• Home
• Used vehicles
• Product news
• Dealer news
• Compliance
• Buying advice
• Archive

WHEELS of INDUSTRY "The wheels of wealth will be slowed

by all difficulties of transport at whatever points arising, as a carriage is by the roughness

• of the roads over which it runs."—John Beattie Crozier.

The Indian Government's Subsidy Scheme.

Very little publicity appears to have been given to the subsidy scheme inaugurated by the Government of India.

The offer is of 20 per cent, of the purchase price, plus 7i per cent., payable in two successive years after purchase, to buyers of . vehicles approved by the authorities, but it is stated that British manufacturers have left the market sadly unprovided ; there has been practically no publicity for the scheme and salesmen qualified to advise purchasers on types of body necessitated by the Government regulations • virtually do not exist. It is claimed that there is an immense opportunity for makers of British vehicles, but the ordinary purchasing facilities are not offered to buyers and trade is being lost daily.

The Morris-Commercial Six-wheeler. In an editorial comment which fol. lowed letter No. 2891 amongst our "Opinions and Queries" in our issue dated September 24th, we alluded to certain rigid-frame six-wheelers Which would meet the needs of the correspondent concerned who is engaged in transport overseas.

We must regret that the name of the Morris-Commercial six-wheeler was, through an oversight, omitted from this list, although we know full well that vehicles of this type made by Morris Commercial Cars, Ltd., are in use all over the world for industrial purposes and by military and other ,government departments.

An Extraordinary Plying-for-Hire Case.

At Swansea Quarter Ses.sions last week the recorder gave judgment in the appeal made by Messrs. Griffiths and Son, proprietors of the Eclipse Motor Services, of Craigeefnparc, against a conviction for alleged plying for hire in the Swansea borough with buses which were not licensed by Swansea Corporation.

The facts were that the defendants ran a regular, service between Swansea and Craigcefnpare, but ad tickets were issued in Swansea and passengers not in possession of return tickets were never picked up in the town. Buses, however, carried destination boards and ran to a time-table, a copy of which was posted at the Swansea terminus. The ' recorder held that these facts were suffident to constitute plying for hire and he dismissed the appeal, stating that be believed a good deal of the business of these' buses was actually done in the

borough.

Demonstrating Four-wheel Jacks. 'Last week we witnessed a demonstration of the Jackstll system of four wheel jacks whichhad been arranged by Fonrwheel Jacks, Ltd. This was quite interesting and bore out the report of a trial of the jacks by the Royal Automobile Club. In this trial a total weight of 2 tons 13 cwt 2 qrs., with a load of 13 cwt. 3 qrs. on each back wheel, was raised comPletely, with all four wheels off the ground, in 1 min. 39 sees.

An interesting point revealed at the demonstration was that lifting all four wheels called for no greater muscular effort than for lifting one, although the time required was a Effie longer.

Smith and Sons (MA.), Ltd., has the distributing rights and a special section of its works at Cricklewood has been equipped for the manufacture of the device in its latest form. For cars up to 30 cwt the price is 12 guineas, and for vehicles over that weight, 13 guineas.

The Watford and Barnet By-passes. The opening on October 1st of the new bridge carryins' the Watford bypass road over the Midland main line of the L.M.S. Railway, near Selvage Lane, north of Mill Hill, marks the completion of an important scheme of road development ' in North-West London initiated by the Ministry of Transport in 1923.

It was carried out by the county councils, of 4Hertfordshire • and Middlesex and comprises two roads, the Watford and Barnet by-passes, the former designed to afford relief to the Great Midland route, A41,'and the latter to ease the Great North Road, Al, from Highgate to a point north of Hatfield. The 'existence at Mill Hill of a section common to both by-passes adds to their utility in connecting the north-west with the City and the north with the West End.

The North Circular Road, with which the by-passes• connect, affords easy access to Essex and the Thames Docks on the east, as well as to Middlesex and Surrey on the west.

Messrs. Chenard-Walcker Tractors, Stevenage Road, London, S.W.6, tell us that the trailer of varying overall length which we briefly described and illustrated in our issue dated September 24th was constructed under their patents.

The Latest List of Show Exhibitors.

