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Catalogue Reference:CAB/24/237 Image Reference:0002

THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT

Printed for the Cabinet. January 1933.

SECRET. Copy No. 45

CP. 11 (33).

CABINET.

SCHEME FOR T H E LICENSING OF GOODS V E H I C L E S .

MEMORANDUM BY THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT.

1. BY Cabinet 55 (32), Conclusion 7 (a) and (b). I was asked to prepare, after consultation with certain Departments, a draft Bill to regulate the transport of goods by road on the lines recommended by the Conference on Rail and Road Transport presided over by Sir Arthur Salter.

The Conference made certain proposals for increased taxation of the heavier goods vehicles, which are being separately considered and would require, if adopted with or without modification, to be embodied in legislation entirely distinct from that dealing with a licensing scheme.

Preliminary drafts of the scheme have been circulated to the Treasury, the Home Office, the Scottish Office, the Board of Trade and the Ministries of Health, Labour and Agriculture. The points raised by these Departments have been substantially covered in the revised draft which forms Appendix I of this memo­randum. A copy has been sent to the draughtsman for his consideration, but, in view of the early meeting of Parliament and the pressure which will undoubtedly be exerted for some immediate declaration of policy, I think it would be advisable if the Cabinet would take the scope and nature of the scheme into their consideration in advance of the preparation of the actual Bill. I t should, in fact, be no more difficult to follow the proposals in their present shape than if they had assumed their final legal form.

2. The immediate occasion of the Rail and Road Conference was the serious position into which the main line railways have fallen under the stress of conditions of competition which are widely regarded as inequitable. I t is of course recognised that^this is not the only cause of their difficulties and that trade depression probably is at least as powerful a factor in the decline of their traffics.

3 . But the general case for licensing goods vehicles rests, as the Royal Commission on Transport pointed out. on a much wider basis and may be examined under three heads : —

(a) The safety and convenience of the public, and economy in public expenditure, both national and local.

(6) The stability and development of the road haulage industry itself under healthier conditions.

(c) Justice to the Main Line Railway Companies.

I t may be noted in passing that many foreign countries and several British dominions have recently introduced, or contemplate introducing as a matter of urgency, measures drastically restricting unregulated competition between road and rail transport, although it is too early to judge how far particular schemes of licensing or regulation have been successful in achieving their objects.

In these circumstances it is not surprising that the Royal Commission on Transport found in favour of extending the licensing system, which they had

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previously recommended for public passenger transport, to road hauliers and that the Rail and Road Conference arrived at a similar conclusion and extended i t to all goods vehicles operating by road.

(a) Public Safety and Convenience. 4. The toll of road accidents continues to be a matter of the gravest concern

and, while too much must not be expected from the removal of any individual cause of accident, there can be no doubt that the careless and illegal driving and over-loading of goods vehicles accounts for a by no means negligible number of deaths and injuries.

5. When the Road Traffic Act, 1930. was passed and a revised schedule of speed limits was imposed by Parliament in the light of present-day conditions, it was assumed that it would be possible through ordinary police means to secure the effective enforcement of the law. It is, however, a matter of common knowledge that on many roads heavy motor vehicles are habitually driven, by day and at night, at speeds greatly in excess of those prescribed in the existing schedule. The mobile police have done something towards securing a better observance of the new speed limits, but police action has not been and probably cannot be fully effective in securing adequate enforcement of the law unless a greater amount of police time and effort is devoted to this purpose than is practicable in view of the other heavy demands made upon the police force for the detection and repression of crime.

Moreover, even when the police are able to take proceedings, convictions are not always easy to secure from the local benches. In many cases the fines imposed are insufficient to deter offenders from continuing to take the risk of conviction in view of the substantial, though unfair, advantages to be gained by continued breach of the law. If it is difficult for the police to enforce speed limits, it is still more difficult for them to check the illegal overloading of vehicles or, except in the most extreme and obvious cases, to prevent the use of vehicles which may be dangerous or an annoyance to the public at large through the noise and vibration which they cause.

6. I t may be added that the examiners of passenger vehicles not infrequently report cases of vehicles which they have refused to license being converted into goods vehicles without any material alteration to increase their safety. Such vehicles, when used for the carriage of goods, may infringe the existing regulations in regard to Construction and Use. but it is clearly impossible for the police to examine each vehicle and while, in an extreme case, a man may be fined for operating an unsatisfactory vehicle, there is no power to compel him to put it right.

7. When one passes to other offences against the law, such as breach of the provisions of Section 19 of the Road Traffic Act, 1930, which restricts on grounds of public safety the hours of drivers of motor vehicles, it becomes almost impossible for the police to carry out a statutory scheme of regulation which, while directed to the public safety, involves intervention in the sphere of conditions of employment. In practice the police are only able to take action in cases where it can be shown that a serious accident has been due to excessive fatigue on the part of the driver.

Still greater difficulties arise in connection with the enforcement of Section 93 of the Act, which at present applies only to the operators of public service vehicles, and, indeed, it may be said that the administration of this section, which requires the observance of fair wages and conditions of employ­ment, is outside the scope of police control altogether.

8. These considerations point to the necessity of a licensing scheme as the only satisfactory and efficacious means of enforcing the decisions of Parliament in matters of this kind. I t is useless, and worse than useless, to load the statute book with regulative provisions without providing the machinery whereby they can be effectively enforced. Backed up by continuance of police action or support in those cases where, as at present, the police can properly intervene, " s p o t " inspections by a small number of special traffic examiners should suffice to secure observance of the law. The examiner would be used to bring or support proceedings in the Courts, but the licensing authority would also have power to revoke or suspend a licence where they are satisfied that the conditions of the licence are not being observed.

9. The physical condition of the vehicles is not only an important element in the causation of accidents and in annoyance arising from noise or vibration, but may cause excessive road damage which adds to highway costs.

10. There is a further consideration to which attention may be drawn, and that is the desirability of imposing upon the transport industry itself the cost of its proper regulation, rather than throwing expense upon the' general taxpayer and the local ratepayer.

(b) Stability and Development of the Road Haulage Industry. 11. The Royal Commission on Transport (paragraph 331 of their Final

Report) stated " . . . . we find the goods branch of the road transport industry is in a condition which lacks all unity "

In the past it has been easy for a man with little capital or experience to obtain a goods vehicle on easy terms (under a hire purchase agreement) often second-hand, and use it a t rates which may appear to him to be economical largely because of failure to provide for depreciation, or because he can rely on under­paid labour. The industry has always suffered from cut-throat competition in rates within itself.

The Royal Commission dealt with this aspect of the matter as follows (paragraph 342) :—

" . . . . the wages and general conditions of service in the industry leave much to be desired. Although we have no doubt that there are many firms to whom this criticism is not applicable, we cannot but feel that there are others whose profits, if there be any, represent to a considerable extent the difference, expressed in terms of money, between the wages paid and the conditions obtaining, and the wages which should be paid and the conditions which should obtain, if proper standards were maintained. Improvements in these directions will go far to weed out the less desirable operators and to place the industry on a sounder basis by removing the element of uneconomic operation which undoubtedly exists." They recommended the extension of Section 93 of the Road Traffic Act,

which applies the Fair Wages Clause to the drivers of passenger vehicles, to include persons employed in connection with the licensed vehicles of road hauliers.

The Royal Commission further pointed out that, so long as the road transport industry contained within itself operators who cut rates and main­tained low standards for their workers, the position of the more responsible operators was made difficult and uncertain, and they made in their Report (paragraph 332) the important point, which has to be borne in mind in connection with future policy, that ' the internal organisation of the industry " is an essential precedent to any attempt at general co-ordination with other forms of t ransport ."

12. Even the critics of the Salter Conference^ Report have not objected to the proposal to impose by statute upon road hauliers an obligation to pay fair wages and observe fair conditions of service for persons employed. From the point of view of the employers in the industry, protection against the quotation of uneconomic rates by casual or piratical operators would no doubt also be widely desired.

