Commercial Motor articles from September 2004

Commercial Motor archives from September 2004

BONUS OF CONTENTION.
September 2, 2004... HEALTH WARNING People who skive off work make Brian Weatherley sick. And as for people being given bonuses just for staying healthy... Is it just me, or are you also somewhat bemused by the recent news stories that a number of...

EVENTS.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... FTA legal seminars 22 September Gatwick 29 September Warrington 6 October Cardiff 13 October Belfast 19 October Warwick 28 October Grangemouth 3 November Leeds 9 November Cambridge 17 November Weston-super-Mare 24 November Worksop 1...

Agency driver solution: Let's all play by the same set of rules.
September 2, 2004... I have read with interest a number of letters in recent editions of CM emanating from the article and comments from Mr Lloyd of Driver Hire Preston. I have been involved in the supply of agency drivers over the past eight or nine years and have...

Auto FM.
September 2, 2004... Volvo's FM tipper is the latest recipient of the I-Shift automated manual transmission. Andy Salter tried it out. A tipper with an auto transmission would, for many drivers and operators, have been considered a technology step too far only...

CLEAN AIR ACT.
September 2, 2004... Exel drops goods to Heathrow Airport's retailers. And, as Tim Maughan reports, the firm also does its bit for the environment at the international air hub. The British Airports Authority (BAA) owns seven UK airports including Heathrow,...

Confiscation is the end of the road.(Vehicle and Operator Services Agency)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... An operator has slammed the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) for impounding his truck because of his lack of financial standing after he blamed his [pounds sterling]300,000 debt on an ex-employee. John Keeping from Keeping Transport...

Crackdown on cowboys.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Up to 100 Irish operators could lose their operator's licences as part of a crackdown by the Irish government on cowboy hauliers. Junior Transport Minister Jim McDaid says 25 firms have already had their licences revoked, 11 more are in the...

Cummins gets ready to power the heavy mob.
September 2, 2004... The ISBe receives a boost to 320hp to help it power Daf's LF range. Cummins is developing a bigger, upgraded version of its six-cylinder ISBe turbo-diesel. Capacity is up from 5.9 to 6.7 litres, helping to boost maximum power from 275 to...

Customs seize red fuel trucks.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Two operators have stumped up a total of [pounds sterling]2,500 to retrieve two trucks that were seized by Customs officers in the Orkney Islands. Customs officers and police found red diesel in the trucks' tanks during a series of roadside...

DEALS ON WHEELS.
September 2, 2004... Volvo It seems the traditional elements of price and delivery time are still the deciding factors for some when choosing a truck. Sheffield-based Intake Transport has taken delivery of three Volvo FH12 6x2 tractor units from Crossroads Volvo in...

Driver faces summons.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... A driver whose truck crashed into the living room of a Northumberland house on the main road to Scotland has been summonsed to appear in court for careless driving and having a defective tyre. Shane Truckel, from Blackpool, was driving a...

Driver wins [pounds sterling]8,000 for unfair dismissal.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... A driver sacked without being given a chance to challenge charges of misconduct has won nearly [pounds sterling]8,000 in compensation from a Scottish operator. A Dundee Employment Tribunal ordered Kinglassie, Fife-based T Hamilton & Sons...

Drivers sent to Crown Court.
September 2, 2004... Firm could be prosecuted for aiding and abetting drivers to commit tacho offences. Mike Jewell reports. Garforth-based Whitkirk Produce could be in for a rough ride over the next few weeks after a District Judge said the firm should be...

Driving change.
September 2, 2004... John Dawson, director of The AA Motoring Trust, knows what must be done to improve the UK's transport. Jennifer Ball reports. John Dawson's children are used to his slightly odd behaviour when on family holidays; these days they bat barely...

ENFRANCHISED PARTIES.(truck driver training school franchises)
September 2, 2004... Driver Transport Training has expanded rapidly since it began life in 1999, but its franchise director says he does not award franchises freely. Tim Maughan reports. 'This is an ideal place for training," remarks Paul Van der Hulks,...

Empire building.
September 2, 2004... Operators who choose to diversify may create an associated company to handle a different aspect of the business. But what are the legal pitfalls of making such a move? David Craik reports. Creating associated companies is a convenient way...

Fruehauf steers into rival's offering.
September 2, 2004... We read with interest your piece on the new Fruehauf Tri Axle Rear Steer trailer (CM 12 August). It's pleasing to note that a design developed and put into operation in early 2002 by Kel-Berg Trailers and Trucks and which is in service with...

