Badge of Merit
Page 40
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TRANSPORT associations and institutes and 1 road-safety committees have about a month to decide what part they are willing to play in the development of the Lorry Driver of the Year Competition. It is to be hoped that when the present sponsors call a further meeting of interested parties early in the New Year, ample practical assistance and many fertile ideas will be forthcoming.
The decision to exclude coach and bus drivers is regrettable, for many of them set a fine standard, and their participation in the contest would help to raise still higher the level of skill needed to win what should be a coveted award.
The original object behind the competition was to promote road safety, but it has wider implications. Success in the contest is a guarantee of competence, which is valuable equally to the driver and to the employer. For this reason alone the movement deserves widespread support Every competitor who gains more than, say, 50 per cent. of the possible total marks should be awarded a diploma. This should encourage drivers to take part, and in time the possession of such a certificate would come to be recognized by employers and employees alike as a badge of merit.
There is no lack of enthusiasm among the present sponsors, but the new controlling body should guard against too rapid an expansion in the number of eliminating rounds The central organization should first select the areas in which heats are desirable, and then invite the local safety committees and other bodies to promote eliminating competitions under national rules. Offers from other districts would, of course, be welcome, but the rate of growth should be kept within the administrative capacity of the central body, particularly in the early stages of its development.
An immediate need is to lay down a minimum specification for sites and tests, and a standard system of marking. In any year, identical tests should be adopted in all heats, so that all the contestants who reached the final were of a comparable level of skill. A different _set of tests 'would be used in the final round The time element in manceuvres also requires careful consideration, so that it serves a practical purpose, instead of merely encouraging tierce driving or introducing the atmosphere of a lottery To be effective, the executive committee should consist of not more than one representative of each subscribing interest, although the total membership of the organization could be fairly large. A small technical sub-committee is needed to do the detail work of drawing up specifications of sites and tests and devising a system of marking for approval by the executive, With the wealth of experience available, it should be possible to produce tests for next year which will be a credit to the skill of the contestants and ensure justice.