(c) Justice to the Main Line Railway Companies. 13. In the Report of the Salter Conference (paragraph 35) the position is

summarised in the statement that the railway representatives do not ask that either by taxation of commercial motor transport beyond its fair share of the cost of the roads they use as their permanent way—

" o r by restrictive regulation not required in the public interest, traffic should be forced back to the railways which they are not able to carry so conveniently or on so low a basis of real cost. They do not ask that any class of service which may have been rendered obsolete or comparatively uneconomical by the new form of transport now available should be artificially maintained." 14. The present scheme has been drawn up with due regard to these sound

considerations. I t is, however, necessary to be on guard against the suggestion, which certain propagandists are assiduous to spread, that the whole problem cau

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be easily solved by repealing, the mass of statutory requirements imposed by the Railway Regulation and Traffic Acts of last century by a stroke of the pen. This aspect of the problem is further dealt with in paragraphs 33-35 of this Memorandum.

If in addition to an equitable adjustment of taxation, effective measures were taken to ensure that the carriage of goods by road was conducted (a) in properly maintained vehicles which inflicted no unreasonable damage upon the roads and were operated in respect of their speeds and loading according to law, and (6) by labour remunerated at rates and employed under conditions applied by the better operators, the railway companies' case would be met in part, but only in part.

15. Thus, while the Salter Conference and the Royal Commission are agreed in recommending that road hauliers should be licensed conditionally upon the maintenance of their vehicles in a proper state of fitness and the observance of fair wages and conditions for their employees, the former go a good deal further; first, in recommending that the licensing system should be applied not only to those carrying the goods of others for hire or reward, but also to those using road vehicles for the purpose of their own business; and, secondly, in proposing, as a condition of the licences granted to hauliers (but not ancillary users), that the licensing authority should have regard to any excess in existing transport facilities that may make the grant of a licence for the full number of vehicles asked for against the public interest (paragraph 107).

16. Immediately on the publication of the Report, 1 invited representative Associations to send me their observations. In considering the scheme, regard must be had to the criticisms upon it, and in Appendix I I will be found a very­brief summary of observations received from a large number of Associations in so far as they are relevant to the regulation (as apart from the taxation) of goods vehicles.

Draft Scheme. 17. The draft scheme set out in Appendix I indicates the scope and nature

of the legislative provisions required to give effect in principle to the recommendations contained in the Salter Report.

18. I t will be noted (paragraph I (ii)) that it is proposed to exclude from the scope of the scheme certain agricultural vehicles, i.e., vehicles registered in the name of a person engaged in agriculture and used solely for the haulage or conveyance of the produce of, or of articles required for the purposes of, the agricultural land he occupies, with an extension to cover the co-operative use of such vehicles. Such vehicles are operated under different conditions from commercial vehicles; at certain seasons of the year it is admittedly difficult for farmers to observe the statutory hours of labour; and their use of the public roads is limited.

In paragraph I certain other exemptions are proposed and power is taken to exempt by regulation any particular class of vehicle. All exempted vehicles, however, will be liable to examination on the grounds of physical fitness.

19. The Licensing Authority.—It is no doubt generally expected in the interests of simplicity and economy\ and as foreshadowed in the report of the Royal Commission, that the existing machinery set up by the Road Traffic Act, 1930, for licensing passenger vehicles will be adapted to cover goods vehicles and that the creation of an entirely new machinery will be avoided.

The scheme therefore provides (paragraph I I ) that the licensing authority shall be the Chairman of the Traffic Commissioners in each area set up under the 1930 Act. By the beginning of 1934, which is the earliest date at which this scheme could come into operation, the duties of the Traffic Commissioners with regard to public service vehicles should have become sufficiently stabilised to enable them to undertake, without much difficulty, the licensing of goods vehicles.

The question has been considered whether the Chairman should sit with other persons, e.g., the two Commissioners selected from panels nominated by local -authorities, who sit in connection with the licensing of. public service vehicles.

On various grounds the proposal is not regarded as a good one: local authority representatives would not he especially qualified and, in view of their direct interest in reducing heavy traffic, and so saving highway expenditure, they might be held to be biassed against road traffic. Local authorities are not the guardians of industry in the same way as they are the guardians of the interests of the travelling public, and they have had no jurisdiction in this respect in the past, whereas they had long been licensing authorities for passenger vehicles.

If representatives of transport were added, it would lie necessary to include representatives of both road and rail transport, and it is thought that these interests, like representatives of trade and industry, would more appropriately express their views by memoranda in support of or objection to particular applications. The difficulty of obtaining the services of well-qualified persons of judicial mind in an honorary capacity would no doubt be great. The Chairmen of the existing Traffic Commissioners are entirely impartial, they have, or can easily gain, a pretty shrewd idea of the needs of their areas and, sitting alone, would no doubt reach quite as sound a conclusion as would be reached by a larger body. Any objection that might, be made to the exercise of jurisdiction by a single Commissioner would he mitigated, if not removed, by the constitution proposed for the Appeal Tribunal.

20. Appeal Tribunal.—There are reasons for not automatically applying the machinery prescribed by the Road Traffic Act, whereby appeals regarding the grant, of passenger vehicle licences lie to the Minister of Transport. Appeals on such matters before the passing of that Act lay to the Minister, and the juris­diction over a wide range of matters connected with the fares, stages and services provided by trams and omnibuses rested with public departments. In this case a new type of jurisdiction is required and it may appropriately carry a new machinery and an appellate tribunal of independent authority (paragraph XVII ) . A specially constituted Tribunal is proposed for Scotland.

21. The Salter Conference recommended in paragraph 111 (D) and (F) that the licensing machinery should be such as to avoid delay and legal expense; the scheme therefoi-e provides in paragraphs IV (5) and V (6) that, if objection is made regarding a carrier 's licence, written memoranda of objections shall be furnished and the decision whether to hear oral evidence or sit in public is left to the discretion of the licensing authority.

22. Carriers' Licences.—It is proposed (paragraph I I I ) that all licences for goods vehicles shall be subject to the holder fulfilling the following conditions I ­

(a) maintaining the vehicle in a proper state of fitness; it will be possible for use of ,a particular vehicle to he suspended until it has been properly repaired;

(b) keeping proper records of journeys, & c ; (c) observing the speed and weight limits; (d) further, a Public Carrier 's Licence shall be subject to the payment of

reasonable wages and observance of proper conditions of service for drivers or statutory attendants of vehicles employed by the holder; and a Limited Carrier 's Licence shall be subject to the payment of such wages and observance of such conditions by the holder only in respect of drivers and attendants engaged in the conveyance of goods for others for hire or reward.

The Report of the Royal Commission recommended that the Fair Wages Clause be applied to road hauliers. The Salter Conference went further, and recommended that reasonable wages and proper conditions of service should be observed by all operators of goods vehicles. I t no doubt appeared to the Conference to be reasonable to require all operators to be subject to such a requirement. From the point of view of the railways and public carriers proper, it might appear unfair that persons using vehicles for the conveyance of their own goods should he allowed to compete with them without being subject to the same statutory regulation of wages and conditions of service as is applicable to the public carrier; on grounds of public safety, moreover, it would be desirable to take all possible steps to ensure that drivers of goods vehicles,

which are capable of high speeds and of inflicting serious injury to person and property, should be responsible persons and reasonably remunerated.

The question, however, has been fully explored with the Ministry of Labour, who feel that serious and far-reaching effects on collective arrangements in industry as a whole would result if. in the case of persons whose use of motor vehicles formed an ancillary par t of some other business or industry, it were proposed to give to those employees engaged in one particular occupation—motor driving—the statutory protection of the Fair Wages Clause, when other employees in the same industry had not similar protection. A decision of an outside tribunal in the case of one occupation in a business or industry might also affect the balance of conditions in the business or industry as a whole.

Accordingly, it is proposed to limit the scope of the Fair Wages Clause to the employees of public carriers and the employees of limited carriers engaged in the conveyance of the goods of others for hire or reward. Such employees can be regarded as forming an industrial unit of their own, and a protection afforded to them would not have repercussions on industry generally.

Such a limitation, which would be in accord with the expressed views of the Conference of National Organisations interested in Road Transport, would greatly simplify the whole scheme and remove much opposition.

I t can be left to the Trade Unions and Employers' Organisations to suggest amendments, which would be carefully considered, for limiting or extending the scope of the application of the principle of the Fair Wages Clause, if they can show such a course to be both practicable and desirable.

