§ 22 and 23 Mr. Woodburnasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation (1) in the cases of accidents involving transport vehicles, what record he keeps of cases in which drivers have been driving excessive hours beyond those permitted by law;
(2) how many accidents occur to drivers who have been driving excessive hours.
§ Mr. WatkinsonThe accident records kept by my Department do not show whether the drivers involved have driven an excessive number of hours, but they do indicate whether fatigue is considered by the police to have been a factor. Of 216,681 accidents in 1955 which resulted in personal injury, the police considered that fatigue was a factor in 360, of which 65 involved commercial vehicles.
§ Mr. WoodburnIs the Minister aware that rather grave allegations have been made that drivers have driven for so long on the road that they are often asleep at the wheel and cause great danger to other transport drivers on the same road? Would he look into the allegations made to the Scottish Trades Union Congress this year by the transport unions of some very grave charges of this kind, and would he consider keeping records of the number of hours driven, because if a person has been driving for twenty-two hours there is a fair assumption that he is fatigued, even if the police do not notice it?
§ Mr. WatkinsonIf the right hon. Gentleman has any specific cases, I should like to hear of them. There is not, so far as I can find out, any general indication in my Department that this practice is widespread, and there is a penalty, as the right hon. Gentleman knows, under the Road Traffic Act if the driver of the vehicle is allowed to drive. excessive hours.
§ Mr. WoodburnAllegations were made and substantiated some time ago that drivers may drive for eleven hours for one employer and then switch to another employer and drive for eleven hours, and, without in some way actually breaking the law, they manage to drive for twenty-two hours.
§ Mr. WatkinsonI should like to have details of any case of that kind.