Fuel protesters take grievances to Brown.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... One of the leaders of the fuel protests in 2000 will lead a convoy of Welsh trucks across the sea to Ireland later this month to highlight the problem of rising fuel prices. Alan Greene of M&M Greene Transport, who acted as a spokesman for 200...

Haulier escapes with warning over inadequate record keeping.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... A Northern Ireland operator with a depot in Scotland has escaped any formal action after promising to improve its inspection records. The Traffic Commissioner accepted there was little risk of further prohibitions. When Co Antrim-based...

Hauliers reap a poor harvest.(wet weather cuts grain harvest)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Emma Penny reports that our sodden summer has hit grain hauliers hard Grain and straw hauliers are being affected by this year's wet harvest, with work running two to three weeks behind schedule and poor crop quality causing loads to be...

Hijacking ploys trick drivers.(truck theft)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Truck hijackers are using new tactics to get drivers to pull over, according to Truckpol. Mark Hooper, head of the Metropolitan Police road freight crime unit, says the usual method is to pretend the number plate has fallen off: "The thieves...

Hull firm fails in licence bid.(North Eastern Traffic Commission )
September 2, 2004... Licence bid for company seeking to take over for a company whose licence was revoked is blocked by North Eastern TC. A Humberside company formed to take over the transport operation of a company whose licence had been revoked has been...

Media watch.(Traffic congestion in England)
September 2, 2004... IN THE NEWS Stuart Thomas gives us his regular round-up of the way the newspapers have covered the world of transport this week. Picture St Albans and you don't tend to conjure up images of all-out anarchy. But the Guardian claims...

Judge throws out smuggling case.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Operator cleared of smuggling. Chris Tindall reports. Two men on trial in connection with smuggling five million cigarettes in a trailer supposedly full of parsley have walked free after the case against them collapsed. David Butler and...

Keep safe, keep legal.
September 2, 2004... Every firm, irrespective of size, is required to appoint and train staff to be responsible for first aid. Rachael Hardwick reports. The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 require all employers to maintain first aid facilities....

LOOK NO HANDS!
September 2, 2004... Merc's Atego AutoTrans is already out there, cruising the urban jungle. So is it workhorse or warrior? Mercedes-Benz has introduced its latest weapon to take on the urban jungle, the two-pedal Atego Telligent AutoTrans. The Atego unit is an...

LRUC 'won't work in Ireland'.(Lorry Road User Charge)
September 2, 2004... Operators in Northern Ireland say the LRUC simply won't work. Sally Nash reports. OPERATORS in Northern Ireland say if the Lorry Road User Charge (LRUC) system is introduced it will be impossible to enforce. Instead, they warn, it will...

Last call for safety.(Driving Accidents Down conference)
September 2, 2004... On 15 September senior health & safety managers and company executives will be gathering at Villa Park for CM's unique conference "Driving Accidents Down". Can you afford to miss it? If you need reminding of the dangers in road transport,...

Late-year vans in demand.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... At GIS Auctions standard, late-year vans are proving popular, but specialist, older and high-mileage models are being left behind. Quality is the name of the game on the used market and at van auctions the vendors are certainly producing...

Lynx ups pay offer to avert RMT strike.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union is recommending that Lynx drivers accept an improved pay-and-conditions deal from the company after the last offer sparked a move towards strike action (CM August 19). The improved offer includes a...

NO MORE MANUAL LABOUR.
September 2, 2004... Every truck manufacturer in the UK market now offers an automated transmission. Foden was the last to jump onto the bandwagon; Kevin Swallow assesses the outcome. When Iveco launched the Stralis and Volvo introduced I-Shift gearbox,...

New licence for tipper despite 'youthful aberrations'.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... A Bolton tipper operator, who was disqualified from holding an O-licence for three years when his previous licence was revoked in December 2000, has succeeded in a bid for a fresh licence. North Western Deputy Traffic Commissioner Elizabeth...

PCM denies clamp claims.(Parking Control Management )(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Drivers accuse Thurrock of over-zealous clamping. Jennifer Ball reports. Parking Control Management (PCM) has hit back at claims that it is unfairly clamping trucks in and around West Thurrock - but operators are still complaining that...

Police seek Cheshire hijackers.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Police are hunting two masked men who hijacked two trucks in Cheshire and made off with their [pounds sterling]2m loads of cigarettes and tobacco. The attack happened at about 2.30am last Friday (20 August). The drivers were en route to Crewe...

RHA backs bypass demo.(Road Haulage Association)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... A demonstration by local residents for a by-pass on the notorious A66 in Cumbria has been backed by the Road Haulage Association. The Temple Sowerby Action Group, representing the communities bisected by the highway, held a 'road crossing' demo...

