WHEELS OF INDUSTRY.
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"The
wheels of wealth will be slowed by all difficulties of transport at whatever points arising, as a carriage is by _ the roughness of the roads over which it runs,"—John _Beattie Crozier.
Roadside Water Supply . Stations.
For some time past the Commercial Motor Users Association has been working in the direction of the establishmene of roadside water supply stations throughout the country, with a standard pattern of fitting to be operated on the penny-inthe " system.
Following upon the reading and discussion of a paper by Colonel Davidson, C. M.G. , M. C E. , 'Waterworks Engineer of Liverpool, on the above subject at a meeting of the British Waterworks Association at the Public Works Congress on November 24th last, a joint committee of representatives of the British Waterworks Association, the C.AI.U.A., the S.M.M. and T., and the 'Agricultural Engineers' Association invite the public to submit designs for a lock mechanism, including a token and key, and offer a premium not exceeding 25 guineas for the best design submitted.
Specifications and conditions• relative to this competition may he obtained upon application to Mr. F. G. Bristow, F.C.I.S., general secretary, Commercial Motor Users Association, 50, Pall Mall, London S.W.1.
We have received a copy of the conditions; amongst them we note that the key and token must be used in conjunction for unlocking the box. The token should not be too complicated in shape, although it should not lend itself to forgery, and the keyhole and the slot for the token should be so shaped as not easily to be blocked by the insertion of dirt, paper, etc.
This Year's Tractor Trial Plans. rt is -anderstood that the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders will not hold trials of agricultural tractors this year on the lines of the trials of 1919 and 1921. This does not mean that the Society has abandoned its policy of holding annual trials and demonstrations; possibly present trade depression Me influenced it in coming to a decision which will witness tractor tests Of 1922 conducted on a different scale and ender different methods.
It has been decided to hold three trials and demonstrations this year on it smaller scale than formerly, and there will probably be three demonstrations of two days' duration held in connection
with agricultural colleges. There will be one test in the early spring, another towards the cud of summer, and the third in November. It is suggested that possibly the spring event will take place in February at -Seale Hayne College; the summer event will possibly take place in the Home Counties, perhaps in connection with Wye College; while the autumn event will take place in the North of England. .
At present indications go to show that the Highland and Agricultural Society will conduct trials on a fairly large scale in Scotland, though the site will not be as ex-tensive as what we are accustomed to in England.
On January 5th there was a meeting B4 of the Highlands and Agricultural Society, at which Prof. Stanfield, on behalf of the implements committee, reported that it had been decided to hold in the autumn a demonstration of tractors and cultivating implements suitable for tractor drawing.
Demand for Reduction of Taxation.
The National Council of the C.M.U.A. will, at its next. meeting, to be held in London on February 1st, consider a motion from its London and Home Counties Division in favour of the necessary steps being taken to endeavour to secure at least a one-fourth all-round reduction of motor taxation in the next Finance Act,
A Bagdad Inquiry.
Informetion has been received by the Department of Overseas Trade that the Director of the Public Works, Bagaed, Irag, is desirous of obtaining catalogues, lesigns, specifications, prices, etc., of farm tractors, road tractors, agricultural machinery, petrol lorries, and tank wagons. Further particulars can be obtained from 35, Old Queen Street, London, S.W.1.
The Blackburn Corporation Bill.
The Corporation of Blackburn is promoting a Parliamentary Bill empowering it to extend the tramways and, to run motorbuses, which will entail an expenditure of £268,800. At a ratepayers' statutory meeting held a few days ago a vote was taken on Part 3 of the proposed measure dealing with the extension of the tramways to Feniscewles, Langho, and Yew Tree, and a proposed motorbus service to operate in and outside the borough, with the result that this part was defeated by a large majority, the opposition coming from the C.M.U.A. and the Lancashire Road Transport Association,
French Petrol Rail Bus Experiments.
An experiment is being tried in France in the district of Seine-et-Oise to improve local traffic an certain suburban lines. The idea is to replace the wornout rolling stock of steam locomotives and coaches by a series of motor Omnibuses to run on the same rails. In this manner it is hoped to secure a more rapid and satisfactory service, and, at the same time, to diminish running costs. The route chosen for the trials is from Versailles to Ma,ule, and, although the results have been fairly. enotauraging, some further improvements will he necessary before the substitution can he realized.
