HC Deb 21 April 1904 vol 133 cc845-6
MR. BELL (Derby)

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that the reports of the Interstate of Commerce Commissioners of the United States of America show that accidents from coupling and uncoupling vehicles on the railroads in the United States since the compulsory adoption of automatic couplings in 1893 have resulted in an aggregate reduction of 62,419 such accidents; and, if so, whether, in view of the fact that similar accidents in this country in the same period have increased by over 2,000, he will use the power given to the Board of Trade by the Act of 1900, and make experiments with improved couplings with a view to selecting a suitable appliance to be adopted on the British railways which will diminish these accidents.

THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE (Mr. GERALD BALFOUR,) Leeds, Central

In the suggested comparison between this country and the United States of America the hon. Member appears to overlook the fact that the couplings formerly in use in the United States of America were such as to oblige shunters to go between trucks for the purpose of attaching or detaching them, and did not allow a shunting pole to be used from outside as is the practice in this country. The apparent increase of accidents in the United Kingdom is, in the main, due to the change in the instructions for reporting accidents which was made by the Board of Trade in 1896; the number of fatal accidents from the cause referred to does not show an increase over a series of years, despite the large increase of traffic. It cannot, I think, be denied that railway service is less dangerous in this country than in the United States of America. The Department carefully watches the progress of invention of new methods of coupling, and the Inspecting Officers of Railways inspect, and are always ready to inspect, any promising invention. The railway companies have also made practical experiments with couplers and will continue to do so. I gather, however, that no invention has yet been submitted which promises to be suitable for general adoption; and I do not think the time has come when the Board of Trade could with advantage take the task of experimenting and selecting into its own hands.