Remember the traffic man...
September 2, 2004... The appearance of a new traffic man - the linchpin of any fleet operation - prompts Brian Lee to mull over what must be the most thankless job in the business. Last January, a young man presented himself to me and, like a sacrificial lamb,...

SEPTEMBER 2004.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... The van sector is booming with a 20% increase over the past decade, and the choice has never been wider Activity patterns DfT statistics show that around 93% of all trips made by company- owned vans were business/work related and 85% of...

Scottish roadmen warn of exodus.(road construction work in Scotland)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Fears from civil engineers that Scotland could be facing an exodus of key workers with road-building skills have been dismissed by the Scottish Executive. Concerns have been raised by the Civil Engineering Contractors Association, which wrote...

Speed limits are driving drivers out of haulage.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... WITH REFERENCE to Barry Proctor's comments about speeding tickets (CM 29 July), since this was published we have had two drivers notified of intending prosecution for driving at excessive speed in a 40mph zone; both in 60mph zones for cars....

Speedy route to administration.(Trend of Speedy Despatch International)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Leicester-based operator Speedy Despatch International has been forced into administration following a dispute between its two directors. According to insolvency practitioner CBA, which was appointed on 30 July, the firm had only just been...

The rule of law.(legal process for the UK transportation industry )
September 2, 2004... A licence revocation has opened a can of worms in the transport legal process, says Chris Tindall. The furore surrounding Pallas Transport and Montana Freight Services' licence revocation has laid bare the confusion surrounding the legal...

Top trucks too tall for Dublin tunnel.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... The Irish government is expected to ignore protests over the current height of the Dublin Port Tunnel and keep it at 4.65m, after its designers were apparently misinformed about the height of many trucks. And in an attempt to deflect...

Traffic Commissioner bans two consultants from representing firm.(UBS Transport Consultants )(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Two transport consultants have been banned from representing a client as the row over the power of Traffic Commissioners rumbles on. TC Tom Macartney has told Pallas Transport not to call in Alec Hayden of Trans-Consult, nor Gerald Hamilton of...

Untaxed vehicle costs operator [pounds sterling]1,300.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Using an untaxed vehicle has cost a Middlesex operator [pounds sterling]1,300 in fines, back duty and costs. Martin McDonnell, of Staines, pleaded guilty before Marylebone magistrates to having no excise licence or O-licence and missing a...

VOSA backs longer inspection trial.(Vehicle and Operator Services Agency)
September 2, 2004... Agency works with TCs in a two-year trial to assess the viability of 12-week inspection periods. Brian Weatherley reports. Exclusive! Truck operators could soon benefit from longer inspection periods on their vehicles, if a VOSA pilot...

Van sales accelerate away.(Department for Transport)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... The Department for Transport's Survey of Van Activity: 2003 shows that over the past decade the van parc (up to 3.5 tonnes GVW) has increased by 20%.Van traffic has also grown by more than 30%, compared with increases of 15% in cars and 20% in...

Volvos pass cement test.(Castle Cement has taken delivery of two new Volvo FM12 tractor )(Brief Article)
September 2, 2004... Following a three-month trial Castle Cement has taken delivery of two new Volvo FM12 tractor units equipped with I-Shift. A third truck is due for delivery this month. The 420hp 6x2s have Globetrotter cabs and will run at 44 tonnes from the...

Winners and losers.(UK truck market)
September 2, 2004... The UK truck market still prospers, and pundits reckon it might be even stronger but for production constraints in mainland Europe. As we move towards the end of the third quarter of the year, the UK truck market above 3.5 tonnes shows no...

Don't fall for dirty tricks.(scams in the trucking industry)
September 2, 2004... Why bother going to the lengths of robbing a bank when there's a much easier, less risky and potentially more lucrative option? Like stealing a truck and its load... That realisation should be enough to make everyone in the industry think...

80 jobs to go across two RMC plants.(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... RMC is axing 80 jobs in its cement division's Rugby and South Ferriby plants, including a number of drivers. The job cuts come despite a 24% rise in interim profits. Further job losses have not been ruled out by the company, depending on how...

A cautious welcome.(Freight Transport Association)(Quarterly Transport Activity Survey)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... The Freight Transport Association's latest Quarterly Transport Activity Survey (QTAS) reveals that domestic haulage growth is expected to reach a two-year high in the third quarter. One in four respondents said that activity levels had...

