SHOP TALK
Page 87
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• AL long last the Vehicle Inspectorate's Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness is to be published. What is the purpose of this guide? It's to tell operators the standards of vehicle maintenance required by the authorities.
So why is it such a closely guarded secret? And why charge £4.50 for a copy? The guide will only be really effective if all operators are sent a copy. 'What about the cost? the politicians cry. At £4.50 retail, say £3,50 wholesale, sending copies to over 100,000 licence-holders would cost £350,000.
Against that has to be set: The cost of distributing the guide to various stocking points instead of a single warehouse; employing extra staff to track down what must be, by default, a growing band of transgressors who are not in on the secret; police and court time.
it could be argued that those operators should put their vehicles into professional workshops where the required standards are known. But that is not going to happen overnight.
The public wants our roads to be safer, millions of pounds are spent every year on safety campaigns. Against this is 1350,000 such a large amount? Must the road transport industry, as usual, pay twice, once for the guide and once for the enforcement?