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24th June 2004
24th June 2004
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Page 1, 24th June 2004
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Page 6

Exel is set to buy Tibbett & Britten Exel's planned

acquisition of Tibbett & Britten will put it at the top of the global logistics league. Guy Sheppard reports. EXEL IS POISED...

Page 7

Salvesen drivers reckon 24% deal is worth E 1 1

DRIVERS AT Christian Salvesen have reacted angrily to last week's pay deal, which promised a 24% increase in hourly rates,...

Watson gets bail after nine months' jail

PAUL WATSON, the British haulier jailed in France for allegedly smuggling £500,000 of cannabis, has finally been released on...

Rail wagons find Ws a bridge to jar

THERE ARE BRIDGE strikes and then there are bridge strikes... This teeth-jarring incident happened in Rugby recently after the...

Page 8

VOSA plans to use its intelligence

THE VEHICLE AND Operator Services Agency plans to launch an intelligence-led' scheme to target cowboy operators more...

Anti-crime group Indicates new police determination

The West Midlands is a truck crime black spot — but the police seem to be listening to operators' complaints. Guy Sheppard...

Page 9

ETA parks concerns at minister's door

THE FREIGHT TRANSPORT Association and representatives of several major operators have met Transport Minister Tony McNulty to...

Why gia' nts are scary Mr X looks on with

some trepidation at the colossus being created by Exel and its Tibbet & Britten retail therapy According to the unsolicited...

Asbestos dumpers ought polluting Dartmoor quarry

TWO HAULAGE FIRMS have RAGTransport of Cheriton Bishop been fined £12,400 with £2,384 and the other three to Exeter-based costs...

Page 10

PAVING THE WAY TO THE FUTURE

The news that Exel has launched a bid for rival Tibbett & Britten was a surprise to many. At a time when many people are...

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Two London councils claim Lorry Ban is a capital offence

Is the London Lorry Ban past its sell-by date? Two local authorities think so: they're having nothing more to do with it. Guy...

Tribe Transport stays in the family

A HAULAGE FIRM run by a man who was last week convicted of rape is to continue operating with his brother in charge. Chester...

Page 13

Schmitz picks up the pace in the UK

TRAILER MANUFACTURER Schmitz Cargobull has launched a new range of products in the UK. On the trailer front the Mega comes...

CBI joins fuel duty wagon after talking to protesters

THE CONFEDERATION of British Industry is joining the fight against rising fuel duty after meeting Welsh hauliers who took part...

Now the FAX are right

THE FIRST right-hand-drive Daf FAX 85.430 8x2 has arrived at Thame prior to heading off to the bodybuilder. In place of the...

Page 14

A month here is your limit VOSA claims its cabotage interpretation

is bullet-proof. Jennifer Ball reports. THE VEHICLE and Operator says: "In assessing whether a Services Agency has hit back...

IN THE NEWS

Stuart Thomas gives us his regular round-up of the way the newspapers have covered the world of transport this week....

Page 16

ETA pushes Scots road freight needs

THE FREIGHT TRANSPORT Association has launched a policy document for Scotland to highlight the specific needs of the Scottish...

FTA's Turner joins CiFT

RICHARD TURNER, chief executive of the Freight Transport Association, has been appointed as a board member for the Commission...

Café goes Dutch on park bill

Chris Tindall reports on the Midway cafe's input to a truck park repair bill. AN AWARD-WINNING truckstop is contributing...

Page 18

Toll Collect gets on-board with OBUs

GERMAN CONSORTIUM Toll Collect will begin installation of its new on-board units (OBU) this week ahead of the relaunch of the...

Expert warns nodding-off alarms offer false safety

Using driver fatigue alarms could be dangerous because they activate too late to prevent an accident, says a safety expert. Guy...

Page 19

Welsh quarry firms fear stony future OPERATORS SERVING a limestone

quarry near the Welsh town of Abergele will be watching anxiously next week as an inquiry begins which could lead to the...

