First Previous (PART VI. Abandonment of Railway Lines.) Next (PART VIII. Miscellaneous Provisions.)

21 1944

TRANSPORT ACT, 1944

PART VII.

Amendment of Road Transport Act, 1933 .

Interpretation of Part VII.

111. —(1) In this Part, the expression “the Act of 1933” means the Road Transport Act, 1933 (No. 8 of 1933), as amended by any subsequent enactment.

(2) This Part shall be construed as one with the Act of 1933.

Carriage for reward.

112. —(1) Where a mechanically propelled vehicle or a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle is used for the carriage of merchandise, then, subject to this section, the merchandise shall until the contrary is proved, be deemed for the purposes of the Act of 1933, to be carried for reward.

(2) Where—

(a) merchandise, which is supplied by a person in the course of a trade or business carried on by him is, for the purpose of delivery to the customer, carried in a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person or in a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person, or

(b) merchandise, which is to be or has been subjected to any one or more of the following processes, namely, repairing, cleaning, laundering and dyeing, by a person in the course of a trade or business carried on by him is, for the purpose of collection from or delivery to the customer, carried in a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person or in a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person,

the merchandise shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, be deemed not to be carried for reward.

(3) Where—

(a) a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by a person or a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by a person is used for the carriage of merchandise the property of that person, or

(b) a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by a company or a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by a company is used for the carriage of merchandise the property of any company which is in the same ownership, or under the same management, as the company owning the mechanically propelled vehicle,

then, subject to subsections (4) and (5) of this section, the merchandise shall be deemed, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, not to be carried for reward.

(4) Where—

(a) a vehicle (being a mechanically propelled vehicle or a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle) is used for the carriage of merchandise, and

(b) the vehicle is registered in the name of two or more persons,

the merchandise shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, be deemed not to be the property of the owner of the vehicle, unless it is proved that it is the common property of the persons in whose name the vehicle is registered.

(5) Where—

(a) a person is, in relation to the carriage of merchandise, charged with having committed on a particular occasion an offence under the Act of 1933, and

(b) it is proved that the merchandise was on the said occasion carried in a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person or in a vehicle drawn by a mechanically propelled vehicle owned by that person, and

(c) it is alleged by that person that the merchandise was his property, and

(d) it appears that the merchandise was not manufactured or produced by that person, but was acquired by him, and

(e) the Court is of opinion that (having regard to the circumstances of the acquisition, the purposes for which the merchandise is capable of being used, the recentness of the acquisition and the calling of that person) the merchandise was not bona fide acquired by him for the purposes of his trade or business or for his own private use, the Court shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, deal with the charge on the assumption that the property in the merchandise never passed to that person and that the merchandise was on the said occasion carried for reward by him.

Amendment of section 8 of the Act of 1933.

113. —(1) Subsection (1) of section 8 of the Act of 1933 is hereby amended by the deletion of paragraphs (e), (f), (g), (i), (j), (k) and (l).

(2) This section shall come into operation on the 1st day of July, 1945.

Grant of merchandise licences to certain carriers.

114. —(1) Where—

(a) any person applies, before the 1st day of April, 1945, to the Minister for a merchandise licence authorising the licensee to carry on a merchandise road transport business in respect of specified merchandise within a former exempted area, and

(b) such person satisfies the Minister that he or his predecessor in title carried on an existing merchandise road transport business within that former exempted area,

the Minister shall, notwithstanding anything contained in subsection (5) of section 12 of the Act of 1933, grant the licence, and any licence so granted shall commence on the 1st day of July, 1945.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the following provisions shall have effect—

(a) each of the following shall be an existing merchandise road transport business, that is to say:—

(i) any merchandise road transport business which was commenced after the 1st day of June, 1939, and before the 31st day of May, 1940, and was carried on in the manner required by this subsection during the whole of the period beginning on the date of such commencement and ending on the date of the passing of this Act,

(ii) any merchandise road transport business which was carried on in the manner required by this subsection during the whole of the period beginning on the 1st day of June, 1939, and ending on the date of the passing of this Act;

(b) a merchandise road transport business shall be regarded as having been carried on in the manner required by this subsection during any period if, but only if, during that period—

(i) such business was carried on with reasonable continuity, having regard to its nature and, as respects so much of that period as began on the 1st day of June, 1940, and ends on the date of the passing of this Act, to any restrictions on the carrying on of that business due to conditions resulting from the present war, and

(ii) such business was carried on with mechanically propelled vehicles duly licensed in the State under section 13 of the Finance Act, 1920, as amended by subsequent enactments.

