Opinions and Queries
Page 52
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Lessons from the Coventry. Rally
WITH reference to your report on the Coventry CornVV mercial Vehicle Rally in your issue of September 25, your explanation that the failure of this company's entrants to secure an award, was due to loss of marks in the Road Section and Highway Code Test is not quite accurate.
Official figures provided by the Road Safety Office show that only two of our entrants were penalized in the Road Section, whilst no penalty was incurred in the Highway Code Test. Again only three drivers were penalized as the result of touching pylons in the driving test.
This would appear to confirm the opinion expressed in the third and fifth paragraphs of your report, that the driving test being on a time basis, proved to be more of a test of vehicle speed than of driving skill.
However, congratulations are due to the organizers for a most interesting day; much was learned by officials and competitors, and we look forward to a further rally next year.
Holbrooks, Coventry. D. T. BRANDRICK, Transport Manager, Ernest Batley, Ltd.
Some Hire-purchase Dangers
LIME purchase is increasing enormously. With a I thought also towards the denationalization of road transport, it seems that everybody is protected except that essential person—the guarantor.
If the purchaser fails to keep up payments the goods can be seized, sold for a:song and the guarantor charged not only with the actual loss incurred, but with the total amount for which he indemnified the finance company. The law at present prevents him taking the goods himself and merely continuing the payments.
. n18 The obvious solution is "Don't Guarantee," I wholesale refusal to do so would make us a mi unfriendly nation, and would possibly cause the bigg slump in our history.
If any of your readers have unpleasant guarani experiences, or can suggest how this kindly, but 011 ill-advised, class of person may be protected, will tf please drop me a line.
12 Hengist Way, Bromley, Kent. JOHN CONNELL
The. Older Vision Supported
THE views expressed in your leading article " Visic 1 Old and New" (August 28) compel me to prot most strongly.
The problem of road-rail competition is an old c and I feel certain that comments which refer to raiIw2 as obsolescent and "art incubus, maintained only by I artificial restrictions placed upon road transport " c do nothing to bring about a solution. The great percentage of your readers is, no doubt, connected w road transport and, if this is the dogma with which th are going to herald the 1953 Transport Act, I think fair-minded transport men will agree that the indusi has reached a sorry state and has learned nothing frt the experience of recent years.
I do not propose to enter into detailed discussion what is essentially a national transport problem, suffice it to say that in my opinion there is econon justification for both road and rail transport in th particular spheres, which are well known to those w have made a broad study of transport.
1 feel that comment such as that of your leader c serve no useful purpose and probably does more ha: than good to the transport industry as a whole.
Birmingham. D. J. MOORE, A.M.INST.T.