Operator must be bullet-proof
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• A Scottish skiphire operator was told he needed to be bullet-proof against the Vehicle Inspectorate when he appeared before the Scottish Deputy Traffic Commissioner Richard McFarlane.
Greenock-based Thomas McClay was called before the Deputy Commissioner over his maintenance record. An application to increase the authorisation on his licence from two vehicles and two trailers to four vehicles and two trailers was withdrawn.
Vehicle examiner Ian Bain said that in the past five years two immediate prohibitions, one of which showed a significant maintenance failure, and one delayed prohibition had been issued to McClay's vehicles. A maintenance investigation in May 1998 showed the inspection period had been extended up to 13 weeks and that there was no forward planning system.
For McClay, Tim England said there appeared to be a missing inspection record in relation to one of the vehicles. The commer cial garage McClay used, Clyde Vehicle Services, had gone out of business. The new maintenance contractor had added his vehicles to its call-up list and McClay was now operating his own planning wallchart for vehicle inspections. The drivers had been given driver defect reporting books produced by Ward International.
The additional vehicles had been required for an anticipated contract which had not materialised, said England. The second vehicle had been disposed of and McClay was currently only operating one vehicle.
McClay said only he and his son were now employed in the business.
The Deputy Commissioner issued a formal warning telling McClay that no matter how good a system was it was meaningless unless it was properly used.