Another move in the same direction is announced to assist manufacturers of heavy vehicles to tide over evil times. This project consists in placing contracts for internal-combustion motors to replace steam on all narrow-gauge railways. The financial state of the manufacturers alluded to is alleged to be due to the sale of Army stocks of lorries, but, France is not the only dumping ground for these derelicts.
The British Empire Exhibition.
The British Empire Exhibition, which was to have been held in 1923, is almost certain to be postponed until 1924. The ostensible cause is that India and the Dominions prefer the latter date because it will be more convenient as enabling them to send on their exhibits afterwards to a big exhibition in Paris, which is to be held in 1925. Probably the real reason is also that it has taken a long time to get the guarantee fund together, and that in the present state of trade manufacturers are reluctant to spend much money on exhibiting. The attitude of the motor trade towards the exhibition is that it is favourably disposed towards organizing a collective exhibit of the British manufacturing industry as a whole, but its final 'decision will no doubt depend on the prices charged for stands and some assurance that, if the collective exhibit is organized, independent motor exhibits -will not be accepted. It is said that the Motor Cycle and Cycle Union is not in favour of the exhibition.
Company Registrations for 1921.
As in past years. Jordon and Sons, Ltd., of Chancery Lane, W.C., have issued a list in tabular form giving a summary of company registrations at Somerset House for the year 1921.
We observe that there were 288 companies registered as interested in
• motors," seven of thesebeing public companies with a combined capital of £390,000, and 281 being private concerns with a total capital, of £2,000,084. The totals recorded en the summary reveal a lamentable shrinkage in the business of the Companies' Registration Department of the Board of Trade at Somerset House in 1921 as compared with that of the previous year. As a matter of feet, the number of companies registered decreased by about 36 per cent., although the nominal capital fell by 82 per cent.
The capitals of £1,C00,OCO and upwards in the decadent year under review were naturally very few end the second half of the year yielded but four, two of whiCh are of interest to our readers, these being the Angola Oilfields, Ltd., and Light Castings, Ltd., both with a capital of L1,000,C00. In the year under review there were 61 registrations of companies interested in oil, 12 of thesebeing public concerns and the remainder private.
Colonel Hacking, the secretary of the Motor Legislation Committee, has, we understand, been asked to stand for a large constituency at. the next election. It is stated that he has accepted and that he will have a good chance of being returned. Motoring interests certainly ought to concentrate on his constituency as a means of adding one more to the very small group of real workers on behalf of the trade in Parliament.
We ere informed that the list price of the 35-40 cwt. Traffic chassis has been reduced to £375.
Time-table Buses.
The CrosviIr/e Motor Co., of Chester, have made application te the Ellesinere Port '.iouncil for nine motor omnibus licences, comprising six 26 seaters and three 2;0'seaters. The question was raised as to whether 20 people could be conveniently seated in the smaller type of vehicle. Several councillors expressed the opinion that the time had come when small buses should be run according to tinie-table arrangements. The council decided to request the two motor omnibus companies whose vehicles passed through the town, to meet them for the purpose of arranging a time-table and to defer the granting of new licences until the conference was held.
Hiring a Steam Tractor.
• Swindon Borough Surveyor reports in favour of the purchase of a five-ton steam tractor with three trailers. He has, however' had an offer from Messrs. E. Hill and Sons, Mannington, to hire out to the corporation a steam tractor and two wagons, with driver and one attendant, at a charge of £3 per day and Saturdays £2, and, in view of the present high price of steam tractors, he suggests that this offer should be accepted.
Improving a Northern Highway.
When alterations to the main road from North Shields to Blyth have been completed it will be one of the best highways in the North. Already sections at Tynemouth, Blyth, and Seaton Deraval have been generally re-surfaced, overhauled, and widened in many places, and awkward corners, have been removed. . Similar work is in hand on the portion between Afonkseaton and Whitley. This includes removal of several houses to provide for widening, and the railway bridge at Marden is also to be widened.
Studying Public Requirements.
Motor omnibus proprietors in the North of England continue to demonstrate their desire to meet requirements of the residents of their own particular areas, and of late quite a number 9f useful services have sprang into being, and others under contemplation are being pushed forward with all speed.
