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ontinental Tank Haulage No Picnic
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WITH the new Government's drive to boost the country's exports, plus the fact that, in any case, over the past few years more and more liquids have been shipped across to the Continent, it is fair to assume that—provided retaliatory steps against the recent 15 per cent imports surcharge are not stepped up by Western European countries—tanker operators are in for a busy time. But it is possible that our tanker men are living in a fool's paradise. Up to now, they have been having things very much their own way between Britain and Europe. Thanks to the weight and length limitations imposed by the Construction and Use Regulations, foreign tanker operators have not been able to operate their large vehicles in this country, and naturally they would be reluctant to have tank vehicles built especially for operating in Britain that are smaller than they can operate in their own countries.
The recent C. and U. amendments have altered all this, however, and as soon as the Government lifts the imports surcharge, it is likely that large tanker trailers belonging to Continental hauliers will be seen on our roads delivering wines, chemicals, gases and all the multifarious commodities that are carried in modern •day tanker vehicles. Provided the British counterpart supplying the tractive unit has a normal user on his licence covering such operations, it is obvious that return loading will be sought wherever possible. This, of course, will increase the competition that is always to be found among British hauliers who have set themselves out to be Continental hauliers in the tanker field.
Will our hauliers be able to compete? Indications are that the move towards the larger tankers is, generally NO
slow. Tanker vehicles—and particularly if they are built to TIR specifications—are costly enough, and it is understandable that some operators are not prepared to order vehicles that meet the maximum of the new C. and U. dimensions, when their existing vehicles are comparatively new with many years of life left in them.
One large tanker operating company which has had this particular problem in mind is Pickfords Ltd., whose terms of reference as tanker hauliers include the carriage of bulk liquids to any country on the European mainland and beyond, if required. They do not consider themselves to be large Continental specialists as such, a fact that becomes clear when it is realized that with a total tanker fleet of 400-odd vehicles, only about one per cent of their operations are to the Continent.
A Fleet of 19-tonners Although Pickfords have a special fleet of Customs approved tanker trailers set aside especially for Continental work, they own no TIR trailers as such. The maximum payload of these vehicles is 13 tons and naturally they all conform to the old C. and U. Regulations. But the company has invited tenders for the construction of a fleet of TIR tankers which will be built to Ministry of Transport shipping specifications and will take full advantage of the size and weight regulations—vehicles, for instance, that will be capable of carrying payloads of 18 or 19 tons.
Pickfords carried their first Continental load in 1957, using the converted tank landing craft then being pioneered by the Atlantic Steam Navigation Co. (the Transport Ferry Service). They "went it alone" on that occasion, sending
wer to Antwerp a Bedford-Scammell articulated tanker ;ombination complete with driver. The carnets were ;upplied by the Automobile Association.
Those were early days, of course, and there was plenty A trial and error in the first trips. As it was the policy A British Road Services to use articulation to the full so 'ar as the Continent was concerned, Pickfords— in 1958— inked up with counterparts in Rotterdam, Belgium and France. This was done after their chief engineer had risked the operators to clarify questions of matching up. Ehomas Cook and Sons now look after all documentation md Customs and the booking of freight. Cooks also look Ater the vehicle carnet.
Pickfords have carried bulk liquids—and a majority of hese are chemicals, by the way—to most countries in Western Europe, and with their new vehicles (when they wentually take delivery of them) plus the fact that they nopose to utilize any ferry service that is suitable and ;onvenient to them, they are all set to meet the keenest of :ompetition, be it from British or foreign hauliers.
Looking towards the future, but from a very different tngle indeed, is Crow Carrying Co. Ltd., of Barking—a )rivate company with strong family ties. So far as the Continent is concerned, the Crow company has not set tself out to be a specialized operator. The company 3rovides an extension to the service it gives to its customers n the British Isles and, as such, does not tout for continental traffic. The accent here is on a personal service :o the customer, which it is prepared to extend across the North Sea or the English Channel if asked to. It is for :his reason that Crow prefers to use rigid vehicles for 2ontinental work (which, as in the case of Pickfords, onsists mostly of the carriage of chemicals), although a few tanker semi-trailers are available to call upon if iecessary.