Certain modifications in and additions to the preliminary list, of exhibitors at the forthcoming International Commercial Motor Transport Exhibition, to be held at Olympia from November 7th-16th, are now announced. In the commercial-vehicle and bodywork section the names of Messrs. William Arnold, Clark and Co. (Sennthorpe),. Ltd. and Union Motor 'Car Co., Ltd., have been deleted, whilst the Rsishton Tractor Co. (1929), Ltd., and Sunsaloon Bodies, Ltd., have been added, the stand number of the former concern being 100 and of the latter 193. The stand of the Elkington Carriage Cu., Ltd., now becomes No. 21.

In the accessory, component and garage-equipment section certain stand numbers have been changed,' whilst the names of the Bell.Punch and Printing Co., Ltd., J. Blakeborough and Sons, Ltd., Bristol Pneumatic Tools, Ltd., Morgan, Crossley and Co., Ltd., and National Plywood Corporation have been added. • New Works for Tipping-gear Manufacturer.

The well-known tipping-gear maker, Bromilow and Edwards, Ltd., has just removed to new. and extensive works at Foundry Street, near Orlands Bridge, in Bolton, from the smaller works at Bark Street in the same town. The eastern frontage of the new building faces the Manchester Road, so that the works are certainly in an excellent position, The equipment is of the latest kind, all plant being electrically driven ; there is a special ram-testing de. vice, a self-contained shop for oxyacetylene welding and bigger body

building departments. Dining rooms, etc., are to be provided. It may be mentioned that Mr. Maurice Edwards is now the sole controller and financier of the business.

_ A Ministry Appeal Fails.

The Minister of Transport has dedined to make an Order, on the appeal of Mr. H. V. Barker against the refusal of Leeds Corporation to grant licences for motorbuses to ply•for hire in connection with a service between Leeds and Morley.

Northern General Dividends.

The Northern General Transport Co., Ltd., has declared interim dividends, less tax, in respect of the present year, as follow: 3 per cent, on the 6 per cent. cumulative preference shares ; 4 per cent. on the old ordinary shares and 4 per cent, on the new ordinary shares.

Leeds Seeking Further Bus Powers.

The tramways committee f Leeds Corporation has asked the parliamentary committee to consider the question of obtaining powers to run buses beyond the city boundary and to enter into agreements with other bodies with respect to the running of motorbuses.

Official Orders in August.

Amongst the relatively few orders for commercial vehicles given out by Government Departments during August last the Air Ministry placed one for chassis, this being divided between Morris Commercial Cars, Ltd., and Crossley Motors, Ltd., and another for six-wheeled chassis with the latter concern and Karrier Motors, Ltd. The War Office ordered medium six-wheeled chassis from the Albion Motor Car Co., Ltd., whilst the Crown Agents for the Colonies indented for lorry chassis with Morris Commercial Cars, Ltd.

A New Emergency Brake.

A motor engineer in the Bradford district wishes to obtain the co-operation of a concern or party willing to take a financial interest in an emergency brake for motor vehicles. He requires manufacturing facilities. Any replies addressed to "Emergency Brake," care of the Editor of this journal, will be forwarded to the proper quarter.

Essex Licence Increases.

The local taxation committee of Essex County Council reports that the numbers of licences issued for nie.chanically propelled vehicles from December 1st to August 81st in the years 1927c1929 were as follow

Annual-25,993 (1927) ; 27,938 (1928) and 28,978 (1929).

Quarterly-53,364; 65,114 and 74,722.

Horse-drawn vehicles-3,032 ; 2,458 and 1,881.

Drivers-51,154; 57,609 and 61,666.

More Thornycrofts for the Sudan.

In May of this year Jelin I. Thornycroft and Co., Ltd., shipped, to the order of the Sudan Government, a type A4 six-wheeled lorry, and during the summer months this vehicle has been

operating in the Upper regions of the Nile. This Government has now placed a repeat order for seven similar vehicles, which will embody certain interesting features, these being incorporated to snit the tropical conditions.

The Dunlop tyres which will be used are .42-in. by 10.5-in. section lowpressure pneumatics and they are specially reinforced to resist the destructive effects of the prickly undergrowth. Large-capacity radiators will be used and these will be equipped with grass-seed catchers.