In this respect Messrs. Stable Bros. have received sanction from the Hetton Urban District Council to ply between Merton anti Hutton; whilst after considering a. proposal from the General Bus Co. of Sunderland to operate a service between Houghton-le-Spring and' Sherburn Hill, via Pitting-ton, Houghton-leSpring Rural District Council has decided to offer no objection.
Welcome News for Hauliers.
The reduction in the charges for vehicular traffic using the Birkenhead and Liverpool cross-river ferry is good news• to motor users on the Merseyside. Increases which the Ferries Committees were compelled to make in 1918, 1919, and 1920 are to be abolished, and the tolls will revert to the standard in operation in 1915. A lorry now casting 3s. 6d. to, transport across the river will be 2s. 6d. in the future, whilst a lorry and trailer now costing 9s. for ferriage will be 6s. 6d., a cut which will be much appreciated by those firms engaged in heavy haulage, in which trailers are em
ployed. A furniture•van will be charged a toll of 4s., against the present charge of 5s. These rates are only 6d. above the pre-war figure.
The Mersey traffic problem continues to engage much attention, and ati the annual dinner of the Motor Trade Association at Liverpool, a few days ago, the chairman of the Birkenhead Ferries Cem
mittee said that the cost of constructing a new Mersey tunnel for vehicular traffic would be £2,175,000. One had only to spend a day at Runcorn or Warrington he said, to gain some idea of the amount:of trade diverted from the port through lack of trans-Mersey facilities.
The Maintenance of Weighbridges.
As some public weigh-bridges have recently been broken by heavy motor vehicles beyond the capacity of the weigh bridges, the Glasgow Corporation proposes to issue a warning to drivers. The question of the responsibility of the corporation for the maintenance of public weighing machines is also to be investigated. Meanwhile, motor owners will be held liable for any damage occasioned.
Special Buses for Shoppers.
The winter sales in the leading drapery and other business emporia. of the two large northern eentres--Newcasile and Sunderland—are now in full swing, and specially reduced "return tickets from outlying districts to these to-o shopping -towns, now io operation on the Notes of the Northern General Transport Co., are proving most popular. Commencing on January 5th, the company are offering these cheaper rates from Monday to Friday, inclusive, each week, until further notice. The saving to passengers is at once apparent when it is mentioned that whereas the usual single journey charge is is, 4d., from Durham to Gateshead, the sale fare is 2s. 2d. return.
Railways and Road Traffic.
Reporting on the proposals of the Railways (North-Western and Midland Group) Bill regarding the establishment of road services for passengers and merchandise, the West Riding County Council says the Bill will require special consideration in the interests of roads and bridges, and joint action with other county councils and local authorities may be necessary.
The Future of the Australian Industry.
Motor tvaders in Australia are now quite optimistic. regarding the .-future
• outlook, and the president of the -New South Wales Motor Traders' Association, in the course of his annual addreas, spoke in a very reassuring tone. He said, "There has lately been a distinct revival of the trade; bodyhuilders are receiving fresh orders, which is an indication that the chassis importers are -either well booked with orders or expecting new business, and trade generally seems to be.much improved. It is, however, nowhere near the standard of activity we have been used to." Individual traders also expressed the view that a• big revival in trade was starting, and that the present. year would be one of progress and activity.
Electric industrial trucks are now being manufactured in Australia. A -Melbourne Min is the pioneer, concern . in this industry, and has secured a Ton tract from the Victorian Railways De• partment. With the exception . of the battery, every portion of the touch will be made in the Commonwealth. The Victorian Electricity Commission is also investing in motor, vehicles, having called for tenders for the supply of two wagons, each with a five-ton carrying capacity.
Spanish Authorities Want Steam Roller Tenders.
