A LONG WAY TO GO
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• There's an old stockbroking adage that runs "Sell in May and go away". Last week the Department of Transport appeared to have come up with its own version — "Change the C&U Regulations in July and (with luck) no one will ask why".
This certainly seemed to be the case when, just before MPs headed home for the summer recess, Roads and Traffic Minister Peter Bottomley declared that from 1 January 1989 thick-wall reefer operators will be able to use 2.6m wide vehicles on British roads.
Not wanting to be left out, DTp officials then confirmed that from next January it will also be allowing maximum axle weights on air-suspended tri-axle semi-trailers to go up from 7.5 tonnes to eight.
Both these changes have been made with the minimum of fuss and, more significantly, without Parliamentary debate, by amending the current C&U Regulations. Furthermore they were done in such a way that they do not annoy anti-lorry opponents. . . softly softly.
On the face of it the revisions appear fairly minor. After all, an extra 500kg here, and 20mm there, don't amount to much. If you were to crane your neck, however, and look really hard you might just see harmonisation on the horizon.
In the case of the wider reefer, the EC has already accepted 2.6m in its Community Directive 88/218.
Furthermore it also happens that in other Community countries operators are already allowed to run with a 24-tonne tri-axle bogie. So, from 1 January 1989 Britain will have moved further into step with Europe on two counts.
'Ile real question is what will the DTp harmonise next? The obvious answer is for it to accept a 40-tonne gross vehicle weight for artics.
Unfortunately there is little sign of that happening. In the official press release from the Department on axle weights the DTp repeated that the maximum permitted weight for articulated vehicles "remains unchanged at 38 tonnes."
And, despite waxing lyrical about the advantages of air suspension, it knows full well that talk of reducing the risk of overloading and bridge loadings is not going to pacify back-bench feeling on higher truck weights.
Making small changes to weights and dimensions within C&U regs is certainly one way of getting closer to Europe. It would clearly be naive to believe that these changes are isolated and are not leading towards harmonisation on everything including lorry weights.
Sadly the fight for 40 tonnes has yet to start in earnest and the prize is still a long way away.