No Undercutting Stage Services by Contract Work
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A QUESTION of principle, described as vital to operators of " stage-carriage services all over the country, was posed before the Western Licensing Authority, Mr. 5. W. Nelson, last Friday. He refused the application of The United Corsham Traders, Ltd., for permission to operate a contract service for workers employed by the Air Ministry at the R.A.F. No, 10 Maintenance Unit, Hullavington, Wiltshire, although the Air Ministry had accepted the company's tender.
B.T.C. Form Parcels Company for Sale
THE British Transport Commission I have formed the first company to be set up for sale as a going concern. Its title is B.R.S. (Parcels), Ltd., and its nominal capital is £.100. The greater part of the existing parcels organization of British Road Services will pass with it to private enterprise.
The precise number of vehicles to be sold with the company has not yet been settled, but it will be between 3,500 and 4,000. It is likely that the shares in. the company will be put up to tender, although the. Transport Act, 1953, provides for sale by private treaty. The latter method is not popular with the Road Haulage Disposal Board.
Subscribers, each with one share, are Mr. S. B. Taylor, chief secretary of the B.T.C., and Mr. M. S. Morgan, director of funds. Directors are to be appointed by the Commission.
IMPROVEMENTS ON SEDDON 25-CWT. CHASSIS
FOUR 25-cwt. chassis will be exhibited on the stand of Seddon Diesel Vehicles, Ltd., at the Commercial Motor Show this month and these will have a longer wheelbase than previous models. An increase of 71 in. brings the wheelbase up to 10 ft. 11 tn. and results in easier access to the driving seat and an improved ride over rough road surfaces.
By moving the axle forward it has been possible to bring the rear edges of the front wings nearer the front of the vehicle and to reduce the size of the wheel-arches in the cab floor. This in turn means that the hinge pillars of the cab doors do not have to be cut away at their lower ends to clear the wings, and three hinges can now be used for the door mountings, with one hinge low down to provide additional rigidity. In a vehicle designed for delivery work, this is important.
WAGES COUNCIL MEET NEXT WEEK
NEXT Wednesday the Road Haulage Wages Council will meet to hear objections to the proposals, embodied in R.H.(49), to increase the wages of adult road haulage workers • by 3s. a week and subsistence allowance by is. a night. When they .have ratified the proposals, they will forward them to the Minister of Labour and National Service for confirmation.
, Mr. T. D. Corpe, for the applicants, said that out of the 400 workers employed at the depot, approximately 120 were carried to and from their homes by the Western National Omnibus Co., Ltd. '
About 50 per cent, of the employees lived in and around Chippenham. Of the other 50 per cent., 25 per cent, residing in Corsham and 25 per cent. in Malmesbury were carried by a service similar to that for which his clients were applying.
The Air Ministry, he said, put the service out to tender. The tender of his clients had been approved by the Ministry, subject to their being granted the licence, and it would result in a substantial saving of public money.
1750 Saving in Prospect
Mr. E. Scott, who is in charge of the unit, said that each employee contributed 4s, a week towards the cost of the service, and would continue to do so if the work was done by contract. The contract price was 6s. 3d. per person each week, which would save £750 a year, against the cost of Ss. 8d. per person by Western National.
Tenders had been invited at the request of the works Whitley Council. The Air Ministry had submitted 13 inquiries, including one to Western National, who did not reply, and they had accepted the lowest tender, which was that of the applicants.
Mr. A. C. F. Wyndeatt, for Western National, who objected, said that his clients had done the work for a pen'od of 10 years.
Of National Importance 'Saying that the ease was vital to the whole country, Mr. Wyndeatt asked whether the Licensing Authority was going to allow these contracts at fares below those already authorized, to be superimposed on stage-carriage services.
The same principle was involved in private hire, excursions and tours.
If the Authority granted the licence, other workers would want the same facilities, and then what would happen to stage services?
In rejecting the application, Mr. Nelson said it involved a very important question of principle to those operating stage services, who had to take the smooth with the rough. If bunches of traffic were taken by contract, what was going to happen to the revenue of operators who were responsible for maintaining a public service day -in and day out?
Only 50% of List 6 Vehicles Sold
ONLY two of the 31 units wit'. premises offered in list 6 of trans. port units have been sold. With then' go 15 of the 477 vehicles for sale wit+ premises. Tenders for 20 units (32: vehicles) were rejected, and no bid5 were received for seven units (7f vehicles).
This summary was issued on Tuesday afternoon by the Road Haulage Dis, posal Board.
Results relating to vehicle-only unit5 were brighter. Out of 473 units (1,21'6 vehicles) for sale, 372 units (87C vehicles) found buyers. Tenders for 85 units (290 vehicles) were rejected. Sixteen units (56 vehicles) failed to attract bids.
List 6 included 32 contract-hire units, comprising 118 vehicles. According to the Disposal Board, tenders were accepted for 21 units of 31 vehicles, and were rejected for seven units Of 70 vehicles. There were no bids for four units (17 vehicles).
Thus, taking the list as a whole, 73.7 per cent, of the units, but only 50 per cent, of the vehicles offered, have found buyers.
NEW CROSS-COUNTRY VEHICLE
CROSS-COUNTRY vehicle with a proprietary make of engine is reported to have been developed by Harry Ferguson Research, Coventry. The Commercial Motor was told last Friday that Mr. Harry Ferguson had left that morning for a fortnight's trip abroad and no information about the new vehicle could be given.
31% MORE C VEHICLES TOTAL number of vehicles operating
under C licences on June •1 was 882,557, or 28,978 more. than a year earlier. The increase was 3.5 per cent. The number of C-licence holders rose by 16,106 to 443,294, representing an increase of 3.8 per cent.
20,000 a • Year Lost Eri Miners' Services
rHE West Riding Automobile Co., L Ltd., lose £20,000 a year on miners' trvices, the Yorkshire Licensing uthority was told last week. Although le company had been promised the illest co-operation by the National oal Board, they had been unable to )tain subsidies for these uneconomic rvices.
This was stated at the hearing in aeds of an application by Mr. G. W. LiHet (Cranswick and Millet), Ponteact, seeking., permission to run a Lily service from Holmfielcl Estate, mtefract, to Askern Colliery, near oncaster.
Mr. Millet said he had been inning a service for three months Aween the two points for the N.C.B. 1 a private-hire basis. The N.C.B. )vv ruled that miners should pay 5s. .ch for their transport, and this had :cessitated the application.
Mr. W. R. Hargrave objected on :half of West Riding Automobile and mth Yorkshire Motors, Ltd., both of hom, he said, ran a frequent service between Pontefract and Askern. They had been told by the N.C.B. that subsidies could not be authorized, but Cranswick and Millet, who ran three vehicles, had a subsidy.
The manager of Askern Colliery said there had been some absenteeism because the regular services were not convenient. There had been a big improvement since Millet's service began.
The application was refused.
PRIME MINISTER URGED BY
THE British Road Federation have called upon the Prime Minister to launch an ambitious road-building plan. Their plea is contained in the leading article of the September issue of their monthly bulletin.
The American scheme to spend 118,000m. on roads and the Chancellor of the Exchequer's admission that roads were a source of anxiety are mentioned. The Federation state that it is not a coincidence that the U.S.A. has the highest standard of living in the world and at the same time actively puisues a far-sighted highway policy.