23. Ancillary Users.—The man who carries his own goods in his own vehicles does so presumably because it is either cheaper or more convenient to him to do so than to send them by rail, and it is proposed to keep the requirements imposed on these " ancillary users " at a minimum. The scheme attached is. in its application to them, a system of special registration, not carrying any onus of proving public convenience or necessity, and their licences would be issued as of course and for periods of three years.

24. Hauliers.—Two classes of road transporters remain : One. the general haulier or carrier, whose whole livelihood depends on carrying the goods of others; the other, the man who uses his vehicles partly for carrying his own goods and partly for carrying the goods of others. The latter is the most difficult to deal with; he takes an outward load of his own goods and debits himself as a manu­facturer or trader with practically the whole cost of that transport, as he may have to make the return journey empty. When he has delivered his load, however, he is apt in many cases to cast round for a return load, and is prepared to accept one a t almost any price, as the revenue is so much extra money. In this way he cuts rates against both the regular haulier or carrier and the railways.

The regular haulier or carrier, on the other hand, has over a period to equate his rates to his costs. He performs a service, however, which is often, especially in the case of long-distance traffic, in direct competition with the railways.

25. LTnder common or co-ordinated management of road and rail transport, there would no doubt be suitably graded scales of rates and charges to reflect the greater convenience of one or other means of transport. The Salter Conference, however, recommended that the question of any control over rates should be left for further consideration, as it obviously requires further investigation and very cautious handling. But they recommended that the quantum of road transport should, as par t of their immediate proposals, be adjusted so as not to produce any uneconomic excess of the transport facilities available, no doubt hoping that this would have the effect of preserving to the railways the volume of traffic they now carry and a fair proportion of what may be anticipated when trade revives.

The main problem in a scheme of licensing is how to give effect to this proposal. Some foreign countries have attempted a " routing system." In undeveloped countries with few roads and relatively isolated centres of

population, this may be feasible. In Great Britain conditions are quite different, and it is the essence of road transport to carry anything at any time from anywhere to anywhere; a routing system would therefore be unduly restrictive in its operation, almost impossible in present circumstances to administer, and is not advocated in any quarter. An alternative might be a limitation of the types

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of commodities to be carried by road, but as a basis of licensing this is also thought to be impracticable. Powers, however, could be taken (see paragraph X X of the scheme) to prevent the carriage by road over certain distances of certain goods which are now borne by rail or canal or coastwise shipping.

26. The scheme attached is put forward for consideration as devised to secure fairer conditions of competition without unduly hampering the developing industry of road transport. I t provides for three types of licences :—

(a) A public- carriers licence for the regular haulier or carrier which will allow him to carry goods for others for hire or reward without restriction of route or area. He must apply for a licence in each area in which he has a base or centre of operation. As a general rule a haulier or carrier more or less limits his activities to a radius around that base, and it is. proposed to give other persons providing transport facilities for the goods of others in that area, except limited carriers (see below), a right to object to his application. The Licensing Authority will take into consideration the traffic needs of the district to be served by the applicant, and will be able to judge the merits of the application in the light of any objections received (paragraph IV).

(b) A limited carrier's licence for the dual user which will allow him to carry his own goods without restriction, and the goods of others subject to such restrictions as the licensing authority may see fit .to impose. Other persons providing transport facilities for others, including public carriers, are to be entitled to object to his application. I t is felt to be sound that the public carrier should have the first claim to carry the goods of others by road (paragraph V).

(c) A private carrier'? licence for the ancillary user which will entitle him to carry his own goods only, and which shall be granted without question (paragraph VI) . If strong opposition is felt to the proposal to put the ancillary user under obligation to have each individual vehicle operated by him specified on the licence, it would be possible for him to be merely registered as a private carrier without the necessity for notifying changes of vehicles; the licensing authority's control, however, would be considerably weakened thereby.

The scheme makes provision for the necessary latitude to hire vehicles to meet special circumstances, and to provide a margin for expansion of business, and to bring trailers under control (paragraphs V I I and VI I I ) .

I t will be noted that, whereas the Salter Conference recommended only two types of licence—one for hauliers, the other for ancillary users—the scheme provides for three types by introducing the limited carrier 's licence. This is considered to be the most satisfactory means of overcoming the difficulty felt to the proposal of the Conference to allow the ancillary user to act as a haulier within an arbitrary radius of 10 miles (paragraph 111 E.); such a radius would operate unevenly between rural and urban areas, for in the latter an ancillary user could still conduct a very profitable haulage business, while in the country the radius might be quite inadequate for the legitimate purposes of the licensee and the convenience of the rural population.

27. Way-Bill.—Paragraph X I I I makes provision for the carrying of a way-bill or time sheet. There has been much objection on the part of the road transport interests to the keeping of *' useless records," largely no doubt because it is realised that the journey record will provide a visible record of infringements of weights and drivers' hours, and is an effective means of enforcement. I t is not, however, proposed to require that more information shall be entered in the record than many firms now require their drivers to keep on a daily way-bill; moreover, it is proposed that the licensing authority shall have wide power to exempt individuals from filling up details of what may be inappropriate or unreasonably burdensome in view of the nature of their particular business. Sir William Ray's Committee on Local Expenditure (paragraphs 125-6) endorsed the proposal for a way-bill or time sheet as a means of checking overloading.

28. Paragraph X I X (a) embodies the recommendation (paragraph 1:20 of the Salter Report) that the Minister should take power to exclude certain vehicles

from certain classes of roads. Paragraph X I X (6) is designed to meet the wishes of local authorities by giving them power to restrict the use of roads within their areas, subject to confirmation by the Minister of Transport.

2.9. Paragraph X X is designed to give effect to paragraph 124 of the Report to empower the Minister to prohibit the carriage of certain goods by road for more than certain distances. The powers proposed to be taken in the latter paragraph are far-reaching and may give rise to opposition, and require most careful consideration in principle and from the point of view of administration.

30. Both the Royal Commission and the Salter Conference attached importance to an advisory body to give assistance to the Minister on transport matters in the widest aspects. Paragraph X X I I provides for a Transport Advisory Council of 25 members, upon which all transport interests can find representation. Its functions will be purely advisory and the Minister will not necessarily be obliged to accept a majority report. Provision would be made for the Council to work through sub-committees to which the Minister could appoint additional members with special knowledge of the matters to be considered. In order to avoid overlap of function and administrative expense,

sory Committee established under the Ministrv of Transport Act, 1919. would be abolished.

31. The scheme in its present form does not propose the institution of driving tests for the drivers of motor vehicles. There may, however, be pressure from the Trade Unions and from the strong "pedestr ian" ' element in the House of Lords and from other quarters for some system of driving tests. To impose such tests on drivers of all goods vehicles would involve considerable initial expense : it would, however, be possible to provide that all persons who after a certain da t e - s ay , the 1st January, 1934—wish to drive heavy motor vehicles (i.e., vehicles over 2i tons in weight unladen) should first have passed a driving test.

The Railway Companies. 32. I t will be necessary to give consideration to the possibility of relieving

the railway companies of some of the statutory restrictions under which they now conduct their business. The Salter Conference recommend that they should be relieved of the obligation to publish their road rates imposed by their Acts of 1928 pending such time as a similar obligation may be imposed on road hauliers generally. This is a small matter (paragraph XXI) .

33. How far it would be necessary or possible to relieve the railway companies of any of their obligations in respect of not granting undue preferences is a much more serious question, as is the further question how far, if at all, they should be relieved of the obligation to publish their railway rates and make their books open for inspection at any station by any trader.

As mentioned in paragraph 14, some of the trading bodies who have commented upon the Salter Report suggest that the proper way of dealing with the position is to relieve the railway companies of these requirements rather than impose restrictions on road transport ;\but they make no specific suggestions and. as the Report itself points out, the'' existing enactments have been thought necessary in the public interest and, quite apar t from the statutory requirement, it is not practicable for large public utilities to discriminate in the treatment of their customers or to conduct their business on lines of secrecy. On the other hand, there can be no doubt that the road hauliers' freedom from control in these respects gives them a great competitive advantage. I have invited concrete recommendations from important trading bodies, such as the Federation of British Industries, on these points.

34. For the reasons given in the earlier part of this memorandum I should not consider any action which it may be possible to take in relieving the railway companies from present restrictions as a substitute for the establishment of a scheme of licensing goods vehicles, but rather as a complementary measure for bringing about a sounder economic position. The licensing scheme, as I have pointed out, would in itself probably afford a basis for further correlation of function between road and rail.

