§ 15. Mr. Farrasked the Minister of Transport if he is aware of the frequency of accidents caused by the jack-knifing of articulated vehicles; and if he will take steps to counter this hazard.
§ Mr. SwinglerYes, Sir. We are in touch with the vehicle manufacturers in their investigations into this complicated problem and are actively encouraging them to find an early solution.
§ Mr. FarrIs the hon. Gentleman aware that the current Construction and Use Regulations which came into effect in August, 1964, are considered by the industry to be partly causing a lot of these jack-knifing incidents? Will he look into this point particularly?
§ Mr. SwinglerI am not aware of that, and I will certainly look into it. Certain tests and experiments in brake distribution and load sensing devices are being carried out under the surveillance of a working party. We hope to have some technical proposals shortly.
Mr. Gresham CookeThis is recognised as a very real problem and the motor industry research association and the College of Automobile Engineering at Cranfield are doing a lot of research into suspension and so on.
§ Mr. SwinglerIt is recognised as a serious problem. There is a Ministry working party on the question of braking power which is investigating it. We are in close touch with the manufacturers trying to find a technical solution.