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• The Freight Transport Association's recent claim that moving up to 44 tonnes would reduce the number of top weight HGVs on our roads has been roundly dismissed by the pressure group Transport 2000. Surprise, surprise. Blithley ignoring all Dip evidence to the contrary, Transport 2000 insists that "Since the weight increase from 32 to 38 tonnes we have actually seen more, not fewer, lorries travelling longer distances on Britain's crumbling road network. Now hauliers are wanting even bigger juggernauts, which will cause even more environmental damage."
The fact is, however, a move to 44 tonnes would cause less not more environmental impact. We're talking about fewer trucks with more axles carrying more freight while creating less emissions.
Meanwhile, as reported on pages 4-5, researchers at Leeds University reckon that trucks are paying up to 55% less than they should in road taxes, and say that hauliers are not being charged enough for environmental damage. They also want the cost of road accidents included in any formula. As HGVs are involved in fewer than 4% of all road accidents, while cars account for over 70%, that sounds reasonable enough.
Better yet, why not simply fine anti road transport pressure groups and cloistered academics 21,000 every time they open their mouths without considering the facts? That ought to pay for enough bypasses to keep /7
even Trans port 2000 happy.