Crow started hauling to the Continent not so long ago, in 1959. Because it has not been the policy to cater specifically for Continental work, the company has not Set up a special department within its organization, and all documentation is done for it by Continental Ferry Trailers (whose activities on the Continent were described in The Commercial Motor, May 22, 1964) and, when semi-trailers are dispatched, C.F.T.'s counterparts on the Continent-Konig of Rotterdam and West Friesland of Antwerp, who have no tanker vehicles of their own, convey the trailers to their destination. The company operates well over 200 tankers and, like Pickfords, less than one per cent of the work undertaken is Continental.
Most of the Crow pioneering has been undertaken with the help of a driver who has been solely engaged in this work. It has been a case, in the early days, of trial and error, and a gaining of experience mainly through the driver.
What of the future of Crow? The company intends to continue to offer its special, personal service to Europe— so long as there is a demand from its customers and bearing this in mind it is looking into the question of replacing the vehicles it operates to the Continent with tankers that meet the increased dimensions.
The Crow thinking on the question of semi-trailers versus rigids is the very logical one that there is always (with respect to the people who provide the towing unit on the Continent) an unknown element when someone else is pulling your trailer. By providing a rigid vehicle and company driver the job can be seen through from start to finish and there is supervision all the time.
Favouring the Rigid?
Of course, the freightage charges offered by the Transport Ferry Service (worked on a square footage basis) between Tilbury and Rotterdam and Antwerp do not favour rigid vehicles, but the appearance of Thorensen Car Ferries Ltd. who have recently opened a roll-on/roll-off service between Southampton and Cherbourg'and Le Havre has altered this. Thorensen's charges for self-driven vehicles are cheaper, it would appear, than freightage for unaccompanied commercial vehicles. This, Mr. P. J. Reeves, Crow's transport manager, thinks, could bring the rigid into its own. And, freightage charges apart, Southampton is a welcome alternative to congested London docks. Take, for example, a load of chemicals requiring to be moved from Manchester to France. When it is realised that the mileage between Manchester and London c42 is 190, whilst between Manchester and Southampton thedistance is 211, it is no wonder that Crow and other operators are favourably inclined to think in positive terms about using the new service.
Rates are all-important in this country. They become even more critical on the Continent when transit taxes and other fees have to be paid. A large Yorkshire operator, who originally set out to specialize in the carriage of bulk liquids to the Continent is Fred Chappell Ltd.—the tanker department of Hargreaves Motors Ltd.—of RothWell, near Leeds. A subsidiary of the Hargreaves group of companies which operates some 600-odd vehicles of various types, Fred Chappell began a Continental service in 1958, using Thomas Cook for its documentation, and at Antwerp .1. Luycks as the link in Belgium. But, competition being so cut-throat, Chappell soon decided to confine Continental journeys to work specifically requested by existing customers. Unless certain of a return load, the company will not now contemplate running regularly on the Continent.
Like the other two operators mentioned above, less than one per cent of Chappell's operations are to the Continent. Originally the company had five trailers specially constructed for the work, but three of these are now being utilized on work within the United Kingdom.
Chappell has, however, two new TIR 14-ton trailers which are available, and as they are re-equipping about 50 per cent of their total fleet with longer tankers, it cannot be said that the company would not be in a position to compete if the need arose.
Another Hargreaves subsidiary—Smith and Robinson (Leeds) Ltd.—with 245 tankers operating throughout the country, shares the view of Fred Chappell about tank haulage to the Continent. They would never specialize in a Continental service, although they would (and do) send tanker trailers across the Channel for existing customers. This company has two TIR approved tankers in its fleet, one of which is currently working under contract to a customer hauling bulk liquid chemicals to Holland.
Smith and Robinson are alive to the fact that the new C. and U. Regulations could well bring foreign tanker operations into this country and, to quote Mr. Herbert Robinson, the company's managing director: "We are taking drastic steps to keep up with developments over here. If you go into Continental haulage, then there are additional risks you have to take ".