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2nd December 2004
2nd December 2004
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Page 1, 2nd December 2004
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Page 6

Operator of the year faces Litho charges

A Garforth-based firm is to face prosecution for tacho offences — two months after it was crowned Operator of the Year. CM'S...

Page 7

Kilsyth cash precipice revealed to creditors

THE FULL EXTENT of the fallout from the collapse of Kilsyth Transport Services (KTS) was laid bare last week, after a...

Draymen bitter as Scots pubs go dry

SCOTTISH DRAYMEN have threatened a series of one-day strikes over a proposed pay deal because it would leave new recruits up to...

Getting tough

The government's Road Safety Bill includes re-testing of drink drivers disqualified for 24 months or more, and police powers to...

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No other way says firm

Yet another high-profile operator has called in the receiver after losing a contract. Dominic Perry reports. THE LOSS OF one...

Union repeat call for E 0/hr... but in vain

UNION LEADERS have reaffirmed their commitment to a £10an-hour minimum for truck drivers after research showed the average is...

Page 9

Truck Week takes haulage to the people

COMMERCIAL MOTOR'S National Truck Week is on the road. As CM went to press on Tuesday the team was in Newcastle, at the...

Barry Proctor wishes festive things to all men except for

the thieves — who'll nick anything you leave unattended. So don't ... Tinsel, fairy lights, carol singers, chestnuts on an...

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11A must be more proadivel

The Highways Agency is not doing enough to tackle increasing congestion on the roads says a government report. Guy Sheppard...

FA urges TfL to scrap operators charge

THE FREIGHT TRANSPORT Association has repeated its calls for Transport for London to scrap the congestion charge for goods...

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French reluctant to protest

A NATIONAL DAY of protest by French hauliers attracted only limited support following the French government's decision to...

SfL drives career path

SKILLS FOR Logistics (SfL) says it is addressing the haulage industry's driver shortage by developing and implementing a...

Impromptu stops

Take a stroll with us through the little side roads of haulage, the diversions and detours, the quirky, the quixotic and the...

Page 14

Murder: Dutch claim

A witness in the Chohan murder case tells how the haulage boss was about to sell up. Chris Tindall reports. A WITNESS at the...

Sacked driver slams union

A FORMER Gist truck driver who won £3,000 in compensation for unfair dismissal has blasted the Transport & General Workers'...

Smuggling drivers' bans are cut

FOUR TRUCK drivers banned from driving after smuggling over £500,000 worth of contraband cigarettes into the UK have had their...

Page 16

NEC show is not a big draw for trailer manufadurers

Some leading trailer manufacturers have decided to give next year's CV Show a miss. Brian Weatherley finds out why. TWO OF the...

Page 18

Spandlers cuts back by half

A Norfolk firm is halving its fleet on the back of rising prices and fears of the Working Time Directive —Jennifer Ball...

Reward for findin farm killers

A GROUP OF plant hire firms have teamed up with the police to offer a £25,000 reward for information leading to the conviction...

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Manage fuel use on the web

RENTAL GIANT ERS has added free fuel monitoring to its suite of web-based operator management information. The system, known...

Fewer trucks go abroad

THE NUMBER OF UK-registered trucks heading to mainland Europe is still falling. The Department for Transport report Road Goods...

Thomas wins IRU drivers' honour

A DRIVER FOR Welsh firm TDS Morgan Freight (Deeside) has been awarded a Diploma of Honour by the International Road Transport...

Page 20

Power to the people

Can the unions change the VVTD by joining forces? Chris Tindall reports. Viir ' hcn Tony Woodley stood up and addressed a room...

Why are the unions worked up over Working Time?

The T&G and URTU say the regulations will have little effect on reducing drivers' working hours to an average 48 per week,...

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Running free

A ccording to the official marketing info, every day over one billion people around the globe put their lives in the hands of...

Page 28

More on RAC recovery prices

Your article 'In recovery' (18 November 2004) incorrectly states the prices for RAC Commercial Vehicle Assistance. The costs...