The Department of Overseas Trade is informed by the Commercial Secretary to His Majesty's Embassy at Madrid (C.aptain IL de B. Charles) that tenders for steam rollers are invited by the Spanish Department Of Public Works as follow (1) Up to 1. p.m. on January 26th, for the supply of Bye steam Tellers' of Id to 12 tons weight, required in connection with Mad repairs in the districts of.Alhacete, Alicante,. Almeria, Cuenca and Murcia.
j21 Up to 1 p.m. on Sanitary 27th, for the supply of live steam rollers, of 10 to 12 tons weight, required in connection with .road repeirs'in• the .districts of Burgee, 'Gerona, Segovia, Zaragoza and Baleares, Foreign firms will be allowed to-tender, and their offers, should .be addressed to the "Direccion-General de Ohras Publicas, Ministerio do Fornento," Madrid. Tenders must. be :made out on • stamped paper, and .aecompanied lay plans, drawings and: detailed description Of the machines offered, including _Particulars as to horse-power, consumption of petrol per hour, velocity, weights and sizes of the various -parts, list of accessories and spares, etc. A deposit of 8,000 pesetas is required to qualify any tender.
It is essential that tendering firms should be locally represented. The Department of Overseas Trado will be pleased to suggest suitable agents to Canter/ .Kingdom firms not represented in Spain.
A copy ofthe Gaceta tie Madrid of December 28th, containing the conditions of the tender in Spanish) and Specimen of the fern/ in which the tender is to be made, may be On suited by firms interested, at the Department of Overseas Trade, 35 Old Queen Street, West
minder, S.W.1 (Room 50), while the de partment has an additional copy available for firms in the provinces unable to arrange for the inspection in London.
A Dangerous Thoroughfare.
A widening of Longbridge Road, at Barking, is proposed.' by the Essex County Council, which reports that one part is narrow and4ounded On one side by an open wateinourse, which is a serious danger on Ilark nights.
• A Blackburn Service.
At a meeting of the Blackburn Corporation, further application was made on -behalf .of the District -Garage Co. for permission to ply for hire with motor omnibuses in Blackburn in -connection -with a service proposed to te• run between Blackburn and Mill Hill. Though the Watch .Corionittee 'refused to recommend granting a licence, the' corporation referred the matter tack for further consideration.
The rreduction of_ crude oil in Rumania during Novereher. .amounted to about 103,000 tons compared with 110,500 tons in October.
Relief Vans for Periods of Business Pressure.
A very small percentage of the general public fully understand the strenuous conditions imposed upon the big departmental stores•throughout the country ot Cluidnias, Each big retail establishment has in its -possession a large fleet of :mot& delivery vans, sufficient' in sipe to meet the requitements of ndrinalbusi.ness but When it is realized that the period just before .Christmas increases the sales of the departmental stores, in some cases to as much as three or ' four times the normal extent,it will. be -seen that the service of the ordinary fleet of delivery, vans would, in some instances, prove quite insufficient to meet the situation.
Realizing the seriousness of the forthcoming mush. •of business during the past .Christmas season, Harrods Ltd., the well-known London -stores, inaugurated :several 'weeks before a :special fleet of Fiat one ton relief vans, designed to accommodate that portion of the company's deliveries which the normal Harrods's, fleet was incapable of tackling. It was -largely as a result of previous experience that the company chose vans _ Of this make, for they_ have as many as 36 Fiats in constant use in their-delivery service.
A Surrey Road Proposal.
=The Ministry of Transport (Hoods Department) has -revived the proposal' to construct a by-pass read from Kingston Vale, through the districts of Merton, the Maidens and Coombe, Surbiton and Esher, -and tthe :Dit.tons, with the object of .avoiding the congested traffic through, Kingston. The -cost is estimated by the • Surrey County Surveyor at -£290.000, of which £40,000. is for the acquisition of the necessary land and 40250,000 for the construction of the road, which it is proposed to make 100 ft. wide throughout, so-as to take all the through motor traffic on the Portsmouth road. Last Ione the Surrey County Council was asked tobear hall the cost, but :declined by a large majority. A conference of the local authorities was called by the Ministry a few _days ago, and it was decided again to Approach the Council.
Local Proceedings.
Swindon Corporation has referred tenders for a one-ton Ford motor lorry to a committee to deal with Salford Corporation has approved a scheme for the erection of a garage and repair shop at a cost of £4,180.
Wimbledon Corporation Electricity Committee ,recommends the purchase of a one-ton motor van at a cost not exceeding 1250.
Westhampnett (Sussex) Rural District Council has decided to purchase a Button and Hornsby 7 ton motor road roller, at a cost of 1520.
