'Are we going to ensure that these vehicles are built correctly?'
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4 I
am concerned at the lack of clarity in the latest legislation governing the operation of both 44-tonne artic combinations and 13.6m trailers which go hand in hand with the operation of 13.6m swap bodies. There are several grey areas including swap body standards and how the Vehicle Inspectorate will test articulated outfits for compliance with the regulations regarding 13.6m trailers.
Swap bodies are being produced which have a dimension of 900mm forward and 715mm rearward of the centre line of the 40ft ISO container twistlock position (11.985mm). This is what the Italians have decided to be their standard. Other manufacturers build with an equal distance overhang (807.5mm).
The only way a trailer can carry both models legally is to have dual iwistlocks with 107mm spacing. My company, together with lwistlock maker Multistroke, has developed a special two-position twistlock which should solve the problem. At IRTE Telford we believe we exhibited the correct trailer to carry both 13.6m swap bodies and various combinations of ISO containers. To carry 13.6m swap bodies at 44 tonnes gross a self-tracking axle is
necessary because you need to push weight on to the kingpin and off the bogie to achieve a reasonable margin of latitude for load distribution. We also believe a pull-out rear under-run bumper will be required. At the show several people asked: "Why have you bothered with a pull-out under-run bar? You're legally entitled to overhang the trailer by more than that." Others queried the self-tracking axle: "It's not necessary".
One operator explained that he had some 40ft skeletals modified to increase the wheelbase to about 8.1m. The trailer converter assured him that, coupled to his tractor units, the testing station would measure the trailers and provided they are not more than 1.6m front to kingpin, 12m kingpin to rear and 8.155m kingpin to the centre line of the bogie they would be "deemed to comply". Surely, they either comply or they don't! At 8.155m many tractor combinations will not comply. I have also been told by a senior Department of Transport official that it is not correct that the swap body can overhang the trailer. He says that if an empty container is fitted to a skeletal—or any trailer for that matter—the overhang regulation can apply. But as soon as you put a load into the container, the container becomes an integral part of the trailer and ONLY THE LOAD can overhang. ISO containers or 13.6m swap bodies will not carry such loads under normal conditions. The DOT official also believes the pull-out under-run bumper to be essential. From many conversations at the IRTE show and since, "deemed to comply' keeps being mentioned although I cannot get anyone at the DOT to confirm that this is how the regulations are measured. We have been told instead that it is up to the operator to ensure that his equipment DOES comply with the regulations currently in force.
Are we going to act responsibly and ensure that these vehicles—which are politically sensitive—are built correctly and do not create problems which will put back the date when 44 tonnes is for all operations and not just intermodal? Or do we have to wait until someone is proven not to comply by accurate police measurement possibly after a fatal accident? Non compliance with such sensitive legislation can only lead to problems For the industry.