(3) The following provisions shall have effect in relation to applications under this section for merchandise licences, that is to say:—

(a) every application shall be made to the Minister in such form and in such manner as the Minister may direct;

(b) every application shall state—

(i) the former exempted area in which the applicant proposes to carry on a merchandise road transport business,

(ii) the class or classes of merchandise then actually carried by the applicant,

(iii) the merchandise road transport business which the applicant claims is an existing merchandise road transport business,

(iv) the vehicle plate issuing station at which the applicant, in the event of the application being granted, desires that vehicle plates should be available for issue to him,

(v) the number of mechanically propelled vehicles being lorries or tractors, and so classified in the application, which, at any specified date (in this section referred to as the critical date) between the 1st day of June, 1939, and the 31st day of May, 1940, selected by applicant, complied with the following conditions (in this section referred to as the qualifying conditions), that is to say:—

(I) were duly licensed in the State by the applicant under section 13 of the Finance Act, 1920, as amended by subsequent enactments,

(II) were in use and available for the purpose of such merchandise road transport business,

(vi) particulars (including the unladen weights) of each such mechanically propelled vehicle,

(vii) such other particulars as the Minister may direct;

(c) every application shall be accompanied by the registration books relating to the mechanically propelled vehicles particulars of which are stated in the application or by registration particulars of those vehicles certified by the appropriate local authority under the Roads Act, 1920;

(d) subsection (4), (5) and (6) of section 11 of the Act of 1933 shall apply as if enacted in this section.

(4) The Minister, before granting a merchandise licence under this section, shall—

(a) in case any of the mechanically propelled vehicles specified in the application for the licence were lorries which, in his opinion, at the critical date complied with the qualifying conditions, ascertain the total unladen weight of those lorries and the total unladen, weight so ascertained shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, be the standard lorry weight for the licensee under the licence;

(b) in ease any of the mechanically propelled vehicles specified in the application were tractors which in his opinion, at the critical date complied with the qualifying conditions, ascertain the total unladen weight of those tractors and the total unladen weight so ascertained shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, be the standard tractor weight for the licensee under the licence.

(5) Each of the following areas shall, for the purposes of this section, be a former exempted area, that is to say:—

(a) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Ballina;

(b) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Drogheda;

(c) the area (except so much thereof as is situate in Northern Ireland) included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Dundalk;

(d) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Sligo;

(e) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Tralee;

(f) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles arid its centre at the principal post office in the town of Westport;

(g) the area included within a circle having a radius of ten miles and its centre at the principal post office in the town of Wexford.

(6) Every merchandise licence granted by virtue of this section shall, for the purposes of the Act of 1933, the Road Transport Act, 1934 (No. 17 of 1934), the Road Transport Act, 1935 (No. 23 of 1935), and this Act be deemed to be a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence.

Extension of merchandise (existing carrier's) licence or grant of merchandise licence where existing transport facilities inadequate.

115. —(1) If—

(a) it appears to the Minister (either as the result of representations made to him by any persons, representative of trade or a locality, or otherwise) that the existing merchandise road transport facilities in any area are inadequate, and

(b) the Minister is of opinion that the required additional merchandise road transport facilities can be provided more effectively and conveniently by a person other than an authorised (merchandise carrying) company,

then, instead of making an order under section 48 of this Act, the Minister, if he considers it desirable in the public interest so to do, may, notwithstanding anything contained in the Act of 1933, for the purposes of providing the required additional merchandise road transport services, extend the operation of any merchandise (existing carrier's) licence or grant a merchandise licence to any person.