Now I can't afford my life

I write regarding the WTD and ask our politicians— what have you done to us? We've read all we can about it and to be honest...

Where does the funding go?

t read with interest Mr Ian Hetherington's letter regarding the skills shortage of HGV drivers and his valiant efforts to...

Page 30

Fue ing speculation

So what do operators want from Gordon Brown? OK, so there are no prizes for guessing... The CM newsdesk reports. F uel...

Page 33

It all comes tumbling down for EA scaffolding firm

The front company for a scaffolding operation loses its licence for good. A COMPANY providing labour and transport for an...

Page 34

Four drivers fined a total of £1,800 for hours breaches

DRIVERS' HOURS offences have led to four drivers employed by Basildon-based Balin Distribution being ordered to pay £1,800 in...

'1 had a rest two weeks ago' says driver

A DRIVER who went 14 days without a weekly rest and committed other offences including falsifying tachograph charts has been...

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Business survives by making two drivers diredors to gain new licence

AN OPERATOR whose own licence was revoked for a string of offences has been allowed to continue trading by appointing two of...

Dangerous trailer coupling costs over £1,000 in court

A COUPLING so dangerous that a trailer was likely to become detached with "dire consequences" has cost the vehicle's owner and...

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Defect reports can save your licence

Transport lawyer Tim Ridyard explains how defect reporting sheets can make the difference between a conviction and the...

Drivers' defect reports

Drivers are responsible for the condition of their vehicles when on the road. They must therefore report any defects or...

Page 38

The perils of protest

Could operators who protest fall foul of the law? Juliet Morrison reports on the risky strategy of taking to the streets. S ay...

Protest: How the law can react

• Drivers in a demo can face prosecution for road traffic offences • Demonstrators can be prosecuted for breaches of the peace,...

Page 40

Rude and unnecessary

What does the law say about interrupting a drlver on a legal break? I was woken twice one night by a parking attendant at a...

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MIDDLE OF THE ROAD

'Middle of the road' is sometimes used as an insult. But in the case of the 26-tonne three-axle Daf CF75 it means a truck that...

Page 50

BREAK NG NEVii GROUND

A new fleet insurance scheme uses tracking data to help monitor risk and gives fleet operators a significant rebate for risk...

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FLEET TELEMATICS

How the scheme works *The new Fleet Telematics scheme is open to fleets with any category of vehicle. *Vehicle operators have...

Page 52

Doing the maths

Cybit's Fleetstar-Online solution costs from £20 per vehicle per month for a basic, entry-level service that provides...

Page 58

LIGHTENING THE LOAD

Sales of Fts and loaders on 3.5-tonners are booming. Sharon Clancy checks out the market. l's taken nearly a decade but...

Page 62

TERRAIN TERRANO

Most 'lifestyle' vehicles have as much genuine off-road ability as a pogo stick — but the Nissan Terrano is different. If you...

Page 65

The Terrano's 'lifestyle roots don't stop it being a functional

bit of kit. That 3.0-litre engine gives it sparkle both on the rough, where you need decent torque, and the smooth, where it's...

Page 66

Birth pains of a new contrad

T hey say that death and divorce are the two most stressful experiences in life. In transport — certainly in my sector — the...

Page 67

Thinking outside the box

Chive Fuels is taking a novel approach to selling gas by flogging used gas powered trucks as well. A n alternative fuel...

Page 68

Little big van

We're using the extensive CM database to guide your used buying decisions. This week we focus on two top weight Mercedes-Benz...

Page 70

Less vehicle more profit

'Next season, I will mostly be selling... vans:' Our Fast Show-inspired contact suggests that vans are the future of the used...

The round up

A year of hard work Word around the campfire is that the spectacular year experienced by many independent traders is tailing...

Page 71

The boom continues at CVA

Volumes are going through the roof at Commercial Vehicle Auctions and the export industry is still the 'used market sector of...