Speeding in a Van over 2 Tonnes

[cal37]

Having a licence to drive a particular class of vehicle deems you competent and duly trained to drive the said class.

 

An Employer does not have to give you training to drive a vehicle you already hold a full licence for. It is your sole duty to know the relevant laws concerning the vehicles you drive.

 

If it was an HGV then there are different rules as an operator, part of that is ensuring the driver is licensed and competent to drive.

[cal37]

Type-specific training is done to teach new futures on a new truck, like when Mercedes brought out the EPS gearbox. This is so you do not invalidate a warranty.

I have been on these " type-specific training " and I’m one of the 20 year licence holders and have never been taught about speed limits etc on these, in the 15 years I drove HGV`s all I ever had was once yearly assessments.

This is about to change with the drivers CPC coming out in Sept 09 but Existing drivers who already hold a vocational licence on the 10th September 2009 are exempt from the initial CPC. This is known as "acquired rights".

Yes under H&S training needs to be done and having spoken too the intelligence officer at vosa in the midlands I can say positively that they and the courts do in fact consider it’s the drivers reasonability to know the relevant laws of the vehicle they drive.

Now the local HSE dept view is (I rang them knowing these things is my job), as long as the company checks the validly of the licence they do not have to provide training to drive, they would only have to provide training on the use of equipment IE: indicators, horn tipping gear etc.

They state that it is just as much the driver’s responsibility to say if he feels he or she is not competent to drive that class of vehicle and the company would be within its rights to assume that a full licence holder knows the relevant laws and is fully trained in its use.

Trying to say in a court of law or an EAT that the reason you were speeding is because you had no training will not wash at all.

[cal37]

An HGV is limited to 40 mph on a single carriageway, where a car can do 60 mph.

 

I don't believe it to be crazy legistlation. Vans and trucks are more heavily loaded than cars and as a certain Engineering Officer once said "Ye canna change the laws of physics Cap'n". The heavier an object is and the faster it is going, the harder it is to stop it or alter its course (moments of inertia, etc.).

 

The fact that it is little known is purely down to the drivers of such vehicles not reading the highway code. etc.

 

I agree with you, however there has been talk and the haulage industry have been calling for the 40 limit to be raised.

 

When it was bought in, HGV`s breaks were bad...no very bad, break fade etc and they took some stopping. Now that’s not the case, an HGV is now fitted with disk breaks all round ( truck and trailer ) ABS, traction control etc and can in fact stop if not as quick as a car as damm near as makes no difference.

 

The limit has not stayed up with technology and only now causes frustration and in fact on many roads the police ask drivers to do 50 ( A9, A303 etc ) to keep the flow of traffic moving.In Europe the limit unless otherwise stated is 80 KPH ( 50 MPH ) in most states.

 

I would like to point out that, although the speed limit for HGV`s on a motorway is 60MPH they are mechanically restricted to 90 KMH ( 56 MPH ) and I personally think all vehicles should be restricted but that’s another story.

[cal37]

Yes there is a cut off date but I think (don’t know for sure) that if it’s used for hire and reward then it must have a limiter fitted. If it’s purely a show vehicle then its not.

As I say I’m not 100 % sure but I will find out.

[cal37]

Breakdown/recovery trucks are exempt all sorts of things.

 

Driver's hours; using outside lane of M-way; etc.

 

I think that they also don't need tachographs

True until April this year, then only specialised breakdown vehicles operating within a 100Km radius of their base are exempt.

The drivers of breakdown vehicles have always been subject to UK domestic hour rules.

[cal37]

At present Directive 92/6/EEC requires speed limiters to be fitted to:

• all passenger carrying vehicles with a maximum mass exceeding 10 tonnes; and,
  
• all goods carrying vehicles with a maximum mass exceeding 12 tonnes.

Limiters have to be set at 100kmh, and to restrict speed to 90kmh, respectively. The provisions are incorporated into regulations 36A(2) and 36B(2) of the Regulations, respectively.

Existing GB legislation goes wider than EC legislation and in practice requires speed limiters to be fitted additionally to:

• all passenger carrying vehicles with a maximum mass exceeding 7.5 tonnes; and,
  
• all goods carrying vehicles with a maximum mass exceeding 7.5 tonnes.

Limiters have to be set at 100kmh (113kmh in the case of vehicles first used prior to 1 January 1988), and to restrict speed to 60mph, respectively. The provisions are incorporated into regulations 36A(1) and (2), and 36B(1) of the Regulations, respectively.

When Directive 2002/85/EC is fully implemented - after all the relevant transitional provisions have expired - limiters will be required by EC law to be fitted to:

• All passenger vehicles with more than eight passenger seats; and
  
• All goods vehicles with a maximum mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes.

Limiters will have to be set at 100kmh, and to restrict speed to 90kmh, respectively.

The provisions of Directive 2002/85/EC apply to all 'in-scope' vehicles first used on or after 1 January 2005. However, provided they are used solely for national transport operations, passenger carrying vehicles with a mass not exceeding 5 tonnes, and goods carrying vehicles with a mass not exceeding 7.5 tonnes, will not have to be fitted with limiters until 1 January 2008.

Limiters will also have to be fitted to 'in-scope' diesel-engined vehicles first used between 1 October 2001 and 1 January 2005. These vehicles will need to be fitted retrospectively with limiters by 1 January 2006, unless they are used solely for national transport operations in which case they do not need to be fitted until 1 January 2007.

 

It seems that constuction date not longer matters.What does matter is the weight and if it is used for hire and reward.

 

A truck not used for hire or reward ( ie: show truck ) is not required to be fitted with a tachograph but does need a limiter.