470 History of Inland Transport 



etc., for the purpose, in preference to running motor-buses or 

 commercial motor vehicles. This will be the real test of the 

 respective merits of the two systems, apart from any further 

 utilisation of existing tramway power stations; and it is 

 always to be remembered that still greater improvements in 

 self-propelled buses, vans, etc., will certainly be brought 

 about. There is certainly significance, in this connection, 

 in the following report, published in the " Engineering Supple- 

 ment " of " The Times" of November 8, 1911 : 



"The Tramways Committee of the Edinburgh^ Corpora- 

 tion have decided that nothing further is to be done for the 

 present in connection with the proposal to adopt ^rail-less 

 tramways for the city and district, in view of information 

 which they have obtained regarding an improved type of 

 petrol-electric omnibus which has been introduced in London. 

 In the latter class of vehicle, they are informed, many of the 

 disadvantages of the motor-omnibus as hitherto known have 

 been overcome, and they consider that it would be prudent to 

 await further developments before taking any action with 

 regard to rail-less tramways." 



Whatever the eventual issue of the rivalry between the two 

 new systems themselves, the fact that they have been intro- 

 duced at all would seem to confirm the assumption that in the 

 dictionary of transport there is no such word as " finality." 

 We are also left to conclude 



(1) That in the struggle between governing authorities and 

 private enterprise the last word is not always with the former ; 



(2) That the resort by local authorities both to motor- 

 omnibuses and to railless electric traction suggests that, even 

 in their opinion, electric tramways are being improved upon, 

 even if they have not already had their day ; 



(3) That the municipalities which checked the development 

 of tramways by private companies from whom an assured 

 return might have been gained and themselves spent, in the 

 aggregate, many millions of public money on a form of muni- 

 cipal enterprise yielding doubtful results, involving great 

 liabilities, and now, apparently, being superseded by superior 

 systems, may eventually find abundant reason for regretting 

 their past policy ; and 



(4) That when local governing authorities do enter upon 

 speculative commercial enterprises, they cannot, any more than 