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35. A subject which will, I think, in any case require legislative treatment is the recent decision that the railway companies are not legally entitled to charge flat rates for all traffics of a particular firm over a wide area.

36. In conclusion, attention should perhaps be called to the views expressed by the Salter Conference to the effect that their recommendations (including those' in favour of increased taxation) will not solve the difficulties which the railway companies are now experiencing.

The Conference point out (paragraph 29) that they only offer an alleviation of one of the causes of loss of railway revenue by dealing with any existing unfairness in the incidence of highway costs and inadequacy of the regulations to protect the public and other users of the road against undesirable forms of road traffic. In paragraph 30 they point out that this will not necessarily—

" resu l t in a situation that is of the maximum economic advantage to the community as a whole. This would only be the case on the assumption that we can properly isolate particular industries without regard to the essential solidarity of industry and railway services as a whole and to the inter­dependence of their fortunes. The correction of the incidence of highway costs may mean that each class of road transport is in future paying its own real economic cost. But the withdrawal from the railways of all classes of traffic which finds road transport economical, even on this corrected basis, may still create a situation on the railways which must react seriously upon other industries. Railway transport caters for all industries; and its tariffs have been built up on the principle of charging less than a proportionate cost of service to certain traffics, and more to others. The limitation of charges in the first case has been possible because the railways were also carrying the other class of traffic. Even when we have corrected the incidence of highway costs therefore the broad question remains, whether it is possible to retain in permanent equilibrium two systems, the economic cost of service being the guiding principle of charge for one set of industries, and ' what the traffic­will bear ' for the other. I t must be recognised that some industries whose goods are now carried by the railways on the latter principle, and whole communities dependent upon them, would be most seriously affected if they were charged the full proportionate cost of service "

Summary of Points requiring Decision. 37. The main issues of policy and the principal points likely to give rise to

controversy on which I desire at this stage an indication of my colleagues' views are as follows (the references in Arabic figures are to the paragraphs of the foregoing memorandum and in Roman figures are to the paragraphs of the scheme in Appendix I) :—

1. Should there be a special licensing system for goods vehicles to secure the observance of certain minimum requirements-fitness of vehicles, observance of speed and weight limits, and reasonable wages and conditions of service for drivers engaged in the definite industry of the transport of goods by road? (paragraphs 4-11 and 22, and I and I I I ) .

If s o ­(a) Should the licensing authorities be the Chairmen of the Traffic

Commissioners sitting alone, with appeals to a special Tribunal constituted as proposed? (paragraphs 19-20 and I I and XVII ) .

(b) Should the carriers ' licences be divided into three classes as proposed (viz., Public Carriers ' , Limited Carriers ' and Private Carriers ' Licences) ? (paragraphs 23-26 and I V - V I ) .

(c) Should the scheme provide that, after the expiration of the initial licensing period, the licensing authority should be directed to have regard to objections by others providing transport facilities on the grounds of excess of facilities in the case of an application for a Public Carrier 's Licence, and to similar objections to an application by a Limited Carrier so far as it relates to the carriage of goods for others? (paragraphs 24-26 and IV-V) .

2.—(a) Should power be taken to exclude by Order certain classes of vehicles from certain classes of roads? (e.g., vehicles of more than a specified weight might

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be prohibited from traversing unclassified roads in a defined area except for the purpose of delivering or collecting goods from premises thereon).

(b) Should the powers of local authorities be increased so as to enable them to make Orders (subject to confirmation by the Minister of Transport) restricting the use of roads within their areas? (paragraphs 28 and XIX).

3. Should power be taken to prohibit by Order the carriage of certain classes of goods by road for more than certain distances? (paragraphs 29 and XX).

4. Should the Railway Companies be relieved of their obligation to publish their road rates? (paragraphs 32 and XXI) .

5. Should a Transport Advisory Council be established with the composition proposed and take the place of the existing statutory Roads Advisory Council? (paragraphs 30 and XXII ) .

6. Should a system of driving tests be established for the drivers of all or certain goods vehicles—e.q., heavy Motor Cars? (paragraph 31).

P . J . P

Ministry of Transport, January 26, 1933.

A P P E N D I X 1.

DRAFT SCHEME FOK THE LICENSING OF GOODS VEHICLES.

I. NO person shall ca r ry goods or b u r d e n on a public road in a mechanica l ly-propel led vehicle cons t ruc ted or a d a p t e d for t h e conveyance of goods or bu rden or in a t ra i ler d r a w n by a mechanical ly-propel led vehicle , un less he h a s first secured from the L icens ing Au tho r i t y a public car r ie r ' s l icence, or a l imi ted ca r r i e r ' s l icence or a pr ivate car r ie r ' s l icence, as the case m a y be, on which t h a t vehicle- shal l be specified, or in t he ease of a t rai ler on which au thor i ty to use a t ra i ler shal l be g i v e n ; provided t h a t a ca r r i e r ' s l icence shall not be required in respec t of the conveyance of goods o r b u r d e n b y —

(i) A t r a m c a r , a trolley vehicle, a publ ic service vehicle or a hackney carr iage , when used as such .

(ii) A vehicle registered in t he n a m e of a person engaged in agr icul ture and used solely for t h e h a u l a g e or c o n v e y a n c e of t h e p roduce of, or of ar t ic les required for t h e purposes of, t he agr icu l tu ra l l and which he occupies . (The scope of th i s provision should correspond wi th t h a t of t h e a m e n d m e n t m a d e by the F i n a n c e Ac t , 1027, in para­graph 5 of t h e Second Schedu le to t h e F i n a n c e Act , 1020, e x t e n d e d to cover t h e co-operat ive use of a vehicle by a n u m b e r of ne ighbour ing f a r m e r s ; oppor tun i ty should t h e n b e t a k e n in t he F i n a n c e Bill to e x t e n d correspondingly t h e r educed r a t e s of t axa t ion now appl icable t o vehicles used iu agr icul ture . )

(iii) A t rai ler d rawn by a passenger -car ry ing vehicle with s ea t s for less t h a n eight persons . (iv) G o v e r n m e n t vehic les . (v; A vehicle for t h e t i m e being used exclus ively by a local or police au thor i ty for road

c leans ing and wate r ing , s a n i t a r y or police purposes . (vi) A vehicle used for fire br igade or a m b u l a n c e purposes .

(vii) A vehicle or t ra i ler of a n y c lass which the Min i s te r m a y by regula t ion e x e m p t .

I I . The L icens ing A u t h o r i t y for each area m e n t i o n e d in t he Third Schedule to t he R o a d Traffic Act (as m a y from t i m e to t i m e be varied) shal l be t he C h a i r m a n of t he Traffic Commiss ione r s for the t ime be ing .

Carriers' Licences. H I . The L icens ing A u t h o r i t y shall have power to issue carriers" l icences valid for a per iod

not exceeding in t he case of a publ ic ca r r i e r ' s l icence t w o yea r s , in t h e case of a l imi ted e a r n e r ' s licence one yea r , and in t h e case of a pr ivate ca r r i e r ' s l icence th ree years , which shal l specify t h e . vehicles to be covered by t h e l icence .

A licence shall be sub jec t t o t h e holder— (a) Ma in t a in ing each vehicle specified on t h e l icence in a condi t ion fit for service.

(1) T h e issue of a ca r r i e r ' s l icence shal l be sub jec t to a dec lara t ion from t h e app l i can t tha t each vehicle is in a condi t ion fit for service a n d fulfils t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s of t h e Cons t ruc ­

. ,tion and U s e Regu la t i ons for t h e t i m e being in force, and will du r ing the cur rency of t h e licence be so m a i n t a i n e d .

(2) Cert i fying Officers and vehicle e x a m i n e r s shall be appointed wi th powers of inspect ion of all goods vehic les ( inc luding e x e m p t e d vehicles) s imilar t o those given in

T S. 60 (3) of t h e R o a d Traffic Ac t , 1930. (3) If a Cert i fying Officer or vehicle e x a m i n e r finds t h a t owing to any defects a vehic le

is or is l ikely to b e c o m e unfit for service h e m a y serve on t h e dr iver in t h e prescr ibed form a not ice of su spens ion of t he l icence in respec t of t h a t pa r t i cu la r vehicle which shal l be opera t ive e i ther i m m e d i a t e l y , or, if he. is sat isf ied t h a t t h e defects can be r e m e d i e d in a short t i m e a n d do no t involve a n y i m m e d i a t e risk to public safety, wi th in any period u p t o 10 clays. A copy of t h e no t i ce of suspens ion shal l be s en t to t he owner of t h e vehicle .