CO2 check gives drivers green light

TRUCK DRIVERS could soon be able to detect illegal immigrants without having to open the back of their vehicle,thanks to a new...

Page 20

A game of two halve Our Euro 2004 competition is

so tight that you enter now and still scoop the E1,000 top prize you know you're in trouble when you start being compared to...

Be a Euro 2004 winner!

First prize is £1,000 for the person with the most points at the end of the competition. If you come second, you win E500;...

Page 22

Speed cameras save lives

THE NUMBER OF people killed or seriously injured (KSIs) at sites where speed cameras are in use has fallen by 40%, according to...

Page 24

Boxing clever Suckling Transport has felt the sting of failure, but now it's floating like a butterfly. Chris

Tindall meets its managing director. There's a photograph hanging in Peter Larner's office of arguably the 20th century's...

Page 26

One down...

SURPRISE, SURPRISE, Range International has gone into voluntary liquidation. Perhaps now the companies who have had to quote...

Excellent new look for Commercial Motor! UNLIKE THE MYSTERY caller

you different and make articles like the one refer to in your 10 June issue I find the on page 19 of that issue extremely...

Cloudy futures

MY HUSBAND AND I have been in the haulage game for 25 years or so and now we are middle-aged I have been reflecting on what...

Hear the cheers for rear steers

WELL DONE on your 27 May edition and the Volvo safety article where you mentioned various axle designs. I'm happy to say that...

Page 28

Let an extra lane take the strain..1 or not

Will more lanes on motorways slash congestion or increase vehicle usage? It depends who you ask... Chris Tindall and Dominic...

Page 29

M6 TOLL: SOME DO, SOME DON'T

While the FTA has identified several sections of motorway that it says would benefit from widening, one of the most recent...

Page 31

Truck will not be returned An owner-driver loses his truck after ignoring examiner's warnings and

continuing to operate without licences, insurance or a test certificate. AN OWNER-DRIVER operating without an 0-licence, an...

Page 32

£1,500 fine for Irish driver rushing home

AN IRISH DRIVER, anxious to get home for the weekend, has been fined more than £1,500 for tachoghraph, drivers' hours and speed...

POOR CHART SHOWING

If the misdating of the chart was an error, O'Keefe should have volunteered the information at once or written on the back of...

Magistrates dismiss on mystery overload

DESPITE PLEADING guilty to a "mystery" overload an operator and one of its drivers were both given an absolute discharge when...

NEGLIGENCE NOT PROVEN

Where operators and drivers are faced with an absolute liability offence, such as overloading, they are entitled to an absolute...

Page 33

Meat producer must pay attention to the rules

A FIRM OF MEAT producers has been granted an extra vehicle on its restricted licence, although the grant has been delayed for...

MANAGING THE RISK

Another case that illustrates the reason for the Traffic Commissioners' desire that restricted licence holders be required to...

Law checks cost Nightfreight f1,000

PARCELS CARRIER Nightfreight (GB) has been ordered to pay £1,000 in fines and costs after being found guilty of permitting a...

CHECK IT OUT!

A case that illustrates the necessity of carrying out regular checks on the driving licences held by an operator's drivers.

Page 34

Prepare for the Big Bang Over the next three weeks

Pat Hagan is talking to operators about the challenge of the Working Time Directive which becomes law next March. We begin...

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Action plan Small businesses should: 11 Identify staff most affected

by the working time regulations O Clarify what impact it will have on their availability ' Work out if extra staff or vehicles...

Page 38

OUR TEAM OF LEGAL EXPERTS EXAMINE YOUR ISSUES

Legal Q&A is a service to all CM readers in which specialist road transport lawyers will attempt to provide the answers to your...

Page 40

Young and vulnerable Recruiting and training young workers brings extra responsibility when

ensuring safe working practices. Ailish Oxenforth reports. Recent news reports have highlighted the fact that nine apprentices...

