The perils of overtaking
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The road transport industry is full of legislation, but enforcement in Europe has, in the past, been a more relaxed affair. However, the long arm of the Carabinieri caught up with Kevin Rawlings on a recent trip to Italy.
"An awful lot of people from Poland, Holland and the UK all come down to Kufstein [Germany] to go into Austria. It's roughly a two-hour drive and about £100 to transit across Austria. But there is almost no overtaking for trucks. There are two places on the Brenner Pass, but anywhere else and the fines are huge," he says.
"They say it's a green issue, but can you tell me how 40 trucks chugging along, speeding up and slowing down, is good for the environment? The same happens in northern Italy, where they all want to be German, and have the same attitude as the Austrians. You're not allowed to overtake for about 450km [in total], and the fine for overtaking in Italy is even bigger than in Austria — and I know from experience. "I was following a slow Romanian truck the other week that was throwing muck all over the cab because he was on the phone and brushing onto the hard shoulder. I overtook
him, but didn't see the police car behind. He pulled me over and wanted to fine me €3,000 (£2,580) and take my licence away for six months.
"I argued the point, and hasten to add I didn't get fined that. Instead, I explained the situation to him. He said he had to fine me for something, and in the end he fined me for not wearing a seatbelt.
"Anyone with an ounce of common sense has to realise the frustration of it, but with the revenue that is being pulled into these countries like Italy and Austria, they must really love trucks."