I n t h e case of a n e x e m p t e d vehicle , t h e Cert i fying Officer or vehicle e x a m i n e r m a y serve a not ico on t h e dr iver of such vehicle t h a t specified defects shall be remedied t o h i s sat isfaction before i t is aga in used for t h e car r iage of goods.

(4) As soon a s t h e no t ice of suspens ion becomes opera t ive t he Cert i fying Officer or vehicle examine r m a y r e m o v e t h e p l a t e from the vehicle .

(5) T h e no t ice of suspens ion shal l cease to be opera t ive and t h e p la te shal l be r e tu rned , or t h e not ice of suspens ion shal l no t become opera t ive , w h e n t h e ope ra to r h a s satisfied a vehicle examine r t h a t t h e defects h a v e been r e m e d i e d .

(G) T h e vehicle e x a m i n e r shal l act unde r t h e direct ion of t h e Cert i fying Officer and the Minis te r m a y issue d i rec t ions to t he Cert i fying Officer as to t he m a n n e r in which t h e y are to car ry out the i r d u t i e s .

(7) An opera tor w h o is aggrieved by a not ice of suspens ion m a y appeal to t h e Cert i fying Officer and from h i m t o t he Min i s t e r , b u t in t h e m e a n t i m e the not ice of suspens ion shal l r emain in force un t i l t h e suspens ion is r emoved by a vehicle examine r or Cert ifying Officer, or by t he Minis ter . P rov ided t h a t if the Cert i fying Officer considers t h a t the Cons t ruc t ion and Use Regu la t ions for t h e t i m e being in force are complied with in respec t of t h e vehicle t he suspension shal l be r emoved .

(b) Keeping records of h o u r s worked by dr ivers , loads carr ied , &c, in t he m a n n e r prescr ibed by t h e Minis te r of T r a n s p o r t (see p a r a g r a p h X I I I below).

(c) Observing t h e m a x i m u m l imi t s of speed and we igh t prescr ibed for each type of vehicle . (d) Observing the h o u r s of l abour , &o., laid d o w n in S. 10 of t he Road Traffic Act .

[8139] c 2

(e) F u r t h e r , a Pub l i c Ca r r i e r ' s L i cence shall be. subject to t h e p a y m e n t of reasonable wages and obse rvance of proper condi t ions of service for dr ivers or s t a tu to ry a t t e n d a n t s of vehicles employed by t h e ho lde r ; and a L i m i t e d C a r r i e r s L icence shall bo subject to t h e p a y m e n t of such wages a n d t h e observance of such condi t ions by the holder in r e spec t of dr ivers a n d a t t e n d a n t s engaged in t he conveyance of goods for others for hire or r eward . (The F a i r W a g e s Clause (cf. S. 93 of t he Road Traffic Act, 1930), should form t h e basis of th is pa r t of t h e scheme . )

If t h e L i cens ing Author i ty is satisfied tha t a holder of a ca r r ie r ' ? licence h a s cont ravened a n y of t he se r e q u i r e m e n t s , or h a s wrongfully used his l icence, lie m a y revoke or suspend t h e l icence [ in reference to all or a n y of t he vehicles specified t h e r e o n ] subjec t to the qualifications of S. 74 of t he l l o a d Traffic Act, which l imit t h e exercise of t h e power t o cases where breach of cond i t ions has been wilful or f r equen t , or dange rous to the publ ic , [ a n d in deciding w h e t h e r t o revoke or to suspend , a n d in d e t e r m i n i n g a period of suspens ion , shall have regard to t he effect on a n y con t r ac t s en te red in to by the h o l d e r ] .

- A p p e a l s aga ins t revocat ion or suspens ion shou ld go to t he s a m e t r ibuna l as appeals against refusals to g ran t ca r r i e r s ' l icences (see pa rag raph X V I I below).

Tower will be n e c e s s a r y to express t h e l icences to expire a t different t imes , so as to spread t h e work of renewal over t h e yea r (cf. S. 8 0 of t h e l i o a d Traffic Act) .

I t should be m a d e c lear t h a t a ea r r i e r ' s l icence can a t a n y t ime dur ing i t s cur rency be modified or varied by t h e wi thd rawa l of vehicles , or t h e addi t ion or subs t i tu t ion of vehicles o t h e r t h a n those or iginal ly specified (cf. p a r a g r a p h IV (o) and V ( 6 ) ) .

Public Carriers Licences ( two y e a r s ' val idi ty) . I V . — ( 1 ) A public ca r r i e r ' s l icence shal l en t i t l e t he holder to use t he vehicles specified on

t h e l icence for t h e car r iage of goods or b u r d e n for o the r s for hire or reward , a n d for no other pu rpose , save for t he car r iage of goods requi red for t h e purposes of his bus iness a s a public car r ie r .

(2) T h e appl ican t for such l icence shal l supply to t h e L icens ing Author i ty in writ ing and in a prescr ibed form pa r t i cu l a r s of—

(a) T h e facilities he proposes to provide , including t h e l imits within which his vehicles are no rma l ly used.

(b) T h e n u m b e r and type of vehic les he proposes t o use ( including t ra i lers) .

H e shal l m a k e a s e p a r a t e appl ica t ion for a public ca r r i e r ' s l icence in respec t of each base or c e n t r e from which h e proposes t o ope ra t e his vehicle o r vehicles to t h e L i cens ing Author i ty in whose area t h a t base or c e n t r e is l o c a t e d ; provided t h a t it shall b e c o m p e t e n t for t he Licensing A u t h o r i t y to a m a l g a m a t e any two or more app l ica t ions in respect of t w o or m o r e bases within h i s own a rea .

(3) T h o Licens ing Au tho r i t y in t he exercise of h i s discret ion w h e t h e r t o g r an t a public c a r r i e r s l icence shal l h a v e regard t o —

(a) T h e n u m b e r and t ype of vehicles proposed to be opera ted under t h e l icence (including t ra i lers) .

(b) Any object ions m a d e by persons , o the r t h a n persons holding l imi ted ca r r i e r s ' licences, providing facilities w h e t h e r by road or by a l t e rna t ive m e a n s of t r an spo r t (including r a i lways , c ana l s or coas twise shipping) for t h e car r iage of goods for o the r s for hire or r eward in t h e s a m e d i s t r i c t s or a r e a s , on t he ground of a n excess of t ranspor t facilities, e i the r general ly or in r e spec t of a n y pa r t i cu l a r c lass of vehicles in the d i s t r ic t s wh ich t h e app l i can t proposes t o se rve .

(c) T h e pas t c o n d u c t of t h e a p p l i c a n t a s a publ ic carr ier (cf. S. 67 (2) of t h e Road Traffic Act).

I n t h e exercise of Iris d iscre t ion i t shal l be c o m p e t e n t for t h e L icens ing A u t h o r i t y e i ther to refuse a publ ic ca r r i e r ' s l icence or to g r an t one for vehic les of a n u m b e r a n d t ype different from t h a t con ta ined in t h e app l ica t ion .

(4) T h e L icens ing A u t h o r i t y shal l have power to issue in t e r im l icences pend ing complet ion of a n y necessary inqui r ies , and a lso sho r t - t e rm l icences to coyer seasona l or special bus ines s .

(5) T h e L icens ing A u t h o r i t y shal l give publ ic not ice of any app l ica t ion for a publ ic carrier 's l icence a n d , in. h i s discret ion, of a n y appl ica t ion t o increase t h e n u m b e r of vehicles to be specified on such l icence ( inc luding t ra i le rs ) , vmd of a n y proposa l to s u b s t i t u t e one vehicle by -another of a different t o n n a g e or t y p e . If object ion is made , wr i t t en m e m o r a n d a of objection sha l l be furn ished, a n d in t he discre t ion of t h e L i cens ing Au tho r i t y oral ev idence m a y be heard, a n d h e m a y s i t in publ ic . W h e n oral ev idence is hea rd , t h e app l i can t a n d objectors shall have t h e r igh t of being p re sen t .

