At last! Weights icrease on the wa
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INCREASE in the maximum gross weight of heavy lorries rt to be announced later this month by Transport SecreDavid Howell. Our Parliamentary correspondent reports.
• Howell has not yet decided her the present 32.5 tonne should be increased to 38 es or 40 tonnes, but Whitesources were saying this that an announcement this th, with legislation as early 3ssible in the new session of a ment, was "probable".
le of the final hurdles to Mr elVs plans was overcome at Conservative party confer
in Brighton last week when representatives made clear -support for heavier lorries. iere was loud applause n one person protested at delaying tactics of a handful )ry MPs.
le of them, Faversham MP Br Moate, said that if Mr well came forward with )osals for a 38-tonne limit lying a five-axle unit with no a bearing more than 10 ies, he would back him.
r Howell's speech to the conrice, during which he annced the imminent authorion of another 20 by-passes, overshadowed by his !astute decision to omit from his ,ared text any reference to decision to increase the limit 3 tonnes.
!though he claimed rwards that a final decision not been made and that he Ited to announce it to MPs t, there was widespread speculation that the omission was the result of intense pressure from Tory chief whip Michael Jopling, who has to ensure that there are enough votes in the Commons for the package.
If true, this would put a further question mark over Mr Howell's future as Transport Secretary.
Mr Howell said he well understood the feelings of people who were "lorry battered" and it was a "firmest priority" to bring an improvement. The present position had arisen through neglect and inertia by successive Governments.
"It is high time, indeed it is overdue, that we adopt a resolute approach. We cannot shirk our responsibilities either to the environment or to industry."
Apart from the 20 new bypasses, Mr Howell said he hoped to give local authorities enough money to start 35 by-passes in the nextsfinancial year. The Department of Transport has still to announce where the by-passes will be, but The Times published a list of 18 in England (between Newcastle upon Tyne and Axminster) on the morning of the debate.
Urging local authorities to make more use of their powers to introduce lorry routeing schemes, Mr Howell also said he expected to approve 60 of the new lorry action areas in the coming year.
The Transport Secretary outlined other measures the Government is taking, which includes compulsory rear guards, side guards, spray suppression equipment, maximum dimensions, lower noise levels and better enforcement.
His theme ‘has that the time had come for heavier lorries. "It just cannot make sense to have lorries running around only partloaded as they do at present."
ERF chairman Peter Foden told the conference that heavy lorries over 40 tonnes built last year represented just 1.2 per cent of all vehicles. "Let us get the problems into perspective," he said.
The Armitage report had said heavier lorries would mean reduced road damage, increased industrial efficiency and reduced costs. If its critics had read the report properly then a successful transport policy would be emerging. Instead they were marching from debate to debate without a decision.
"I cannot applaud the small group of Conservative MPs who are siding with the Opposition in opposing heavier lorries," he said to cheers.