale on account of limitations of simee.
In those days the C.M.U.A. was a relatively small but active propagandist body very largely centring on London, but owing to the very enterprising efforts of the executive of that association, and particularly of its present president and its energetic and capable secretary, it is rapidly becoming quite a power in the provinces. The parades which have been organized this year may be written down as very excellent propaganda, not only for the industry but for the association itself. They constitute a very ready means of informing the public of the activities in which the association is principally engaged. .
In the opinion of the writer, the Metropolitan and provincial parades under the auspices of the C.M.U.A. are fixtures which should be encouraged by all those who have the industry at heart. Their objects are simple, but are none the less excellent. They are promoted to encourage the driver to use his machine sensibly and intelligently, to get the most out of it, and, so far as lies in his power, to maintain it in first-class order. It is also a. C.M.TJ.A. object to promote on " Safety First " lines the amenities of the road, to ensure that drivers shall earn for themselves satisfactory reputations so far as
skilled operation of their machines in traffic and amongst other users' vehicles is concerned.
Now that we have had an opportunity to see quite a number of these provincial organizations, the writer would put in a plea for standardization, so far as possible, of the lines upon which, they are run. It is believed that the secretary of the C.M.U.N. holds that, when a parade is first organized inthe provinces or in some big city, it is always best to let local . organization deal with the whole thing de novo, and to make very little attempt to bring it into line with what is done elsewhere, the idea being that much more satisfactory results will accrue if local executives are placed in possession of friendly criticisms and suggestions after they have• evolved their first parade organization.
In this 'Connection, it is thought possible by the writer, who can claim to have had very considerable experience of these parades, both in the Metropolis
and in the provinces, to set down a few independent suggestions which, in his opinion, might make for more efficient co-ordination, and may ultimately ensure that the public, the manufacturers, and the users will come to regard all the fixtures throughout
the year as conforming with a standard.
First of all, of Course, the parades are really made possible by contributions of a financial nature to the local prize fund, and it appears undesirable that there should be any great disparity between the sums available proportionately to the 'machines entered in one district as against another. Quite a considerable amount of the prize money subscribed during the year comes from the manufacturers, and those who are interested in the proper maintenance and care of the machines and the proper-use of accessories and supplies. This is only natural, but the demands -on such manufacturers will inevitably in the future become more frequent, and they have already expressed the opinion that, in order to ensure their continued support on a wider scale, they should be in a position to assure themselves that the money is spent and distributed in the wisest possible way. There is always a danger, when this kind of reward has to be distributed, that the donors will necessarily prefer to see it employed for awards to those who are concerned with particular types of machines or accessories or supplies.
Then, again, there should be some centralized control with regard to the presentation of challenge cups. In the writer's opinion it is undesirable that such trophies should be offered by manufacturers, as there is always the possibility in such event of the creation of unfriendly feeling in respect of certain awards. This leads us to the old question of the allocation of prizes as between steam. and petrol. No doubt, in time, the electric and the petrol-electric will call for comparable treatment. Over and over again, it happens that the steam wagoia qualifies for the highest award or for a challenge cup, very largely on account of its exceptional Mileage, whereas a team of-petrol vehicles may in all 'other respects—condition, maintenance, and reasonable mileage--have qualified for very high notice. Generally speaking, it would appear to be desirable to award two championship prizes where the entries warrant it, one for steam, one for petrol, and perhaps at a later date, another for electric.
This year the idea of including a class which should be open to non-members of the C.M.U.A—an idea for which the writer-ventures to claim credit—has been adopted by several provincial parade executives, and with considerable success. It obviously has much to recommend it, particularly from the point of view of strengthening the membership and status of the C.11.U.A. Manufacturers and agents and others might do much on future occasions to encourage participation in these parades, as they are beneficial alike to all those who are concerned with the various
branches of the industry. Once a year facilities should be afforded to drivers with their machines to take part in these gatherings. It is little enough to arrange the. casation of ordinary routine delivery work for one day, and the results invariably warrant such .consideration.
With regard to the -actual working of the parade too much care cannot be taken to ensure that the
marshalling and all other arrangements arc carried out in first-class and thoroughly energetic style. Nothing sickens the drivers more than a great deal of unnecessary hanging about. The judging should be speeded up and carried out on • a carefully prearranged schedule, and results should be published at the earliest possible moment after they have been decided. A good deal of annoyance can be caused to drivers if mar.shals are appointed to get them into position and to regulate them during the parade who have little experience in handling matters of this kind. A couple of hundred machines, shall we say, want a good deal of handling and marshalling, and it is most desirable that marshals should, as a rule, be chosen who have experience of this class of thing, and that men should not be picked for what are, after all, very important duties in this connection in any haphazard way.
Wherever possible arrangements should be made, during the long hours of a parade, for refreshments on the parade ground for the drivers and their mates, and, in fact, there is a good deal that can be done in respect of the detail organization that will improve matters so far as consideration for the drivers is concerned. The day is likely to be a long and tedious one if the organization is not brisk, and if delays and waiting are not cut down to the absolute • minimum_ The writer feels that all this, as a matter of fact, is in very safe hands, for the central executive of the 0.M.U.A. is very alive to the desirability of standardizing conditions and results, but, just at present, with these parades growing so rapidly and multiplying all over the place, it must be confessed that the standards of judging, of proportionate marking and the general regulations, differ so widely from place to,p lace that it is desirable to draw attention to the need for centrally organizing and controlling what is widely and rapidly becoming a national movement, and what has hitherto only been a very successful Metropolitan function.