West Mids check weighing
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WEST MIDLANDS Consumer Services Department is increasing its efforts to damp down on overloaded lorries with the use of new portable axle weighing pads.
The move followed an "action day" held three weeks ago by the six Metropolitan County Councils, when lorries were check weighed by Trading Standards Departments.
Of the 561 vehicles checked, 91 were overloaded. "One in 20 lorries was so dangerously overloaded that officers would not allow them to continue on their journeys until the loads were reduced," said a spokesman.
West Midlands Consumer watchdogs are now stepping up tests using eight portable weighing pads at sites across the county. They are carried by van and set up at suitable sites, including lay-bys. Use of the pads has led to prosecutions for overloading by up to 30 per cent on some vehicles.