Tax blitz
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• Concerning your article on the police clamp down on untaxed lorries. I am in full agreement with this as it would help cut out the cowboys. But why should the haulage industry be singled out?
Our garage is in an area frequented by hippies. Their lorries, coaches, vans and so on are not taxed, tested, road legal or, I would guess, insured. Some 400 to 500 of these vehicles were in the area just last week but the local police would not go up to the camp or even stop them on the roads.
It is time that road tax was on fuel and these vehicles impounded until they are tested and insured. A Hayward
Presteigne, Powys.
Wise words on limiter lore
• I sympathise with the point made by FWL Ellis (CM 8-14 Aug) on the subject of using tachograph charts to monitor the driver's adherence to either legal or company defined speed limits, Unfortunately he is probably in the minority; hence the frequent warnings in CM and elsewhere that if operators did not take voluntary action speed limiters would be mandatory.
In the circumstances all I can suggest for operators like Mr Ellis is to specify a speed limiter which can provide additional benefits.
For example, why not consider controlling engine speed through the gears in addition to the top road speed?
This will often produce additional fuel and wear-and-tear savings.
Another idea is to specify the speed-hold switch which permits the driver to select intermediate road speeds to coincide with speed limits on roads other than motorways. This enables the driver to concentrate on the road ahead with fewer distractions, reduces fatigue