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Most farm tradors are not road legal
Page 6
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The majority of agricultural vehicles are unroadvvorthy — but the DfT has no plans to introduce MoTs for them. Roanna Avison reports.
THE DEPARTMENT for Transport (Df has admitted that action may be required after safety checks on agricultural tractors in the UK showed that over 68% have defects that make them unroadworthy and 56% of the trailers they pull are also illegal.
The figures come from a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) report, Evaluation of the Mechanical Condition of Agricultural Vehicles. which set out to discover the condition of farm vehicles using public roads.
The most common faults involved windscreens, wipers, lights and mirrors, but problems were also found with brake performance and tyre vwear.Trailer faults included hitches and PTO guards.These findings come on the back of Vosa figures that show 27% of tractors stopped at the roadside were hit with prohibitions.
A DIT spokesman says: "It is the duty of the user of a vehicle to ensure that it is roadworthy and properly maintained." But he adds: "The Department's view is that bringing agricultural vehicles under the MoT scheme would not he the hest way to improve maintenance standards and the condition of agricultural vehicles.
"If Vosa finds a vehicle to be in poor condition it will prohibit that vehicle from being used on the road until any defects have been rectified. HSE inspectors also have powers to carry out spot-checks on farms, and where they find problems they will also prohibit vehicles from being used."
The spokesman says the Dig' is disappointed at the poor level of maintenance the survey has revealed and is "considering what further action might be appropriate".
A Vasa spokeswoman admits that as there are no systems in place to licence and test agricultural vehicles the agency is constrained in what it can do: "But we can do spot checks with the HSE and issue prohibitions and prosecute if necessary. We can also check whether vehicles used on the road are used within the rules [which states they must stay within a 15mile radius of their base :otherwise they need an 0-licence]."
Lead Traffic Commissioner Philip Brown says agricultural vehicles are unregulated and exempt from 0-licensing and therefore the TCs do not get involved with them and Vosa only has limited dealings with them: "Clearly closer regulation of the condition of these vehicles is required given the findings of this report. If the government were to decide on that option the Muffle Commissioners would be happy to perform the role of regulator."
• See Investigation (pages 1821) for a first-hand account of the result of running unregulated tractors and trailers during the potato harvest