Big demand for big rigids.(18 tonne skip loaders)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Enquiries for used 18-tonners with 27ft curtainsider bodies have soared, says Paul Diamond, truck sales executive at Road Range, the Mercedes-Benz dealership in Wavertree, Liverpool. "If I had 10 in stock I could sell every single one of them,"...

Canny coke scam still earns 15 years inside.(smuggling)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... A St Helens recovery operator has been jailed for 15 years for smuggling [pounds sterling]2m worth of cocaine into the UK. Canterbury Crown Court heard how Customs stopped Gary Levens, at the Eastern Docks, Dover on 27 August. An examination...

Capital faces 20% hike.(transport tax)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... The London congestion charge was not designed as an extra tax - but it's still set to ride. Jennifer Ball reports. Operators in London face a 20% hike in the congestion charge after London Mayor Ken Livingstone admitted the charge would...

Car hauliers in a tight spot.(Road Haulage Association)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Guy Sheppard reports on a new hazard. Growing demand for bigger cars is endangering the lives of the drivers who deliver them, say industry leaders. The Road Haulage Association says more and more sports utility vehicles and 4x4s are...

Clamp down on the clampers.(vehicle clamps)
September 9, 2004... Frustrating. Distressing. Expensive. Three words which sum up the pain of your vehicle being clamped. CM's expose this week features one driver who had been out of his truck for less than five minutes before being clamped. And with a [pounds...

Council falls out with police over bin truck licences.(Stirling Council)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... A Scottish LOCAL authority is at loggerheads with the police about whether its new recycling vehicles can be driven by staff with standard car licences. Stirling Council believes that the showpiece [pounds sterling]42,000 bin lorries may be...

Customs demands [pounds sterling]100,000 in VAT.(Value Added Tax)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Slough-based operator Taylors of Heathrow is closing down after a petition to wind it up was registered by Customs and Excise, to which it owes [pounds sterling]100,000 in VAT. A spokesman for Customs' solicitors, Clarke Willmott, confirms a...

Safety vs privacy.(Vehicle and Operator Services Agency)(Barry Proctor Services)
September 9, 2004... Data protection Barry Proctor wonders about the wisdom of allowing VOSA and the police such an open door to monitor all our dealings through modern technology... In the last 10 years the pace of technological change has accelerated,...

Domino effect for August.(Commercial Vehicle Auction )(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... CVA hasn't missed a beat through the holiday season. The good times continue to roll at the Commercial Vehicle Auction in Doncaster, with a third more trucks going under the hammer than this time last year. August saw 465 trucks and...

Driver who walked out loses case.(Aberdeen Employment Tribunal)(olin Lawson Transport )(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... An Aberdeen driver who walked out on his job after being blamed for an insecure load has lost his claim that he was unfairly dismissed. An Aberdeen Employment Tribunal heard that on 9 March Kevin Gallacher was driving an artic carrying pipes...

Faster you go, more you pay.(Freight Transport Association)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Speeding penalties are set to increase with your speed. Jennifer Ball reports. The government has launched a consultation on graduated penalties in a bid to create a fairer punishment system for speeding drivers. Transport Secretary...

Fewer jobs with small operators.(Research & innovation)(HGV drivers)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Your Yardstick report's conclusion that driver vacancies dropped last quarter seems out of line with national statistics (CM 26 August). Figures for the number of vacancies notified to UK job centres for HGV drivers in 2004 have been greater...

Fixed penalty.
September 9, 2004... Clampers on the Lakeside industrial estate near Thurrock have hit truckers' pockets hard. Chris Tindall investigates how the clampers operate. Having your truck clamped within 18 seconds of leaving the cab must be some sort of record, but...

Forwarder baffled by his own debts.(Vision Logistics International)
September 9, 2004... The boss of a collapsed freight forwarding firm says he does not know how the massive debts occurred. Dominic Perry reports. The director of a Leeds-based freight forwarding firm which collapsed with almost half a million pounds worth of...

Franchised boost for independents.(trucking)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Too many franchised dealers are failing to put sufficient effort into selling used trucks, claims independent dealer Lee Smith, director of Hanbury Riverside of West Thurrock, Essex. And it's independents such as him who are reaping the...

On the margin.
September 9, 2004... Freedom or folly? Take a stroll with us through the little side roads of the transport world - the diversions and detours, the quirky, the quixotic and the downright strange... In the ideal world that On the Margin has constructed...

Fresh flavour for FTA boss.(Freight Transport Association)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Former FTA boss Lawrence Christensen is going to wield a new broom for Sainsbury's distribution network. Guy Sheppard reports. Former Freight Transport Association president Lawrence Christensen is joining supermarket giant Sainsbury's to...