Legal requirements 1111•11•• Health and safety: Steps must include:

II Having a clear system in place to manage health and safety in the workplace. If you employ five or more people you must set...

Page 41

EVENTS 15 September

Commercial Motor/Contract Journal Safety Conference, Driving Accidents Down,Villa Park, Birmingham. Has your safety record...

Page 42

FOLLOW THE LEADER With nearly half a market segment to

itself, the Mitsubishi L200 has become an established favourite with workmen and lifestylers alike; now it has the Club Cab...

Page 48

SAFE PAIR OF HANDS MAN is offering a combination of

electronic stability control and roll-over prevention on all MAN and ERF 4x2 tractors. CM tried the ESP system for the first...

Page 50

!Driving . impressions

When Commercial Motor exclusively revealed back in February that MAN was launching a 10.5-litre 430hp engine for its heavy...

Page 53

FOREIGN FIELDS Only the brave send reefers across the Channel — Tim Maughan talks to the British elite who

are surviving in this chilliest of markets... Neville Brooker, operations director of Dover-based Heritage International,...

Page 54

French farce

Life is challenging enough for UK reefer operators who venture into Continental Europe, without police harassment. Clan...

Page 58

11111141:1 OF CHANGE Transfrigoroute is lobbying to get the length limit on standard reefer trailers extended by

200mm. Steve Banner explains why. If you want every item in a 13.6m trailerload of chilled food to travel at the same...

Page 61

Operators have their say... Jim Brackenridge (Transport)

In principle, Jim Brackenridge (Transport) MD Murray Prentice would welcome a 200mm fridge trailer extension: "We regularly...

Page 64

Braking the mould

THE MICROBRAKE 50/60/70 brake tester from Beissbarth is designed with economy and efficiency in mind. It comes with dual...

Twice the precision from Norbar NORBAR TORQUE TOOLS of Banbury

has introduced a new version of its popular range of torque testers which provide a simple solution to the calibration and...

Taking its ternperature

IDENTIFYING ENGINE faults can be a time consuming task.To help speed up the process the infrared laser digital thermometer from...

Nedennan

Nederman has released a new 116page guide to its safety and health products. It includes self-retracting hose and cable reels...

Braze-n Star

The Mig Pulse Synergie from Wilkinson Star works off a 230V supply, can weld and braze all new materials. A choice of standard...

Visteon air catalogue Visteon air catalogue

Visteon has launched its updated airconditioning catalogue. It contains an updated product range, including spare parts for a...

Tune out the static

ELECTROSTATIC fields can be a problem when working in protected areas. To combat this,TBA has launched a new overhead ioniser...

Put the boot in

THE CORRECT footwear in the work place is an often overlooked aspect of safety. Dickies footwear range is fitted with durable...

Page 66

SURFING THE NET Having covered the world of e-mail, Elton Boocock explains

how portals help you to make the most of the World Wide Web. In the first foray into what the internet can do for you, we will...

Page 67

The Microsoft Internet Explorer toolbar: The toolbar image (above) shows

the order in which the icons (below) appear. The 'Back' button simply allows Back you to go 'back to the page where you have...

Page 68

A vintage like the finest wine

Gordon Brown's proposed September increase in the price of fuel will cost the UK about £1bn.The cost of traffic congestion this...

Page 69

So nearly new, they're shiny You name it, Manheim sells it — including two year-old wagons at its

recent sale in Leeds. Kevin Swallow reports. It's not often one-year-old trucks go under the hammer, but Manheim managed to...

Page 70

Go for gold CM tests more commercial vehicles than anyone else and now we

are using our database to help you search for the right vehicle. This week we highlight two tractors from Mercedes-Benz. The...

Page 72

Quality street Quality and choice are the keys for one new dealer. Emma Penny finds out what Cherwell

Truck Sales has to offer. For a business that set up only last November, Cherwell Truck Sales has already made an impact. More...