Plain speaking on tachos
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by CM reporter THE Freight Transport Association wants the proposed regulations governing the use of tachograph discs for enforcement purposes made plainer. The Association is deeply concerned about the possible implications of the regulations as they are now drafted.
It has asked for an assurance that no obligation will be placed on an operator to fit and use tachographs for purely domestic use in advance of the Minister taking further action. The regulations should apply only where the relevant requirements of EEC Regula tion 1463/70 are satisfied and where the charts are used in place of written records.
It has been stressed that the proposed regulations should not apply to an operator who has elected to keep written records despite the vehicle being fitted with a tachograph.
No compulsion
Though the draft regulations go some way towards satisfying the FTA's requirements, it would feel more content if a clause was inserted to the effect that no element of compulsion would apply to vehicles on internal journeys to remove all doubt.
Moreover, it is felt that the acceptance of the regulations as they apply to internal portions of international journeys should be conditional on finding a satisfactory answer to industrial relations problems. If this was not done, then operators could find themselves in an invidious position if their drivers refused to use tachographs throughout the journey.
Concern
It has expressed concern also about the difficulty of keeping a register of tachograph charts which are not, and presumably need not be numbered. It will be almost impossible, says the Association, for returned charts to be reconciled with the register of charts previously issued.