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t's May Day for D-Day probably
Page 36
Page 37
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They're here at last...
digital tachographs become a reality this spring. But is the industry ready to embrace the future?
Adam Hill reports.
Digital tachographs are finally with us. You could he forgiven for raising an eyebrow at this; we've heard it several times before.after all.13u1 EU Regulation 1360/ 2002 dictates that from May. probably,you'll be required to have a digital tacho in every vehicle you register.A spokesman for one (Attie vehicle manufacturers waxes poetic over their arrival: "The buds of realisation are opening up."
Digitachs were first due to be introduced in 2004; then the deadline was extended to 2005: and now the three manufacturers of digital tacho systems— Stoneridge. Siemens VDO and Actia SmarTech — are ready to go and truck manufacturers are straining at the leash.
Nick Blake. Mercedes-Benz truck marketing and sales engineering manager, reports that operators are rushing to register trucks with old technology before the deadline so they can avoid the cost of training drivers.
But he adds: "From February, unless the customer has specified otherwise,we are fitting digital tachos."
Operators need to be careful here. You can't register a vehicle without a digitach after the implementation date. so an operator could unwittingly order a vehicle which will need to he retrofitted. If it is due to be delivered in, say. April with an analogue tacho, it might be worth thinking about changing the order to digital. So what is that all-important implementation date? Jacques Barrot. EU vice-president in charge of transport policy, is talking of a day in May. But Blake says:"Despite what everyone says we don't know when the introduction will be. Customers are starting to get ready but perhaps because it has been going on so long people are thinking it's not going to happen."
Cost of training
Whatever happens, the changeover will not be particularly smooth and will probably take a decade orso."A mixture of analogue sheets and digital will he with us for a few years yet. I'm afraid," says Robin Sharp. general manager. development at the FTA.
Fitting the digitach is not the only expense.of course. When you throw in the cost of training, driver cover.demo units and soon. the FTA has estimated that a 70-strong vehicle fleet could be looking at a bill of .E42,000.
What's more a last-minute rush might well over-stretch the capacity of the training sector. Sharp says:"Let's assume 10% [of the UK truck pare] goes onto digital this year. Assuming some trucks are double-manned that's. say. 60.000 drivers.The numbers just don't stack up. The training is complicated." So getting it in early would be a wise move.
However, Ed Pargeter. boss of Surrey-based EPTraining Services,has yet to receive a single enquiry for driver training." I'm surprised." he says. "Everybody's putting it off hoping it will go away. but it won't."
The biggest difference between analogue and digital tachos is the use of smart cards (which currently cost £38 apiece) to record drivers' hours.
And it's here that there could yet be difliculties.says Blake.""lbe conversations I've had are 'well,who's going to pay?' If people are arguing over that we're going to have problems."
Application forms for smart cards are available from the DVLA and VOSA testing stations. hut getting hold of cards on time could be tricky. Tens of thousands of drivers are likely to need them soon -and for anyone without a photocard driver's licence holder the process may be even slower.
Once the new system is in force its early success will depend on the attitude of the various enforcement agencies.
Although they will he duty bound to enforce the law.industry insiders believe VOSA and the police are likely to adopt a 'softly-softly. approach -at least to start with.
But whatever happens. there's absolutely no reason not to be readv. • CONTACT www.ffigitaltachograph.gov.uk www.vosa.g0v.uk
You can book VOSA digitach training seminars on 01179 543 444and see the EP Training and RHA listings in the Events column (see right).