(0) I n tho case of a n app l ican t who owned a n d opera ted vehicles for the carr iage of goods or b u r d e n for o t h e r s for h i re or r eward a t an5" t i m e du r ing t h e yea r i m m e d i a t e l y preceding the in t roduc t ion of t h i s Bil l , t h e L icens ing Author i ty shal l in the first l icensing period g r a n t a public c a r r i e f s l icence for an equ iva len t t o n n a g e of vehicles wi thou t ques t ion , t hough full part iculars -as requi red in (2) above shal l he suppl ied .

Limited Carriers' Licences (one y e a r ' s val idi ty) . V .—(1) A l imi ted ca r r io r ' s l i cence shal l en t i t l e t h e holder to use t h e vehicles specified on

t h e l icence bo th for t ho car r iage of goods or b u r d e n o the rwise t h a n for hire, or r eward , a n d also, sub jec t to such condi t ions a s t h e L i c e n s i n g Au tho r i t y m a y see fit t o i m p o s e , for t h e carriage of goods or b u r d e n for o t h e r s for lure or r eward , ' " , . . .

(2) S a m e a s I V (2). . . ' ' , ' ;

(3) Tlio L icens ing Author i ty in t h e exercise of h is discretion w h e t h e r to g r an t a l imited -carrier's licence shal l have regard t o —

(a) The e x t e n t t o which the app l ican t i n t ends to provide facilities tor t h e carr iage of goods for o thers for hire or reward .

\h) The n u m b e r and type of vehicles proposed to be opera ted unde r the l icence ( including trai lers) .

(c) Any object ions m a d e by o the r persons providing facilities, whe the r by road or by a l t e rna t ive m e a n s of t r a n s p o r t , for t he carr iage of goods for o thers for hire or reward in t h e s a m e d i s t r i c t s or areas , on t h e ground of an excess of t r anspor t facilities, e i the r general ly or in respec t of a n y pa r t i cu la r c lass of vehicles in the dis t r ic ts which t h e app l i can t proposes t o serve.

(d) Tho pas t c o n d u c t of the app l i can t as a l imited carr ier (c / . S . 67 (2) of t h e Road Traffic Act ) .

In the exercise of h i s discret ion it sha l l be c o m p e t e n t for tho L icens ing Author i ty e i the r t o refuse a l imited ca r r i e r ' s l icence or t o g r a n t one for vehicles of a n u m b e r and t ype different from t h a t conta ined in t he app l ica t ion , and to a t t a c h a condi t ion t o t h e l icence t h a t vehicles opera ted under it shall when ca r ry ing goods or b u r d e n for o the r s for hire or r e w a r d —

(i) bo l imited t o a ce r ta in a rea , a n d / o r (ii) be l imited t o ca r ry ing cer ta in c lasses of goods, a n d / o r

(iii) be subjec t to such o the r condi t ions as t h e L icens ing A u t h o r i t y m a y see fit t o impose in t he public in t e re s t w i t h a v iew to p r even t ing wasteful compet i t ion , provided t h a t he shall no t prescr ibe t h e r a t e s to be charged .

(4) S a m e as I V (4). (5) The L icens ing Au tho r i t y shall h a v e power at any t i m e to waive or modify any condi t ions

imposed by h im u n d e r sub -pa rag raph (3) above . (6) S a m e a s I V (5). (7) I n t h e case of a n app l i can t who owned and opera ted vehicles pa r t l y for t h e carr inge of

gcxxls or bu rden for o the r s for hire or r eward a n d pa r t ly for h i s own pu rposes a t a n y t i m e dur ing the year immed ia t e ly p reced ing t h e in t roduc t ion of t h i s Bil l , t h e L i cens ing A u t h o r i t y shall in t h e first year g r a n t a l imi ted ca r r i e r ' s l icence for a n equ iva len t t o n n a g e of vehicles , and shal l n o t a t t ach any condi t ion (o ther t h a n those requi red b y pa rag raph I I I t o be a t t a c h e d to all ca r r ie r s ' licences) which would enta i l any subs t an t i a l in terference wi th t he bus ines s conduc ted by h i m dur ing t h a t year , t hough full pa r t i cu l a r s as requi red in (2) above shall b e furnished.

Private Carriers' Licences ( t h r ee y e a r s ' val idi ty) . VI .—(1) A pr iva te carrier*s l icence shall en t i t l e t h e holder to use t he vehicles specified on the

l icence only— (a) Fo r t he carr iage of goods or b u r d e n o therwise t h a n for hire or r eward iu connect ion with

his t r a d e or bus iness , and (b) For t he carr iage in connect ion wi th h i s t r a d e or bus iness of goods or burden which he

m a n u f a c t u r e s or repa i rs , or in which h e dea ls .

(2) The app l i can t for such l icence shal l supp ly in wri t ing in a prescr ibed form par t i cu la r s of t he n u m b e r and t y p e of vehicles ( inc luding t rai lers) h e proposes t o u s e a n d shal l apply in t h e area in which his H e a d Office or pr incipal p l ace of bus iness is loca ted .

(3) Such l icence shall be g r an t ed as of course by the L icens ing Au tho r i t y excep t in t he case of a person whose ca r r i e r ' s l icence is su spended or h a s at a n y t i m e been revoked, and in such eases the gran t of a fresh l iqence shall be in t h e discret ion of t h e L icens ing Author i ty .

Hiring of Vehicles. V I I . The holder of a c a r r i e r s l icence m a y a t any t i m e ( inc luding t h e t ime a t which lie

makes appl icat ion for such l icence) apply t o t h e L icens ing Au tho r i t y for permiss ion to h i re vehicles (including trai lers) and use t h e m u n d e r his l icence ( the permiss ion could t ake t h e form of al lowing cither a n u m b e r of h i red vehicles n o t exceeding per cen t , of t h e vehic les specified on the licence, or a specified n u m b e r a t t he discre t ion of t h e L icens ing A u t h o r i t y ) ; a de t achab l e p l a t e of a special charac te r shall be issued to t h e ho lder in respec t of each vehicle so au thor i sed , and shall be affixed to the vehicle when i t is used by h i m under h i re .

N O T E . — T h i s p a r a g r a p h is in tended to cover t he ordinary case of hir ing a vehicle b y one con t r ac to r from a n o t h e r ; legally a vehicle acquired unde r t h e h i re -purchase s y s t e m , is let on h i re un t i l t h e l a s t i n s t a l m e n t h a s been pa id ; it will be necessa ry to m a k e i t . c l ea r t h a t the p a r a g r a p h does no t apply to h i re -purchase .

Trailers. V I I I . No person shall use a t ra i ler for t h e carr iage of goods un les s it is wi th in t h e n u m b e r

of trai lers al lowed to h i m under a c a r r i e r s l icence by the L icens ing A u t h o r i t y ; t he Licens ing Authori ty in the exercise of h i s d iscre t ion w h e t h e r to grant a c a r r i e r s l icence shall h a v e regard to the n u m b e r a n d capac i ty of t he t ra i le rs proposed to be used b y t h e a p p l i c a n t ; a p l a t e of special charac te r shal l bo a t t a ched to each t ra i ler when used for t h e carr iage of goods.

. T X . W i t h each c a r r i e r s l icence shal l be issued a p la te (dis t inct ively coloured for a publ ic , limited or pr ivate c a r r i e r s licence) f o r ' e a c h vehicle, specified, s t a m p e d wi th t h e serial n u m b e r of the vehicle as ' specif ied on the l icence, and t h e p la te s h a l l ' b e affixed to t h e vehicle. W h e i \ the c a r r i e r s licence- is s u s p e n d e d or revoked or n o t renewed the pla te or p l a t e s shall be r e tu rned to t h e Licens ing Author i ty . (See also p a r a g r a p h s V I I and V I I I . )

X. N o t h i n g in t h i s s c h e m e shall p revent any person from holding licences of more than one class or l icences of t he s a m e class in respect of vehicles opera ted from different bases or c e n t r e s ; provided t h a t t he s a m e vehicle shal l no t he specified on more t h a n one licence.

