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27th November 1997
27th November 1997
Page 1
Page 1, 27th November 1997
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Page 6

RHA backs higher 0-licence charges

by Miles Brignall • The Road Haulage Association has told the Government that it should increase the Operator's Licence fee to...

BRIEFS

• = will not exhibit at the NEC show or the IRTE show in Telford next year, because it believes that the UK should have one...

Another UK haulier for ND

• Norbert Dentressangle is continuing to expand in the UK with the purchase of Leighton Buzzardbased AJG International...

Impounding due

• The Department of Transport will announce the impounding of unlicensed trucks in the next few weeks. CM understands that the...

Page 7

Haulage is still shrinking

• The number of hauliers has fallen to its lowest level for 10 years, with 65,300 UK companies operating vehicles over 3.5...

Court protects whistleblowers

by Mike Jewell • It is in the public interest that whistleblowers' identities and details of allegations should be protected...

COMMEN'T

MT! LISTEN TO THIS... I s nothing sacred? Nowadays it seems it's not only journalists who can refuse to name their sources_...

Page 8

'Break seals at ports'

by Sally Nash • A Dover transport firm is considering telling all its drivers to break the seals on trailers at ports to...

Crushed driver released brake

• A Shropshire driver was killed by his own truck after he had released the handbrake to allow it to roll for ward. Emphraim...

Booze runners face ban

• Hauliers involved in crossChannel booze smuggling have been threatened with a travel ban as part of a major crackdown by...

Prohibitions down 4%

• Prohibitions were down 4% in this month's weather-hit Operation Mermaid roadside blitz, but overloading offences were up on...

Page 10

Ferry price hike feared

by Andrew Sangster • Cross-Channel fares look set to rise following the Government's decision to allow the merger of ferry...

A warm reception for cool deliveries

• TNT Chilled is going national next spring, after trials in the North-West secured business with independent retail groups and...

Driver's right not to drive Truckstop stops • A Yorkshire

driver sacked for refusing to operate a lorry he claimed was unsafe has accepted a ground-breaking outof-court settlement from...

Temporary replacements

• Hauliers losing money on vehicles kept in bodyshops after accidents they did not cause can now get back on the road with...

Page 11

Red Star predicts first profit since its buyout

• Red Star Parcels is expecting to break into profit next year for the first time since its management bought the business from...

Irish hauliers face cowboys

by David Craik • More than 20% of all goods moved in Ireland are being handled by illegal hauliers because clients are happy...

Sacked driver gets five years for cutting brake pipes

• A man who cut the brake pipes on a truck to get even with his boss after he was sacked has been jailed For five years....

Hill Hire fleet expansion helps boost profits 28%

• Hill Hire, the Bradford-based being sought in the South-East. truck and trailer rental group, Pre-tax profits for the half...

Page 12

Take care with conditions

late payment is a serious problem in the haulage industry, with many operators owed around three times their own debts, and...

Page 16

Bringing up the rear in style

Trailer '97 was the latest outing for the huge biennial Dutch trailer exhibition—it packed Kortrijk's five halls with...

Page 19

Topline rings the changes

by Brian Weatherley • Scania is rumoured to be revising the interior of its 4-Series Topline high-roof sleeper cab in time for...

Gassing up in Vauxhall vans

• Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)-powered versions of Vauxhall's Corsa, Combo and Astra vans will debut during the first quarter...

Page 20

Integral revamp for the Magnum

by Charles Young • Renault has introduced a new version of the Magnum, called the Integral. Changes to Renault's flagship...

Pay less for Ford vans

• Ford has reduced the prices of the Fiesta 35, Courier 50 and Escort 55/75 vans. The Fiesta 35 Van 1.8D comes down by £305 to...

Seddon claims to have best prices

PRICE COMPARISON Model (equivalent model) 18.215 4x2 rigid 26.245 6x4 rigid 32.340 8x4 tipper 23.380 6x2 tractor • Seddon...

Page 21

RS ranges from oil to alarms

• RS Components, the distributor of electronic, electrical and mechanical components, has just published a new catalogue. The...