The Sudan Government also earls for oil and water thermometers, and when the abnormally high temperatures in which the vehicles will be working are taken into account, it will be realized that such fittings are essential if the running of the engine is to be efficient.

The bodies will have detachable can vas covers and the Thornycroft standard tropical-type cab, which is protected by a canopy extending forward to the radiator, will be used.

The Sudan Government has over 30 Thornycroft rigid six-wheelers.

More Licences Transferred.

The watch committee of Leeds Corporation has granted the application from Messrs. E. P. and R. Bullock, trading as South Yorkshire Motors, for the transfer to them of motorbus licences at present held by the South Yorkshire Motor Co., in connection with the service between Leeds, Doncaster and London. '

Personal Pars.'

Major J. H. de W. Waller, chairman of the Irish Express Co., and of other transport undertakings, has been elected president of the Irish Bus Owners' Association, in succession to .Mr. V. T. Wood, late managing director of the Irish Omnibus Co., Ltd. Other new officers of the association are Mr. H. M. S. Catherwood and Mr. Eugene Lacy, vice-presidents; Mr. Bain O'Keefe, chairman of committee; Mr. Norman Morrow and Mr. W. G. Gardiner, treasurers.

Mr. Noel B. Newton, whose portrait appears on this page, is an engineer of considerable promise. and his work in conjunction with the perfecting and commercial development of the Newton spring-recoil 'damper has recently brought him into close contact with designers and manufacturers of commer

cial-motor chassis.

Educated at Oundle, he received his early engineering training at the works of Vickers, Ltd., subsequently spending some years in Italy, where he supervised the manufacture and helped with the design of the Newton-Ceirano ear. In producing a fast and powerful privatecar chassis which was capable of efficient service over the Italian roads (many of which have a poor surface), Mr. Newton found it necessary to study suspension systems very thoroughly, and it was this experience which led him to design an effective yet trouble-free spring-recoil damping device.

To obtain simplicity, he concentrated on the piston-type of vibration damper and after much thankless work, produced a satisfactory system of compression and rebound valves and a means for overcoming the difficulty of piston displacement, so that the Newton recoil damper in its latest form is a sound piece of hydraulic mechanism. It is standardized on at least one British make of motorcar and, in the larger sizes has been fitted to many heavy vehicles, including motor coaches and town-service buses.

Mr. Newton still makes frequent visits to Italy, being a member of the board of directors of the Ceirano company there..

Demonstrating a Range of Goods Models.

With the object of demonstrating the most popular of the company's goods. carrying models, four recently completed machines left the works of Dennis Brothers, Ltd., Guildford, one day last week, to carry out a tour of a number of the principal towns in the south of England, after which the route will be continued northwards.

` The convoy consists of examples of Dennis vehicles supplied to john Barker and Co., Ltd. (49), J. 'Lyons and Co., Ltd.(32), Whitbread and Co., Ltd. (148) and Hall and Co. (32), the machines being respectively a 30-cwt. tilt van, a 3-ton box-van, a 4-ton lorry and a 6-ton lorry. The figures in parentheses after the names of the user § indicate the number of Dennis vehicles supplied to each concern.

Mr. J. Atkinson and Mr. E. Pollard are in charge of the convoy. Accord

Ing to the itinerary, visits will be made to Maidstone, Eastbourne, Brighton, Horsham, Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth and Sherborne.

Warwickshire's Big Road Scheme:

Wet-Wick County Council is to consider a comprehensive widening scheme for the Leamington-Lichfield main road which the county surveyor estimates

will cost £125,000. Last year's census showed a traffic increase of 87 per cant. over that of 1925.

An connection with the scheme the council recommends the construction of a by-pass at Lindon End at a cost of £20,000, a by-pass around Coventry at a cost of £64,450 and widening of the road from Coventry boundary to Northampton county boundary at • a cost of £130,000.

One-way and Roundabout Traffic.

As from September 30th one-way and roundabout traffic schemes have been brought into operation as follow :—Oneway schemes : (1) on either side of St. Mary le Strand and St. Ciement Danes• Churches, Strand, Westminster; (2) Melbourne Place, Aldwych, Westminster (from south to north) ; (3) along the duplicate carriageways of (a) Eastern Avenue, Ilford, and (b) WoodfordIlford Road, Ilford.

