Haulage Rates Go Up
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Di 0/0 on January 1 (IN Monday the rates committee of the Road Haulage Association
recommended members to increase their rates by 7+ per cent. from January 1 next. Additionally, for certain special traffics a greater increase was considered justifiable. Similar action was taken by the National Conference of Road Transport Clearing Houses.
In support of this recommendation, the R.H.A. pointed to the many increases in costs which hauliers have had to meet since the last recommended rates increase of 10 per cent. on November 1, 1960. Vehicle excise duty was increased by 20 per cent. following the Budget on April 17, and at the subsequent "Little Budget" on July 25 fuel tax was increased by 3d. per gallon.
The timing of this recommended rates increase for January 1 coincides with the official implementation of the new wages award R.H.(72) when, in addition to a pay increase of three per cent., the basic working week is to be reduced from 44 to 42 hours. The R.H.A. claim that the net effect of this award will be a 10 per cent. increase in workers' actual earnings.
The rates committee also took account of increases in the cost of vehicle insurance, the new State graduated pension scheme. vehicle maintenance costs, telephone charges and overheads.
When asked whether this latest increase in road haulage rates could lead to diversion of goods from road to rail, Mr. R. B. Brittain, chairman of the R.H.A. rates committee, considered this was unlikely. Road transport had such advantages over rail that he doubted whether customers would change over to rail to save a mere 7f per cent., which advantage might in any case be temporary.
The Clearing Houses Conference said it had taken into account the continually increasing costs due to rises in fuel prices, licence duties, insurance premiums and the wage increases recently agreed.
A spokesman for British Road Services told The Commercial Motor that, whilst no announcement was expected this week, the matter was still under consideration.
Artic Drivers—R.H.A. Meet
THE implications of the High Court I decision in the Moscrop appeal (The Commercial Motor, November 10), when the Court decided that, for driving licence purposes, an articulated vehicle was one unit, were discussed at a meeting on Wednesday of the executive committee of the R.H.A. Moscrop, who was under 21 years of age, was, by the Court's ruling, guilty of driving a vehicle over 3 tons unladen weight. The tractive unit was under 3 tons.