Borg & Beck expands its replacement clutch range

• AP Borg & Beck's new Replacement Clutch Catalogue Supplement includes 160 new applications for cars and light commercial...

Protect your van with a Bril lock

• Manchester-based Bril Products has launched the Bril Door Anchor range of van locks, in which the padlock is semienclosed in...

Keep your cool in Engel boxes

• Two portable highcapacity Engel refrigerated containers give food distributors the ability to carry mixed orders of chilled...

Lighter ABS range from Midland Gray

• Midland Grau has launched a range of ABS trailers products. The three models in the Modular Series are designed to improve...

Page 22

BRIEFS Fleet size restricted NI A Sunderland waste disposal operator

escaped with a warning about the maintenance of his vehicles, but North Eastern Traffic Commissioner Keith Waterworth refused...

VED offences

• Cumbernauld-based Mitchell Soil Contractors was warned about VED convictions when the company appeared before Scottish TC...

No overdraft no licence

• A Telford operator must arrange an overdraft facility or face losing his licence. Gerald Jones, trading as GB Transport...

Page 23

Pugh issues an ultimate warning for overloading

• Nuneaton tipper operator KSD (Haulage Contractors) has been warned that a pending overloading conviction must be its last....

Haulier rapped for withdrawing claim

11111K " .41P1 • A West Yorkshire company was attacked by North Eastern Deputy Traffic Commissioner Mark Hinchliffe for...

Page 24

VANS

IMPRESSIONS IAN CADDY PICKUP Price as tested: £7,070 (ex VAT). Engine: 1.9-litre, 63hp (47kW) diesel. GVW: 1,600kg....

Page 26

haulage factfile

(1/ . . Haulage Factfile page provides busy operators with brief news items on: forthcoming events, services, business...

Page 28

letters

Do you want to comment on any of the stories in c.ommercial Does someone in the industry deserve a pat on the back—or a public...

Put trucks first

I refer to an article headed "Trucks make way for London buses" (CM 6-12 November). I cannot agree with the contents. I think...

Realistic speeds

I an Fowler's "Sound Off" (CM 9-15 Oct), prompts me to reply: The iniquitous 90km/h (soon to be 80km/h) limit was imposed by...

Blow that whistle!

. w ith reference to the letter headed "Blow the whistle" (CM 20-26 November), this driver should not shirk his responsibility...

Page 31

bird's eye view by the hawk Commercial Motor takes road

haulage very seriously. However, once a week our quirky correspondent, the Hawk, steps off his perch to take a humorous look at...

A school for beaks

agistrates are one section of the community more used to judging others than being judged. However, in North Yorkshire...

Purple haze

ow man! At least I think that is the right expression (I have to admit that the sixties and Rock and Roll passed the Hawk by)....

R LI Rich

5 is the season to be jolly, tra la la la la. ..When you think of Christmas shopping what retailers spring to mind? Woolies?...

Scam mells galore!

la he Hawk was very sorry that he was unable to attend the 7th South of England Scammell Road run held last month at the Hop...

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MAN is quietly gaining steady ground in the UK and

aims to do better. Residuals count and its 4x2 tractive unit with the Roadhaus cab has the credentials for a long life. For...

Page 38

TI M I

With winter approaching have local authorities got sufficient resources to keep the roads clear or are we likely to see a...

Page 40

FREIGHT ROAD TO RAIL

Rail's comeback continues apace with British Steel's decision to switch thousands of tonnes of steel from road to rail. Should...

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PR FILE IMONWIIIITIS

Football crazy Simon Willitts International flies the flag for its local team, Derby County, wherever it hauls in the UK and...

Page 44

EMMA

CHILL WIND OF CHANGE What's the future for road transport? Are hire-or-reward hauliers having it their own way—or are...

Page 46

Nick Charlesworth, divisional general manager at Laser Transport International, is

fed up with operators who ignore the rules—and looks forward to tougher entry requirements. 'Those who operate on the fringe...