Swindon Watch Committee has refused to grant Mr. A, Rimes a licence for a Dennis double-deck motorbus to seat 56 passengers.
The Highways Committee of the Wimbledon Town Council-. recommends the purchase of a Ford motor tipping wagon at a cost not exceeding £260.
Blackpool Borough Engineer has ordered a petrol-driven tipping wagon capable of pulling 10 Jubilee trucks on a 2 ft. rail track, at a cost of 1275. If satisfactory, others will be purchased.
new road is proposed between Barnoldswiek and Kelbrook, in the West Riding, at a cost of £127,000.
Oswestry Town Council has granted licences for motorbuses to the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Co.
St. Helens Corporation Gas Committee has instructed the .engineer to get tenders for the supply of a motor lorry,
Rotherham Corporation Tramways Committee is communicating with the Rural District Council regarding proposed extension of motorbus services.
Swindon Fire Brigade Committee has witnessed a test of the Merryweather's Hadfield reciprocating pump recently fixed to the motor tractor, and records the pump to be satisfactory.
Swindon Corporation has asked its Licensing Committee to consider an application from the James Cycle Co., Ltd., Birmingham, for the running of motorcycle sidecar taxis in the borough.
The Highways Committee of the Wimbledon Town Council recommends accepting the tender of H. C. Bauly, Ltd., to convert the body of a Peden wagon, and supply and fit a Foclen hydraulic tipping gear, with an extra, apecial flanged tank support to take the plunger of pump, for £115 10s. Worthing Fire Brigade Committee recommends the purchase of a 30 cwt. Baico first-aid fire-engine at an estimated cost of £489.
Sheffield Watch Committee has refused to give MT. Cyril L. Naylor a licence to run motorbuses between the Millhouse.s tram terminus and the city boundary in connection with a proposed service to Dore.
Wimbledon Town Council has decided to keep records showing the petrol consumption of each motot lorry and the mileage per gallon per vehicle. All vehicles are to be fitted with speedometers.
A scheme has been submitted to the Ministry of Transport for a new road in the Wortley rural district to connect the Wakefield and Sheffield and the Halifax and Sheffield main roads. The cost is estimated at £84,000 A committee of the Calcutta Municipal Council draws attention to the fact that a large number of mntor vehicles use the city roads without any adequate contribution to the municipal revenue, and expresses the hope that this defect will be rectified-in the new Municipal Bill.
In view of recent price reductions, Nelson TOWil Council is again considering the advisability of inaugurating motorbus services.
Newport (I.O.W.) Town Council is atilt in doubt as to whether a steam or a petrol wagon should be purchased, and has asked the borough surveyor to obtaiu more information.
Yarmouth Corporation Tramways Committee has instructed the tramways manager -to Bubstitaite the motor omnibuses for the present tramway service on the Caister section.
South Shields Town Council is, with a view to providing work for the unemployed, to construct a new road between Stanhope Roadeand Dean House, at a cost of 137,762, and to widen and divert that part of Horton Lane, between Horton Village and the Poor Law Institution, at a east of 123,855.
At a meeting of the Yarmouth Watch Committee a letter was read from the James Motor Cycle Co., Ltd., inquiring whether the use of motor sidecar taxicabs was permitted in the borough, and whether facilities would be granted if licences were applied for locally. The chief constable was instructed to rsk for further particulars.
Nottingham Buses.
General satisfaction has been occasioned in Nottingham by the fact that the -municipal authorities, after a long period of temporizing, during which they have manifested little inclination to develop motorbus services, appear now to be determinedupon a more enterprising policy. All Considerations hitherto have been dominated by ideas of tramway maintenance and possible extensions ofrigid lines. of communication; but it has been more than once urged that important industrial and residential areas of the. -city, at present unprovided for, might be profitably served by buses, -affording remunerative feeders to the tramway system.
The Trent Motor Co., and others whose operations radiate from Derby and Nottingham, have demonstrated the possibilities of motorbus enterprise in districts contiguous to those centres, and, as it is no longer possible to ignore the obvious openings which are presented within the city itself, the responsible committee has now determined to supplement its previous attenuated plans by instituting , a half-hourly service of new buses between the Great Market Place and Bidwell, Nottingham's largest mining suburb. It is felt that there should be no doubt about the success of the experiment., leading to extensions in other directions, if the policy is continued upon enterprising lines.