(2) Where representations are made to the Minister by any persons representative of trade or a locality that the existing merchandise road transport facilities in an area are inadequate, the Minister may, before taking any action under subsection (1) of this section in relation to the representations, refer the representations to the Advisory Committee for their report thereon.

Extension of operation of merchandise (existing carriers') licences.

116. —(1) Where the Minister is of opinion—

(a) that the areas specified in a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence do not fairly represent the areas in which the licensee carried on a merchandise road transport business before the grant of the licence, or

(b) that the classes of merchandise specified in a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence do not fairly represent the classes of merchandise carried by the licensee in the course of the merchandise road transport business carried on by him before the grant of the licence, or

(c) that, for the removal of hardships, the operation of a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence should be extended to a minor extent,

then, notwithstanding anything contained in the Act of 1933 but subject to subsection (2) of this section, the Minister may amend the licence to such extent as seems to him fair and reasonable having regard to the circumstances of the case.

(2) The Minister shall not amend a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence which authorises the carrying on of a merchandise road transport business in respect of one commodity and no more, or amend a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence which authorises the carrying on of a merchandise road transport business in respect of a particular class or classes of merchandise dealt with in the course of a particular trade or industry so as to authorise the carrying on of a merchandise road transport business in respect of any class or classes of merchandise not dealt with in the course of that trade or industry.

Amendment of section 9 of the Act of 1933.

117. —Where—

(a) a person is convicted of an offence, committed on or, after the date of the passing of this Act, under section 9 of the Act of 1933, and

(b) that person is, within two years after the commission of the first-mentioned offence, convicted of another offence under the said section 9,

the following provisions shall have effect—

(i) the fine to be imposed by the Court in respect of the other offence shall not in any case be less than five pounds,

(ii) the Court, in addition to the fine, may order any mechanically propelled vehicle or vehicles by means of which the other offence was committed to be forfeited,

(iii) any mechanically propelled vehicles so ordered to be forfeited shall be disposed of in such manner as the Minister may direct and all moneys arising from such disposal shall be paid into or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in such manner as the Minister for Finance shall direct.

Temporary exemption from subsection (2) of section 34 of the Act of 1933.

118. —Where the Superintendent of the Gárda Síochána, within whose district a plate issuing station is situated, is satisfied that any mechanically propelled vehicle (in this section referred to as the original vehicle), in respect of which a vehicle plate was issued at that station, is undergoing repairs, he may, if he thinks fit, on the application of the licensee under a merchandise licence who is the owner of the original vehicle, issue to the licensee a permit (which shall be in such form as the Minister directs) to use, for the purposes of the merchandise road transport business authorised by the licence, during such period (not exceeding ten days from the date of the permit) as he thinks fit, another mechanically propelled vehicle (in this section referred to as the substituted vehicle) of the like kind, the unladen weight of which, if the licence is a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence, does not exceed the unladen weight of the original vehicle, and, in that case, subsection (2) of section 34 (which relates to an obligation to carry vehicle plates on vehicles carrying merchandise) of the Act of 1933 shall not, during the period specified in the permit, apply in respect of the user for the purposes of the said merchandise road transport business of the substituted vehicle.

Increase of standard lorry weight of certain holders of merchandise (existing carrier's) licences.

119. —(1) Where a licensee, whose existing standard lorry weight is less than his maximum lorry weight, applies to the Minister to amend his merchandise (existing carrier's) licence by increasing his standard lorry weight to his maximum lorry weight, the Minister shall amend the licence accordingly.

