§ 153. Mr. Walkdenasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware of the accumulation of railway trucks loaded with coal which have been blocking the sidings and yards between Peterborough and the South Yorkshire pits for the past six weeks; that at certain Yorkshire collieries only a few empty wagons are available and this may have disastrous consequences if snow or fog should cause further delay in the return of such wagons; and what action he proposes to take to ensure continuity of coal production.
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§ Mr. G. R. StraussI am aware that during the last two months some routes have been congested and that the railways are having difficulty in clearing accumulations of traffic owing to insufficiency of locomotive power. The restrictions on the acceptance of traffic which have been imposed in order to clear the congestion have not applied to coal, the movement of which has thus generally been maintained. I have given instructions for special measures to be taken to ensure, so far as practicable, that no coal is lost by reason of short supply of wagons to the pits.