Hedges and Mirrors:
With a view to avoiding road accidents, the North Riding of -Yorkshire County Council has asked the Government, when introducing any Bill into Parliament dealing with motorcars, to make provision (1) That all hedges or thick plantations shall be cut to a height of 4 ft. 6 ins, at corners or cross-roads for a distance of 75 yds. clear of buildings, or in the alternative, that such hedge be replaced with iron railings,and (2) That all heavy motor-prapelled vehicles, etc., shall be fitted on the offside with a mirror at least 10 ins. square, in order that the drivers of such vehicles may be able to see overtaking traffic and allow the same to pea, and thus obviate the difficulty which at present exists of light traffic being held up by heavy motor vehicles, etc.
Doncaster Schemes.
The Doncaster Corporation Bill seeks power to run buses without the borough, and also on main and other roads in the rural district of Doncaster and the urban districts of Bentley, Adwick-leStreet' and Conisborough, the total length of the routes on main roads being 21 miles.
Making Fires Prohibitive.
Burton-on-Trent Fire Brigade Core. mittee has drawn up the following scale of charges for services outside the borough :-
Driving Machine Shops by Tractors.
Coal being scarce in Italy, electricity is made use of on a much bigger scale than is common in other European-countries. Nature, fortunately, has lavishly bestowed the whole of the northern portion of the peninsula with water power, Which is used to generate electricity at low cost, and has thus made ma.nufacturers almost entirely independent of coal. As an example, the Fiat motor works at Turin use electricity exclusively for driving machinery, and are also, equipped with electric furnaces of a most up-to-date type. This Italian company has its own generating stations in the Alps, and at normal times the supply of current is so great that, in addition to meeting its own needs, the company is able to supply electricity to ether makers and to the City of Turin.
The drought which affected the whole of Europe during 1921 has been particularly severe in the Alpine regions. As a result, mountain passes which usually are snowed up early in November are likely to remain open all the winter, mountain streams are dried up, and lakes are very low. As a consequence of this, there is such a shortage of electric current that some factories on both the French and the Italian sides of the Alpe have had to erase or reduce their working hours. At the Fiat works this temporary difficulty has been met by the installation of 25-35 h.p. agricultural tractors for driving machinery. More than 150 of these tractors are at present being used, the power developed by them totalling more than 5,000 h.p. The use of agricultural tractors for driving machinery is not new, but this appears to be the first time they have been employed on such an extensive scale. No special installation is necessary for the use of tractors. Belt connection is made from the tractor driving pulley to the overhead shafting for a group of machine tools, or, if necessary, direct to the machine tool.
Dangerous Highways.
Application is to be made to the Ministry a Transport for the closure of Creskeld Lane, in the Wharfedale rural district, to heavy motor traffic, on the ground that such traffic endangers the safety of the public. The average width of the road is 18 ft., but at one point it is as narrow as 12 ft. 4 ins. Efforts are also to be made to prohibit heavy vehicles in Nell Gap Lane at Middleton, in the Wakefield rural area.
Legality of Kerbside Petrol.
It having been proposed to establish in Nottingham kerbside petrol pumps, in convenient proximity tocentral garages, the question was raised by Alderman Manning at the last meeting of the city council as to the legality of placing such appliances on public highways without statutory authority. Mr. Fraser asked, whether, in the event of such permission being given, it would not be permissible for any ratepayer to institute proceedingsfor obstruction, and the town clerk, n reply, admitted i that obstructions placed upon the highway without statutory authority would be illegal.
There was no sucli statutory authority in regard to kerbside petrol pumps, and the council's consent to their erection would not legalize the obstruction caused. In his opinion, the owner would be liable to proceedings, in which in all probability the corporation would be joined if the pumps were erected with their consent. That was made clear by the mayor at the last meeting of the council.
A Rejected Service.
Rotherham Watch Committee ha interviewed Underwood, Ltd., of Clowne, Derbyshire, with regard to hackney carriage licences being granted in respect of two motorbuses proposed to be run from Worksop to Rotherham, but now recommends that the application be not granted.