19 vehicle margin lost by Scottish grain carrier
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• David West and Son Ltd, of Dunfermline, a TDG company, had its 19vehicle margin removed and three more vehicles of the 25 in operation removed for three months when the company appeared under Section 69 before the Scottish deputy LA in Kirkcaldy this week.
There had been 12 convictions for overloading in the past five years but the managing director of the company, Mr James West, said that the convictions had been on four-and six-wheel vehicles which had since been disposed of and replaced by articulated units. The vehicles were used for carrying grain which made it difficult to assess the weight. However, he believed it was now virtually impossible to overload the articulated vehicles. There were few weighbridges in the area but he thought the problem had been solved.
Since August 1967 there had been 26 GV9s, 10 of them immediate and during the currency of the licence there had been 17 GV9s, six of them immediate. Inspection had been tightened up, however, and additional staff recruited. The fleet had also been reduced, said Mr West, by 17 vehicles to its present level of 25 vehicles and 22 trailers without a reduction in staff.
The deputy LA, Mr H. R. Aylmer, thought the present system satisfactory but he felt the operator could have done better than 17 prohibitions and five overloading convictions since March last year.