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Car hauliers in a tight spot
Page 18
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Guy Sheppard reports on a new hazard.
GROWING DEMAND for bigger cars is endangering the lives of the drivers who deliver them, say industry leaders.
The Road Haulage Association says more and more sports utility vehicles and 4x4s are having to be carried on the upper as well as lower decks of car transporters because they are so popular.
But because of vehicle width restrictions there is insufficient room for drivers to get in and out of the cars when loading or unloading them.
The RHA is calling for a change in the law so the gap between the safety rail and the vehicles being carried can be widened. Andy Macrae, chair of the 50-member car transporter group, reports that at least one driver has been killed because space is so limited.
"The gap was so tight that he actually climbed over the rail to walk along the outside," Macrae reports."What he should have done was refuse to put that car on."
Macrae, who is also fleet engineer of Ontime Automotive, wants the Department for Transport to amend the Construction & Use regs to allow a wider gap. But because there is no case law to show if this is currently illegal, the DfT has told the RHA that the industry must make the first move.
Steve Biddle. head of RHA technical services, says that if the industry fails to modify the width of hand-rails it could be in breach of health and safety at work regulations. "But if the hand-rails were cranked out to create more space. the man from VOSA could say the vehicle breached the construction and use regulations." he adds.
The group is due to debate what action to take on this problem at its AGM on 12 October.