- X I . An appl ican t for a c a r r i e r s l icence shall s t a t e whe the r he h a s appl ied for a licence of a n y c lass in r e s p e c t of vehic les opera ted from any o the r base or c e n t r e w h e t h e r wi th in t h a t urea or ou t s ide , ami if so r eques t ed shall give to t h e L icens ing Au tho r i t y such fur ther information as he m a y reasonably require for the d ischarge of his du t i e s , including par t i cu la rs of t he traffic carried by h im in t he pas t [ and the r a t e s c h a r g e d ] .

X I I . If t h e L i c e n s i n g Au tho r i t y so requi res a n app l ican t shal l disclose to h i m any agreements or u r rungemen t s m a d e with a n o t h e r person or any financial control exercisable by h im over ano ther or by ano the r over h im (S . 7(5 of the Road Traffic Act , 1930).

Way Bill. X I I I . — ( 1 ) C u r r e n t records shall be kep t in respect of each vehicle- journey in which shall

be en te red t he n u m b e r of t h e ca r r i e r ' s l icence under which the vehicle is opera ted and t h e vehic le ' s regis t ra t ion n u m b e r , a n d which shall i nd i ca t e—

(a) T h e t i m e s a t which t h e dr ivers and any s t a t u t o r y a t t e n d a n t s c o m m e n c e d and ceased work a n d pa r t i cu la r s of the i r rest in te rva l s .

(6) An ou t l ine of t h e i t ine ra ry , (c) T h e we igh t s of t h e goods car r ied . (cl) A n indicat ion w h e t h e r t h e goods are carr ied for o thers for hire or reward , or otherwise .

(2) T h e Min i s t e r shall h a v e the power af ter hav ing referred t he m a t t e r t o t h e Transpor t Advisory Counci l to prescr ibe t h e form of t h e t ime-shee t or way-bill or of a combined record a n d the L icens ing Author i ty shall h a v e power to d ispense wi th all or any of t he prescribed de ta i l s , if in his opinion, owing to the n a t u r e of t he bus iness , it is imprac t i cab le t h a t t h e y should be furnished. P rov ided t h a t t h e ho lder of t he l icence m a y cause t o be en te red in t h e record such fu r the r in fo rma t ion as h e m a y wish .

(3) A L icens ing A u t h o r i t y , or a n y person author ised on his behalf or on behalf of a chief officer of .pol ice shal l have power a t a n y t ime dur ing t h e cu r rency of t h e l icence a n d for th ree m o n t h s the rea f t e r to call for a n d e x a m i n e the records .

X I V . An app l i can t for a ca r r i e r ' s l icence shall notify t he L icens ing Author i ty if any vehic le , owned by h i m and proposed to be specified on t h e l icence , h a s not been l icensed under t h e R o a d s Act , 1920, for a c o n t i n u o u s period of one y e a r or m o r e .

XV. [An a p p l i c a n t for a l icence u n d e r t h e Ro ad s Act , 1920, in respec t of a goods vehicle shall s t a t e w h e t h e r he possess a ca r r i e r ' s l icence, and shall give the n u m b e r of the l icence . ]

X V I . T h e Min i s t e r shall have power to fix t h e fees chargeab le for the issue of a carr ier ' s l icence of any class (cf. S. 80 of the R o a d Traffic Act , 1930).

Appeals. X V I I . — ( 1 ) Appea l s from a decision of t h e L icens ing Author i ty r egard ing t h e grant of a

publ ic or l imi ted carrier*s l icence , or r ega rd ing any condi t ions a t t a c h e d to t h e l a t t e r ( IV and V above) , or regard ing the suspens ion or revocat ion of a ca r r i e r ' s l icence of a n y c lass ( I I I (fa), (c ) , (d) a n d (e) above) sha l l b e referred for d e t e r m i n a t i o n t o a Tr ibuna l composed of a Chairman w i t h legal expe r i ence , a n d four o the r m e m b e r s (one exper ienced in road t r a n s p o r t , one in rail t r a n s p o r t , and two w i t h indus t r i a l or commerc i a l exper ience) .

(2) T h e T r i b u n a l shall be appoin ted by the Min i s te r after c o n s u l t a t i o n a s regards the C h a i r m a n wi th the Lord Chance l lo r , and a s regards t he two m e m b e r s wi th industr ia l or commerc ia l exper i ence , with t h e P re s iden t of t he B o a r d of T rade . Memlvers of t h e House of C o m m o n s shal l be disqualif ied. A p p o i n t m e n t s shall b e for a period of not less t h a n th ree years . T h e Min i s te r sha l l h a v e power to appo in t d e p u t i e s . P rospec t ive m e m b e r s of t h e Tr ibuna l shall dec la re r the i r financial i n t e re s t in t r anspor t unde r t ak ings (S . 08 (2) of t h e Road Traffic Act, 1930).

(3) T h e T r ibuna l shall h a v e power to m a k e r ides of p rocedure (subject t o appropr ia te approva l ) .

(4) For t he purposes of hear ing appea l s agains t decisions of - L icens ing Author i t ies in Sco t l and , t h e T r ibuna l shall s i t in Sco t l and and shall be specially cons t i t u t ed so as t o include t h e C h a i r m a n a n d a t l eas t t w o m e m b e r s wi th knowledge of commerc ia l or indus t r ia l conditions in Sco t l and a p p o i n t e d after consu l t a t ion wi th t h e Sec re t a ry of S t a t e for S c o t l a n d ; alternatively there shal l be es tab l i shed a comple te ly s e p a r a t e t r i buna l , wi th a C h a i r m a n appoin ted after consu l ta t ion w i t h t h e P r e s i d e n t of t h e Court, of Sess ion, two m e m b e r s wi th commercial or i ndus t r i a l exper ience appo in t ed af ter consul ta t ion wi th t h e Sec re ta ry of S t a t e for Scotland a n d t h e t w o t r a n s p o r t m e m b e r s with exper ience of Sco t t i sh condi t ions .

(5) T h e r e shall be power to r e m u n e r a t e t h e m e m b e r s and staff of t h e T r i b u n a l from the R o a d F u n d s , a n d t h e T r i b u n a l m a y , sub jec t t o t he approval of t he Minis te r , appo in t staff (see S.21 of. t he R a i l w a y s Act , 1921).

(0) The decis ions of t h e Tr ibuna l shall be final. (7) T h e status quo ante shal l be m a i n t a i n e d unt i l t he appea l i s d e t e r m i n e d .

X V I I I . N o t h i n g in th i s s c h e m e is t o be t r ea ted a s conferring a n y r igh t t o t h e continuance of t h e benefi ts ar is ing from t h e issue of a l icence (cf. R e g . 13 of Pub l i c Service Vehic les (Licences and Cert i f icates) (No. 2) R e g u l a t i o n s , 1931, regarding a s s ignmen t of l icences temporar i ly on b a n k r u p t c y or d e a t h ) .

XIX.—(a) T h e Minis te r shal l have power t o exc lude ce r ta in vehicles from c e r t a i n ' c l a s s e s of roads, after having referred the m a t t e r t o t he T r a n s p o r t Advisory Counci l .

(/)) T h e powers of Sect ion 4(5 of t h e Road Traffic Ac t whereby t h e Minis ter m a y on the application of local au thor i t i es m a k e orders closing roads to certain classes of traffic shal l be exercisablo by h ighway au thor i t i e s t hemse lves , subject t o confirmation by the Min i s t e r (c / . S. 90 of the Road Traffic Act) . . . .

XX. With a view to p reven t ing , so far as is cons i s ten t with t h e public in teres t , t h e further diversion of goods traffic to t he roads , t he Minis ter shal l have power after h a v i n g referred the mat te r to the T ranspor t Advisory Counci l to m a k e regula t ions which shal l be subjec t to approval by affirmative resolut ion in both H o u s e s of P a r l i a m e n t , prohibi t ing the carriage by road for more than cer ta in d is tances (which m a y vary for different traffics) of traffics which a t t h e in t roduc t ion of ' th is Act were borne by rail or cana l or coastwise sh ipp ing , a n d which , hav ing regard to t he character of the commodi t i e s and t h e d i s tance toge ther , a re unsu i t ab le for carr iage b y road over long dis tances .

