Car drivers slam 'polluting' CVs
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• Britain's ever-increasing army of car drivers sees the haulage industry as the third biggest threat to the environment, according to the 1999 Lex Report on Motoring.
According to the study, which was commissioned by the vehicle and services group Lex Service, 54% of motorists believed trucks were "very harmful to the environment". Only "dumping rubbish at sea" and "very old cars on the road" were seen to be more damaging.
The study, which canvassed a total of 1,297 motorists, also found car drivers were stubbornly opposed to the idea of paying motorway tolls—and they remain reluctant to use public transport. The report indicates that 75% of motorists would not be prepared to use public transport to travel to work, even if costs were halved. Only 52% of respondents were aware that the White Paper on integrated transport had been published last summer.
There are 27 million car drivers in the UK, while the total number of commercial vehicles over 3.5 tonnes is just 550,000.
John Bridge, national chairman of the Road Haulage Association, comments that British motorists should see the haulage industry in a more favourable light: "We only respond to our customers' needs," he says. "We deliver daily life. We are not a hindrance or a problem."