Roundabout schemes : (1) around the island, on which the Gladstone statue stands, at the junction of the eastern arm of Aldwych and the Strand, Westminster; (2) around the central island at the junction of Eastern Avenue, Cranbrook Road and Woodford-Ilford Road, Ilford; (3) around the island at the junction of the London-Portsmouth main road and Leatherhead-Surbiton main road at Hook, Surrey.

A L.G.O. Record.

The buses of the London General Omnibus Co., Ltd., created a record on Saturday, September 28th, when they carried 6,300,000 passengers, this figure being the highest ever recorded on any one day, including public holidays.

Goliath's Increasing Activity.

We are informed by Goliath Motors, Ltd., of 2, 3 and 4, Midland Road, King's Cross, London, N.1, the British concessionnaire for the Goliath parcelcar, that the German concern, GoliathWerke Borgward and Co., has taken over the majority of the shares in the Hansa-Lloyd works, in which a range of lorries is made. It is pointed out, however, that the Goliath works continue to be devoted to the production of the machines bearing that name. It is interesting to note that the English concern has recently shipped several machines to Australia.

Bus Finances in Cardiff.

Analysis of the accounts of the Cardiff City bus services for the year 19281929 shows a gross revenue of £140,885 and expenditure, in working and maintenance, of £134,277. The receipts amounted to 12.63d. and expenditure to 12.04d. per bus-mile, Ole gross aggregate mileage of the buses being 2,677,356. The amount carried to netrevenue account was £6,608, which, after loan charges, etc., have been taken into account, shows a deficiency on the year's operation of £10,638.

A 'Railway Company Refused Licences.

The watch committee of the Leeds Corporation has refused to grant an application from the London and North Eastern Railway Co. for licences for four buses to ply for hire in the city, in connection with. a proposed week-end service between Leeds and Scarborough.

Closing of Streets for Road Repairs.

The Minister of Transport has just issued the London Traffic (Scheme for Street Works) Number 2 Order, 1929. It is in two sections—for authorities south of the Thames and those north of the river.

The Orders are made at six-monthly intervals. This one prescribes the times when works of road maintenance and improvement which involve closing of one-third or more of the carriageway are to be commenced, and the order in which such works are to be carried out. It relates only to the six-monthly period —October 1st, 1929, to March 31st, 1930.

In drawing up the scheme great care has been made to ensure that in all cases where a street is entirely closed a reasonable alternative route remains open, and that where undertakers require to carry out works in connection

with sewers, water, gas, etc., these shall be dealt with at the same time as the road works. After completion no undertaker may break up a street within a period of 12 months without the consent of the Minister, except in cases of emergency or the making, repairing or disconnecting of services. r

Pirelli Price Revisions.

Effective as from the beginning of this month, Pirelli solid and ,semi-pneumatic tyres have been reduced in price. The figures are given in a new retail list issued by Pirelli, Ltd., 144, Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C.4. The new prices do not appTy to the Irish Free State.

Extension of a Long-distance Service.

• An extension has been made of the Welsh Pullman services of Westcliffon-Sea Motor Services, Ltd., which concern, as we indicated in our issue dated September 24th, operates coaches between London and Cardiff. The company now works services from South Wales centres to Liverpool, Manchester; Coventry, Birmingham and Bournemouth. The starting pclint and booking office are at the premises of Hinton and Britton, Ltd., Castle Street, Cardiff.

Bus Facilities for a Military Camp.

It is understood that the London and North Eastern Railway Co. is in negotiation with Mr. Albert Brand, of Richmond, who for several years past has worked bus services in the Richmond area, for the acquisition of his system, which now links up Darlington, Richmond and Catterick Camp, as well as the agricultural country between these centres.

With the steady development of Catterick Camp and the recent transference there of a large number of troops from the Rhine, there is an evergrowing need for efficient transport between the camp and surrounding towns, and existing services are doing good business. Mr. Brand commenced operations just after the war, and has built up a fleet of over 20 machines.

A Central Fire-brigade Scheme.