XXI . Relief to the Ra i lway Compan ie s from the obl igat ion lo publish the ra tes of the i r road t ransport services for goods (.S. 8 (2) of each Rai lway C o m p a n y ' s (Road Transpor t ) Act , 1028).

Tramporl Advisory Council. XXII ,—(1) For ' the purpose of giving advice to t h e Minis ter wi th respect to t he exercise of

his powers and t h e per formance of his du t i e s in relat ion t o roads , br idges and vehicles a n d traffic thereon, both general ly and under th i s Act , a n d for consider ing s c h e m e s for t he co-ordinat ion, improvement and deve lopment of all forms of t r anspo r t , h e shall appo in t a T ranspo r t Advisory Council.

(2) The Council shall consis t of no t more t h a n 25 m e m b e r s , including the C h a i r m a n , of whom—

3 shall be r ep re sen t a t i ve of Local Author i t i e s in E n g l a n d and W a l e s . 1 ,, ,, . ,, ,, Local Au thor i t i e s in Sco t l and . 5 ,, ., ,, ,, use rs of mechanica l ly-propel led road vehicles. 1 ,, ,, ,, ., u se r s of horses and horse -drawn vehicles . 1 ,, ,, ,, ,, o the r users of t h e roads . 2 ,, ,, ,, ,, R a i l w a y s . 1 ,, ,, ,, ,, Cana l s . 1 ,, . , , ,, ,, Coas twise Shipping . 1 ,, ,, ,, ,, H a r b o u r and Dock Au thor i t i e s . . 2 .. ,, ,. ,, L a b o u r . 4 ,, ,, ,, ;.- ,, T r a d i n g I n t e r e s t s ( including Agr icul ture) .

T h e foregoing shal l be appo in t ed for a per iod of not less t h a n th ree yea r s or more t h a n five yea r s after consul ta t ion with such r e p r e s e n t a t i v e bodies or associa t ions of t h e in te res t s concerned as t h e Minister m a y t h i n k fit;

Th ree m e m b e r s shal l be s u c h persons as t he Min i s t e r m a y from t i m e to t i m e see fit to appoint as addi t ional m e m b e r s .

(3) T h e C h a i r m a n a n d t h e S e c r e t a r y shall he appo in ted by t h e Minis ter . (4) The Council may , if so a u t h o r i s e d by the Minis te r , de legate any of the i r powers a n d

duties to sub -commi t t ee s cons i s t ing of such m e m b e r s of t h e Counci l ' a s t he Council m a y , wi th the approval of t h e Minis ter , appo in t , t oge the r wi th such addi t iona l persons be ing m e m b e r s of t h e panel set up u n d e r S. 23 of t h e Min i s t ry of T r a n s p o r t Act, 1919, a s t h e Minis te r m a y appoin t , and references to t he Council sha l l , as r e spec t s any powers or du t ies so delegated, be cons t rued as including references to such s u b - c o m m i t t e e . T h e C h a i r m a n of such s u b - c o m m i t t e e shall be such member thereof as t h e Counci l , wi th the. approval of t h e Minis ter , m a y appoin t .

(5) T h e Council shall have power to hear wi tnesses , call for d o c u m e n t s , &c. (0) T h e Council m a y m a k e ru les a s to the i r procedure , and shal l have power to consider and

report to t he Min i s t e r upon a n y m a t t e r s wi th in trie scope of the i r field, w h e t h e r h e h a s referred such m a t t e r s to t h e m or not .

(7) S. 22 of t he Min i s t ry of Transpor t Act. 1010, es tab l i sh ing a Roads Advisory C o m m i t t e e , shall be repealed.

X X I I I . P o w e r to t h e Min i s t e r t o issue general d i rect ions for t h e gu idance of L icens ing Authori t ies , provided t h a t he sha l l have referred t he m a t t e r to t he T ranspor t Advisory Council (S. 03 (1) of t h e R o a d Traffic A c t ) , and to m a k e regula t ions within t he scope of t he s c h e m e .

X X I V . A Licens ing A u t h o r i t y or any person au thor i sed on his behalf or on behalf of a chief officer of police m a y a t any time, s t op a vehicle and e x a m i n e w h e t h e r i t is being used in accordance with its licence.

XXV.—(a) A clause, will be necessary deal ing wi th prosecut ions , penal t ies for offences— part icular ly au thor i s ing s u s p e n s i o n or revoca t ion of t h e c a r r i e r s l icence.

(b) Tn the case of convict ion for a n offence unde r th is Act t he m a g i s t r a t e s shal l c o m m u n i c a t e to the L icens ing Author i tv pa r t i cu l a r s of t h e convict ion (cf. S. 8 (6) of t he Road Traffic Act, 1930).

. A P P E N D I X I I .

A Uric) Summary of the Views Expressed on the Recommendations contained in Part III of the Salter Report by various classes of Representative Associations.

1. Associations representative of Local Authorities.—On the whole n e u t r a l ; some urge t he exclusion of local a u t h o r i t i e s ' vehicles from t h e scope of t h e s c h e m e ; some press for an ex tended use of powers to exc lude specified t y p e s of vehicles from cer ta in roads . (The Eepor t of t h e C o m m i t t e e on Local E x p e n d i t u r e ( p a r a g r a p h 126) endorsed the r ecommenda t i on regarding the way-bill .)

2 . The Railway Com panics' Association say t h a t t h e conclusions con ta ined in t he Report were a compromise to secure u n a n i m i t y , and whi le t he Rai lway Companies themse lves would in m a n y direct ions h a v e gone beyond the agreed r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s , t hey wish to m a k e no c o m m e n t , excep t to urge t h a t t h e Min i s t e r will t ake t he ear l ies t possible s t eps to imp lemen t tho r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s as a whole .

3 . . The Interests representative of the transport of goods by road a re on t h e whole opposed to a l icensing s y s t e m . T h e y con tend t h a t t he fi tness of vehicles can a l ready be dea l t with under t he Road Traffic Act , 1030, and the hours of d r ive r s are a l ready sufficiently covered by Sect ion 10 of t h a t Act. Some , however , inc luding t h e Conference of Na t iona l Organisa t ion in teres ted in R o a d Transpor t , a re p repa red for a n ex tens ion of Sec t ion 93 of t he Road Traffic Act, which a t present, appl ies t h e F a i r W a g e s Clauses t o public service vehicle employees , to cover t h e drivers of vehic les of those who hold t h e m s e l v e s out to carry t h e goods of o the r s for hire or r eward : t h e r e is fairly genera l c o n d e m n a t i o n of t h e proposal to e x t e n d the Fa i r W a g e s Clause to cover t h e dr ivers of emp loye r s whose use of mo to r vehic les forms an anci l lary p a r t of some other bus ines s or i ndus t ry .

To es tabl i sh a l icensing s y s t e m to secure t h e s e objec ts , and to r egu la t e t he q u a n t u m of t r a n s p o r t avai lable would , it is a l leged—

(1) B e complex and b u r e a u c r a t i c . (2) H a m p e r t r a d e a n d i n d u s t r y . (3) B e difficult or imposs ib le to work, for no l icensing au thor i ty could a sce r t a in whe the r

the re is an excess of ex i s t ing t r a n s p o r t facili t ies su i tab le to m e e t t h e public require­m e n t s , or w h e t h e r t h e r e is a n y congest ion or over loading of t h e roads .

The Na t iona l Road T r a n s p o r t E m p l o y e r s ' F e d e r a t i o n , however , approve of a modified l icensing s y s t e m , which would be l i t t le more t h a n reg is t ra t ion . T h e Road H a u l a g e Association, while opposed to t h e res t r ic t ive fea tures of t h e proposa ls in t he Repor t of t h e Sa l t e r Conference, a p p e a r to favour a modified l icensing s y s t e m .

-1. Trade U7iions preface the i r r e m a r k s by sugges t ing there will be no rea l solut ion until all forms of t r a n s p o r t a re na t iona l ly control led . T h e Ra i lway Unions and t h e T r a n s p o r t and Gene ra l W o r k e r s ' Un ion suppor t a s y s t e m of l icens ing par t i cu la r ly t o secure wages and conditions of service .

5. Commercial Interests a re a l m o s t u n a n i m o u s l y opposed to a l icensing s y s t e m on the g rounds t h a t it would add to t r an spo r t cos ts .

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