'We did it' says Rogers
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THE DECISION to scrap the sale of the stations to Lloyd's was a victory for the Vehicle Operators' Advisory Panel, its chairman, Ken Rogers, claimed last Friday.
Former Road Haulage Association chairman Mr Rogers, who only learned of the Government's decision that morning, confessed to feeling "over the moon" about the Government's climb down. He said the transfer would have taken place if the VOAP had not kept arguing against costs being put forward by the Department of Transport.
He told CM he hoped it would be possible to hold another meeting of the panel to establish whether the industry would be happy with future monitoring of DTp testing, but said he suspected that the re-establishment of the Stanmore Committee, which discussed testing matters between the industry and DTp, would fulfil future needs.
Mr Rogers added that there was scope for more flexible hours of operation to be operated by the test stations, as had been proposed by Lloyd's, and he was especially keen that night and weekend testing should be permitted That call was taken up by the RHA which, like the Freight Transport Association, welcomed the decision to keep the stations in DTp ownership. The RHA said it hoped that the "sharp and unjustified" fee increases of 1982 would not be repeated.
The FTA said it had always doubted the wisdom of transferring the stations to the private sector,