Getting the balance right
Page 16
Page 17
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Revoking the 0-licences of Translact and Taymix Transport last month thrust TC Sarah Bell. into the spotlight. CM spoke to Bell. about the choices a Traffic Commissioner has to make.
u9er.urownfarbi.co.uk I Images: Nigel Spreadbury
iE PROSPECT OF appearing before a traffic commissioner at a public inquiry can be daunting, with TCs seemingly distant, intimidating figures, How reassuring then to discover that they can be warm and engaging in private, and have a wide range of interests outside the job.
When CM visited Western area TC Sarah Bell at her office in Bristol she talked about her love of Harley Davidson motorbikes, European travel and following Portsmouth Football Club.
However, leisure pursuits have to take a back seat as Bell's role in helping to maintain high standards of operator conduct often requires her to work long hours.
"The TCs are busier than ever and we are absolutely indebted to our deputies who can come in at short notice; their support is always crucial," she says. "There are just not enough hours in the day: it is not just a job, it is a way of life."
Faced with the most serious breaches of compliance. Bell can be less accommodating. Last month she delivered a stinging verdict on related haulage firms Translact and Taymix Transport, saying they had demonstrated a total lack of professional competence and that their systems for checking drivers' hours had completely broken down. Both firms had their 0-licences revoked.
General advice
Their appearance before the TC followed an incident in 2007 when two people in a car were killed after a collision with one of the firm's vehicles, driven by an employee who had been at the wheel for 16 hours without a break. Bell, who talked to CM just before her written decision was released, said she was keen to issue some general advice to hauliers.
"Operators have to he diligent; it is important that transport managers are proactive with inquiring minds." she says."There are lots of areas to keep up to date with, such as the Driver CPC, making sure digital tachographs are properly checked, perhaps investing in someone else to do this. Keeping paperwork in order is crucial."
She also believes it is extremely important that TCs are notified when the directors of haulage firms change. or if a transport manager leaves.
"For all we know, people with convictions for drug smuggling could be on the board," she explains. "I also say to transport managers: do refresher courses and refresher training to keep up to date. The system is there to help and protect you and your staff."
Bell, who has been in her role since June 2007, qualified as a solicitor with I lampshire-hased Moore Blatch panel solicitors for the Road I laulage Association in 1993, and was made a partner in the company 10 years later.
From 1999 onwards, a large part of her practice involved representing the interests of haulage firms, their directors and drivers in the criminal courts, at public inquiries and at the Transport Tribunal. Bell also prosecuted complex cases for the Health and Safety Executive during that period. Being a TC isn't all about legal expertise though a degree of experiencing what life is really like for operators is also required. In February. Bell and Eastern area TC Richard Turkic accompanied police officers on an operation to target defective trucks taking materials to and from London's 2012 Olympic Park.
A juggling act
-Getting out means we can gain a better understanding of what everyone's job entails It is a real juggling act, hut I don't just want to be sitting in a public inquiry all day." she says. "Anything I can do to support VOSA. police and road safety industry initiatives, like stop checks, I will do.
In a recent pilot,VOSA area managers in Bristol and Exeter invited 20 hauliers in the region whose Operator Compliance Risk Score had dropped into the danger categories red or amber to a day-long seminar attended by Bell.
"I didn't know who they were, and it was not compulsory to attend, but this event was a fantastic variation on targeted enforcement." she says "I am in favour of having more industryfocused seminars and dinners where I can meet people in the industry."
Bell says it is difficult for her to comment as an independent regulator on the issue of whether the current financial standing rules are right, saying simply that it is an important requirement for fair competition and road safety.
As reported earlier this month (CM 8 April). she does express concern about the possible increase in the instances of so-called phoenix companies going before public inquiries In these cases,the assets of one haulage company are moved to another legal entity. where some or all of the directors remain the same and a similar name is adopted. leaving creditors unpaid.
"It is a line balance, these are difficult economic times and a haulier can have a customer go under for legitimate reasons," she explains. "We have to balance the reckless with the not so lucky."
• Next week CM will have an in-depth analysis on the Translact and Taymix case.