1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148 
How to Make the Railways Pay
Page 76
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
1--,N Tuesday, Mr. Frederick Smith read a paper, entitled " Organizing a National Transport System," before the Leeds section of the Institute of Transport.
The chief points referred to are that the release of the railways from certain restrictions as to rates and conditions will enable them to recover much traffic, but this by itself will not be enough to restore their position. It will be necessary for them to reorganize their traffic operations SO as to obviate uneconomic wagon and train loading. This could well be done by cutting out the smaller goods stations and branch lines and concentrating upon centres served by fast, fully loaded goods trains.
Road motor vehicles would provide the link for traffic from and to limited areas of territory, the radii of distribution being determined by the density of the traffic in those areas.
To-day, railway goods wagons are loaded to only about one-fifth of their capacity, whilst the trains themselves are well below the capabilities of the locomotives. A suitable radial system of operation would reduce the number of goods trains by some 66 per cent., and the annual saving should not be less than £.17,000,000. Similar methods could be adopted with passenger traffic, and the possible saving in this direction would be £13,000,090 a year. c38 This total annual saving of £30,009,000 would restore the railways to the position contemplated by Parliament in the Railways Act of 1921; in. fact, it would contribute 210,000,000 extra, which could be used for rate reduction and the increase of wages.
To effect these alterations a Central Railways Administration would be essential., but it would not necessarily have to be statutory.
The author's view is that a road-transport rates structure is impossible of attainment without proceeding to the extreme of bringing all forms of transport, including the private carrier, under the control of a Transport Board. He believes that a controlled rates structure will be found 'still more impracticable when the railways are freed from their restrictions.
In the future the railways will be judged entirely by results, which will be indicated by the extent to which they can improve their net revenue. They will no longer be able to rely for their defence upon the claim .that they have been fighting with their hands tied and against competition which is largely free.
With a carefully worked-out reorganization of railway services, giving to the road vehicle its proper place in the railway economy, the savings would be enormous,