B.R. Hopes Pinned on 'Liner Trains'
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FROM OUR INDUSTRIAL CORRESPONDENT
DR1TISH RAILWAYS experts arc
pressing full steam ahead with their plans for the introduction of " Liner Trains ", with which they are hoping to capture a substantial proportion of the 90 million tons of freight which they hope to filch from the roads.
Dr. Beeching's report, which is now being studied by the Cabinet, is believed to go into greater detail than ever lasfo:e on just how it is proposed to streamlines freight handling so as to give the rail ways an advantage over the roads on the basis of speed, regularity and volume.
Arrangements for improved and speedier handling at the terminal points are already in hand. So is the introduction of large containers which will save time and effort in transloading. But it is on the "Liner Trains" that Dr. Beeching's experts are pinning their faith. The first of these new freight expresses with timetables equal to long distance passenger trains is now scheduled to come into service by the end of the year.
Side by side with the technical preparations an intensive sales campaign is now under way to woo big transport users away from road haulage, either their own C vehicles or contract, to the railways. The rail salesmen hope to be in a position to offer freight rates substantially below those at present charged on the roads.
Dr. Beeching is firmly convinced that this will be possible if a large enough volume of freight can be diverted to the :-ailways. He strongly believes in the economic advantages which the railways enjoy over road haulage. These are, that while the fixed costs, such as track mainienance and signalling, are high, the cest of the actual movement of train loads of goods is low. Everything, therefore, depends on the number of train loads which can take a share of the fixed costs.
T.R.T.A. Drivers' Contest pLANS are being made to organize a -= drivers' 'road book knowledge" contest covering the whole of the London end Home Counties division, said Mr. S. J. Lamborn, T.R.T.A. vice-president, last week. He was speaking at the final round of the Surrey and South Middlesex area drivers' quiz, which was won by a Watney Combe Reid team (3. Moore. A, Langford, J. Palmer, L. Sawyer), with a team from Bentalls Ltd. in second place.