Spennymoor Urban District Council is advocating a plan for the establishment of a fire brigade, with up-to-date motor appliances, to act as a central force for the County of Durham, with sub-stations for the more thickly peopled districts.

Obstruction by Coal Carts.

The highways committee of Marylebone Borough Council has communicated with the Ministry of Transport and the Commissioner of Police calling attention to the practice of coal carts, when delivering coal to private houses, of drawing up at right angles to the pavement, instead of alongside, thereby causing an unnecessary obstruction to traffic. It has expressed the hope that the appropriate action will be taken in this matter by the central authorities.

Around the World by Chevrolet.

An unusual tour is being made by three women who are using a Chevrolet vehicle for a tour around the world. The party consists of the Baroness von Brandenstein, formerly lady-in-waiting to the Kaiserin, Miss Marguerite d'Angulo, a Canadian, and Miss Nada de Namur, a former American cinema star. They recently set out for New York, and after crossing the United States, will sail from Vancouver to Australia, thence proceeding to the islands of the East, touring India, Persia, Arabia, Egypt and Northern Africa, and after crossing Spain, will visit all the European countries before returning to the United States. Calling their undertaking "The International Educational Expedition," these women adventurers are trying to discover how little money can be spent in seeing as much of the world as possible. The van which is undertaking the trip is shown in an accompanying illustration.

Manchester's Latest Licences.

The watch committee of Manchester Corporation has granted motorbus-service licences to Messrs. E. Whittle and C. Field, Mr. P. Corkill, Mr. E. Hildebrandt, Mr. H.-Coodier, Messrs. W. and F. Dace' Mr. Charles Fingland, Mr. John Mullaney, Messrs. Arthur Mayne and Sons, Mr. E. Speckley, Mr. J. Sharp, L.M. and S. Railway Co. and L. and N.B. Railway Co., and Messrs.

Livesley mid W. B. Crossley.

A Large-capacity Furniture Motorvan.

We 'reproduce on this page an illustration of a special Leyland 5Q2-type furniture van, which has been supplied by Escott and Co., of 53, Acre Lane, London, S.W.2. The length of the body behind the driver's seat is 19 ft., the width being 7 ft. and the interior height 8 ft. 7 ins. The tilt is in three sections, which are easily detachable to facilitate the loading of goods by crane, and so as to prevent pilfering special attention has been paid to the rear of the body.

This large vehicle has a capacity of over 1,100 cubic ft. It represents a repeat order, a previous machine of the same type, which was built nine months ago, having given complete satisfaction.

A Most Creditable Mileage Record.

In our issue dated September 17th we published an illustration of the Chenard-Walcker high-speed tractor, coupled up to an Eagle 12-ton trailer, in the service of Black Rock Quarries, Ltd., of Bristol. This outfit was delivered by Messrs. Chenard Walcker Tractors, Stevenage Road, London, S.W.6, about three months ago, and recently it was brought to the company's works for sundry adjustments and inspection.

It was then found that the machine was in good condition, but the main point of interest was that the speedometer showed that 10,000 miles had been covered. We think it will be generally agreed that this mileage is remarkably good when one considers the short time the outfit has been in use and the fact that it draws loads varying from 7 tons to 12 tons on short hauls, generally only a little in excess of 20 miles.

This speaks very highly of the powers of endurance of Chenard-Walcker tractors, descriptions of which have appeared, from time to time, in The Commercial Motor.

Amicable Bus Working in Durham.

Mr. G. T. 3:fillary, of Crook, is an active member of a group of Durham County bus owners which has established an interesting and profitable system of through-bookings. The operators who have arranged the system of linking-up-services covering a big area are Messrs. Ennis and Reed (Crook and Newcastle-on-Tyne) : Messrs. Baldwin and Barlow (Crook and Weardale) ; Messrs. Chamberlain Brothers (Crook and Darlington) and Messrs. Hillary's Majestic Express Coaches (Crook and Bishop Auckland and Weardale).

Experience in the past has shown that when passengers are making long journeys, involving the use of different services, they have often been doubtful both in respect of connections and fares. Co-operation, therefore, on the part of operators whose services interconnect can prove a boon to the traveller.

