XLink 1.1 - Discard "locator-type elements"?

The more I delve into the XLink 1.0 Recommendation the less clear the purpose 
and value of the so-called "locator-type" element becomes.

The main (only significant?) purpose of a locator-type element seems to be to 
hold an xlink:href attribute.

If the specification for the xlink:from and xlink:to attributes on an 
arc-type element were amended from allowing an NCName to a URI it seems to me 
that the locator-type element and its xlink:href attribute could be dispensed 
with.

If it was felt important to retain the information specified by the 
xlink:role attribute on a locator-type element then an arc-type element could 
be allowed to have xlink:rolefrom and xlink:roleto attributes.

The continuing use of locator-type elements seems to me to be unnecessarily 
verbose and provide more indirection than is relevant for the uses that I can 
currently envisage.

Andrew Watt