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Putting the brakes on safety?

8th December 1988
Page 24
Page 24, 8th December 1988 — Putting the brakes on safety?
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

• Too many trucks and semi-trailers are failing their annual tests and brakes are still the main cause for concern.

In its latest annual report the Vehicle Inspectorate condemns the 1987/8 failure rate (33% for trucks; 26.8% for trailers) as "disappointingly high" although those figures fall to 25% and 18.8% respectively when successful immediate retests are taken into account.

The VI's total of 954,222 first tests, annual tests and retests was up 3.2% on 1986/7, but the re-test failure rate was up too: from 10% to 10.6% for trucks, and from 9.3% to 10.8% for trailers.

Failure table

Service brake performance led the brake failure table, causing 8.5% of all goods vehicle test failures. Julian David, operations director at the Inspectorate, believes that the root cause of this is "poor preparation". He reports a "gut feeling" in the VI that a growing number of operators are using the annual test "as a consultan cy service to pin-point defects".

While conceding that many operators do not have access to a roller brake tester, David is sure that the number of brake-related failures could be reduced if maintenance standards were improved and, as he says, brakes are "the prime safety system in a vehicle".

Road Haulage Association technical manager Tim Inman, however, says vehicle manufacturers should be working to improve CV braking systems: "Manufacturers' vehicles are just meeting that narrow slot for brake performance on new vehicles. . . unless you keep a vehicle in an "as new" condition you run the risk of not maintaining the standard."

For Inman this claim is true "particularly in respect of triaxle trailers", and manufacturers "need to devote more research effort so that brake systems become more durable in terms of maintenance requirements," he claims.

There is some good news for operators, however, as next year selected test stations will be offering pre-test brake checks on their own roller brake equipment in an experiment that could lead to a nationwide scheme. The cost of such a service has not yet been decided.

The VI also reports that "it is reassuring that the failure rate for brake components defects has not increased."

Lighting-related defects, however, have continued to rise sharply, and once again "these results tend to confirm the impression of poor vehicle preparation," says the VI.

On the enforcement side, maintenance investigations on

HGV operators remained steady at around 28,000, with 49,523 HGVs inspected at fleet checks organised in conjunction with maintenance investigations. The prohibition rate rose marginally to 6.1% from 5.7% in 1986/87. The prohibition rate arising from 77,937 HGV spot checks was virtually unchanged at 21%, leading the VI to warn that: "It is clear that there is no shortage of unroadworthy vehicles to be discovered." The incidence of HGVs emitting smoke, at least, is going down.

While the number of PSVs submitted for test fell by 0.9% to 82,115, the initial failure rate was up at 40.3%, compared with 38.7% last year. The report accepts that some vehicles are facing increased vandalism "and this in part accounts for the increase in failure rates". Top of the list for PSV failures is bodywork, followed by headlamp aim, doors and emergency exits, then braking system components.

DIp proposals to exclude passenger comfort and vehicle cleanliness from the annual PSV test have yet to be implemented: when they are, the Inspectorate expects failure rates to drop by between 12%, which "will be a more accurate reflection of the safe of vehicles presented for test' Maintenance investigations on PSV operators were stepped up last year, with 8,465 vehicles examined. The prohibition rate held steady at 12.4%, consolidating the rise noted last year.

Action taken

Using information culled from number of surveys into the effects of deregulation, together with the increasing rate of failure at annual tests, the VI says that there is "con cern about the condition of th PSV fleet. Action has been taken to impress on operator: the need to improve maintenance standards."

The Inspectorate also wan that it will be "taking a strict line on the issue of immediate prohibitions at annual test which are grounds for action against an operator's licence. Prohibitions marked "neglect' are being followed up prompt ly, and improvements have been made in information gathering to help target unsatisfactory operators." 0 by Brian Weatherley


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