Messrs Ennis and Reed are now including in their fleet a Gifford coach supplied by C. H. Mason and Co., Ltd., of Gateshead ; Messrs. Baldwin and Barlow run Chevrolets and , Beans ; Messrs. Chamberlain Brothers use Thornycrofts, whilst included in Messrs. Hillary's fleet are two Gilford buses, recently supplied by Mr. C. W. Forster, 10, Grange Road, Darlington.

-A Folder on Sparking Plugs.

H. M, Hobson, Ltd., 47-55, Acton Tale; London, W.3, has just issued a folder dealing with the diffei-ent types of Hobson sparking plug which are largely employed in various types of engine used in commercial service. The plugs are made either with mica insulation for modern high-compression engines, or with porcelain or steatite insulation for medium-powered and oily engines. The folder includes a cotnprehensive chart of recommendations which should be of assistance to motor%chicle users when choosing the type of plug most suitable for a particular class of engine, especially as illustrations of the various types of plugs are included.

The folder also gives useful hints and tips on matters concerning sparking plugs which make interesting and instructive reading. A copy of the folder can be obtained by writing to the company at the address given.

A Licence Transfer in the North. The watch committee of Leeds Corporation has rgrantcd the application of the West Yorkshire Road Car Co., Ltd., for the transfer to that concern of bus licences at present held by Red, White wig Blue Bus Services, Ltd., in connection with the service between Leeds, Aberford and Micklefield.

A Regular "General" Coach Service. On Wednesday of last week the London General Omnibus Co., Ltd, instituted a motor-coach service hetween. Watford (Market Street) and London, via Goldera Green Underground • Station, passengers changing from coach to tube at the latter place.

• The coaches will run at 15 minutes' interval and through tickets will he issued from Watford to specified stations in the City and the West End of London. The single fare is 1s. 6d. and the return fare 28.

Good Results at Worcester.

A report on the first year's working of the buses at Worcester, which ended on May 31st last, has been received by the city council. It shows an actual profit of £9,642 against i(,000 originally budgeted for, the gross receipts amounting to £36,600, which works out at an average of 1s. 3d. per bus-mile. The working costs, including depreciation, amount to 11.83d. per busmile. In all, 5,856,500 pa.ssengers• were carried, this figure representing 117 bus journeys per capita of the city's population. The services are operated by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co., Ltd., ubtle'r a special agreement with the corporation.

Operating Arrangements in Wales.

Lewis and James, Ltd., of Cross Keys (Mon.), the bus-operating concern which is associated with the Great Western Railway Co., and South Wales Commercial Motors, Ltd., in the Western Welsh Omnibus Co., Ltd.. has acquired from Western Services, Ltd., that company's seven motorbuses. Co-ordinating Transport Experiences.

There are 1,209 distributive cooperative societies in Great Britain, two-thirds of which own motor vehicles for transport and delivery purposes. But they are separate units in the cooperative movement. A proposal is to be considered at a series of trades and business conferences to be held at various co-operative centres during the winter to set up a Trade Research and Development Board.

One of its first duties (according to Mr. A. Pickup, director of the Cooperative Wholesale Society and Mr. W. B. Neville, secretary of the Royal Arsenal Co-operative Society, Woolwich) would be to co-ordinate the experience of the various transport departments within the co-operative movement. Nothing of the kind has yet been done.

As the societies grow, their vehicular needs become more important. Hence the need for the accumulation of information with regard to the types of vehicle and the brands of petrol and oil which give the best results.

Salesman Available.

We know of a man with 25 years' experience in the selling of commercial vehicles who has a considerable connection amongst haulage and transport contractors in London, the home counties and the midlands. He is anxious to obtain a position as representative or sales manager on a salary and commission basis.

Letters addressed Commercial Sales," care of the Editor of this journal, will be forwarded._ By-pass Road Schemes.

Warwick County Council is submitting to the Ministry of Transport a scheme for the construction of a bypass at Knowle, the cost being estimated at 152,000. The highways committee of the council recommends proceding with the by-pass at Coleshill, the cost of which is now estimated at 150,000.

Croydon Corporation has prepared a scheme to by-pass Addington at a cost of £18,000.