(2) For the purposes of this section—

the word “licensee” means a licensee under a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence, other than any such licence granted by virtue of section 114 of this Act;

the existing standard lorry weight for a licensee shall be taken to be the weight which was his standard lorry weight on the establishment date;

the original standard lorry weight for a licensee shall be taken to be the standard lorry weight specified in his licence as originally issued or, if his standard lorry weight has been increased or determined under subsections (1) or (3) of section 11 of the Road Transport Act, 1934 (No. 17 of 1934), his standard lorry weight as so increased or determined;

the maximum lorry weight for a licensee shall be taken to be—

(a) in case his original standard lorry weight is four tons or less—

(i) his original standard lorry weight increased by one-fifth, or

(ii) two tons and five hundred-weights, whichever is the greater, or

(b) in case his original standard lorry weight exceeds four tons—

(i) his original standard lorry weight increased by one-tenth, or

(ii) four tons and sixteen hundred-weights, whichever is the greater.

Increase of standard tractor weight of certain holders of merchandise (existing carrier's) licences.

120. —(1) Where a licensee, whose existing standard tractor weight is less than his maximum tractor weight, applies to the Minister to amend his merchandise (existing carrier's) licence by increasing his standard tractor weight to his maximum tractor weight, the Minister shall amend the licence accordingly.

(2) For the purposes of this section—

the word “licensee” means a licensee under a merchandise (existing carrier's) licence, other than any such licence granted by virtue of section 114 of this Act;

the existing standard tractor weight for a licensee shall be taken to be the weight which was his standard tractor weight on the establishment date;

the original standard tractor weight for a licensee shall be taken to be the standard tractor weight specified in his licence as originally issued or, if his standard tractor weight has been increased, or determined under subsections (2) or (4) of section 11 of the Road Transport Act, 1934 (No. 17 of 1934), his standard tractor weight as so increased or determined;

the maximum tractor weight for a licensee shall be taken to be—

(a) in case his original standard tractor weight is four tons or less—

(i) his original standard tractor weight increased by one-fifth, or

(ii) two tons and five hundred-weights, whichever is the greater, or

(b) in case his original standard tractor weight exceeds four tons—

(i) his original standard tractor weight increased by one-tenth, or

(ii) four tons and sixteen hundred-weights, whichever is the greater.

Giving of register of merchandise licences in evidence.

121. —Every document purporting to be a copy of an entry in the register of merchandise licences kept under section 29 of the Act of 1933, and purporting to be certified by an officer of the Department of Industry and Commerce to be a true copy of such entry shall, without proof of the signature of the person purporting so to certify or that he was such officer, be received in evidence in any legal proceedings and shall, until the contrary is proved, be deemed to be a true copy of such entry and to be evidence of the terms of such entry.

Obligation of licensee under a merchandise licence to supply drivers of vehicles with copy of licence.

122. —(1) Where a mechanically propelled vehicle is about to be used for the purposes of the merchandise road transport business of a licensee under a merchandise licence, the licensee shall deliver to the person who is to act as driver of the vehicle while being so used a true copy of the licence.

(2) If the licensee under a merchandise licence fails or neglects to comply with subsection (1) of this section, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding ten pounds.

(3) In this and the next following section the expression “merchandise licence” does not include a merchandise licence held by an authorised (merchandise carrying) company.

Production by driver of vehicle, owned by licensee under a merchandise licence, of copy of licence.

123. —(1) Any member of the Gárda Síochána may demand of any person, driving a mechanically propelled vehicle which is being used for the purposes of the merchandise road transport business of a licensee under a merchandise licence, the production of a copy of the licence, and if that person refuses or fails to produce a copy of the licence there and then, or though producing a copy of the licence, refuses or fails to permit such member to read it, that person shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding ten pounds.

(2) A person who, when the production of a copy of a merchandise licence is lawfully demanded of him under this section, does not produce a copy of the licence because he has not one in his possession shall be deemed to fail to produce a copy of the licence within the meaning of this section.

Prohibition of licensee holding himself out as carrying on merchandise road transport business not authorised by his licence.

124. —(1) The holder of a merchandise licence shall not describe himself or hold himself out as—

(i) carrying on a merchandise road transport business in respect of merchandise other than merchandise specified in a merchandise licence held by him, or

(ii) carrying on a merchandise road transport business within any area (not being an exempted area or an area specified in a merchandise licence held by him).

(2) If the holder of a merchandise licence acts in contravention of this section, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding five pounds.