Drivers could lose contact on Sunday
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• by Ian Wylie Truck drivers using satellite navigation systems could be left stranded on Sunday when the global positioning system (GPS) suffers its own Millennium Bugtype hiccup.
The GPS network of 24 satellites, which is run by the US Defence Department, has a counter which will roll back to zero on Saturday night and could cause receivers to fail, experience difficulty in locating satellites, or give inaccurate positions. The bug is thought most likely to strike receivers which are more than five years old. GPS is most commonly used as a secondary form of navigation by pilots, sailors and climbers, but a growing number of international hauliers have been installing satellite
navigation systems.
"GPS is essen tial as a mobile phone link and if it fails, it could mean drivers lose all communication with base," says Steve Walls, IT manager at Curries of Dumfries, which claims to be the first haulier in Scotland to have installed a satellite navigation system. "We installed the system six years ago, but chose Alcatel satellite tracking instead of GPS which we considered to be too expensive," says Walls.
A spokesman for the Health & Safety Executive advises hauliers to contact the makers of their GPS receivers to ensure their tracking systems do not fail on Sunday The US Coastguard has posted a list of receiver manufacturers on its website: www. navcen.uscg.miVgps.