Heavy fines for special types overload.(trucking)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... A gross overload on a low loader cost a London company and its driver [pounds sterling]1,350 in fines and costs when they appeared before Barking Magistrates' Court. Bow Haulage, of Wick Lane, Bow, London, and its driver, Thomas Doyle, of...

Heavy haulier loses six vehicles after 10 faults.(John Golding Heavy Haulage Ltd.)
September 9, 2004... A heavy haulier has lost six vehicles from its licence after appearing at a second Public Inquiry within five years, with 10 prohibitions issued in that time. The company blamed its problems, in part, on the death last year of the operation's...

Hit-and-run hunt on A303.(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Hampshire police have launched a nationwide hunt for a truck driver who failed to stop after being involved in a fatal collision. Harry Simcox, 10, was killed in the accident, on the westbound A303 near Thruxton at about 2pm on Tuesday 31...

Horn scores big in CM Eurostriker.(Eurostriker competition; Chris Horn)(Euro 2004)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Although Euro 2004 brought huge disappointment for much of the nation, there was a glimmer of hope for one man. Step forward Chris Horn, IT Manager at Lancashire operator Entwistles Haulage, who was the lucky winner of our recent Eurostriker...

Killing bill outrage.(road safety legislations)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... The latest dithering over the government's flagship corporate killing bill has been roundly criticised by road safety organisations and trade associations. Reports in the national press claim the government is unlikely to deliver its...

Lead times boost used sales.(used trucks)
September 9, 2004... The traditional summer sales slump never really happened and business is booming in the used truck sector. Steve Banner reports from the forecourt. Used truck specialists are looking forward to a buoyant final quarter of the year with...

Exclusive.(DaimlerChrysler's new automobiles)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Light Atego 8x4 for UK After much "Will they? Won't they?" deliberating, Commercial Motor can reveal that DaimlerChrysler (UK) will be bringing a light-weight eight- legger into the UK specifically aimed at the nation's weight- conscious...

Light brigade to the rescue.(road accidents prevention)
September 9, 2004... Heavy rescue rigs may be sexy, but most recovery vehicles are lightweights. Steve Banner reviews the latest equipment and the rules you need to follow. Blazing hot sunshine immediately followed by black clouds and torrential downpours...

M6 Toll price cut is attracting more truckers.(vehicle tolls)
September 9, 2004... Midland Expressway (MEL) reports that more trucks are using the M6 Toll since charges were cut by 40% at the end of July. MD Tom Fanning confirms that the initial response to the discount has been positive: "We have also seen an increase in the...

Magnificent seven.(automobile testing)
September 9, 2004... CM tests more commercial vehicles than anyone else - and now we are using our extensive database to help you to find the right vehicle. This week it's 3.5-tonne chassis cabs with tipper and dropside bodies. There's one way to find the best...

Managers see way clear to buy-out.(Clearway Distribution)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... Nottingham-based operator Clearway Distribution has been sold for [pounds sterling]3m to a group of its managers led by incoming chief executive Graham Darnell. Other managers involved in the buy-out include MD Graham Hodgkins, transport...

Meat supplier's licence cut back for six weeks of neglect.(driver's licenses)
September 9, 2004... Meat supplier finds it has to pay more attention to transport despite it only being a support business - or it could lose its licence. A Scottish meat supplier admitted that it had not devoted enough attention to transport because it was...

Money in hand.(truck drivers)
September 9, 2004... The cost of maintaining 'financial standing' is set to rise. But is it realistic to make operators keep more than [pounds sterling]2,400 in the bank for each truck they own? Patric Cunnane reports. An operator running 10 trucks on a...

OLD FAITHFUL.(Scania 4 series evaluation)(Product/Service Evaluation)
September 9, 2004... Truck manufacturers are well aware that operators are a conservative bunch who generally prefer evolution to revolution; maybe that's why proven contenders like the Scania 4-Series enjoy continued success. When new technology is...

Operator fined [pounds sterling]400 because; driver failed to produce chart.(Brief Article)
September 9, 2004... An agency driver who was unable to produce tachograph charts at the roadside has cost a Liverpool company [pounds sterling]400 in fines and costs. The Desk Centre pleaded guilty to using a vehicle when the driver failed to produce charts when...

Pandora's box.(Commercial Vehicle)
September 9, 2004... Compared with trucks, vans should be a breeze to run - but are they? Tim Maughan looks at the small print and finds that a single kilogram can open a Pandora's box for the unwary light CV operator. HGV operators work in a tightly regulated...