Union alarm over roadside checks decline

Transport union Unite has expressed alarm over a 39 per cent decline in roadside checks made by the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) since 2016/17.

In total, there were 114,653 on-the-spot inspections made by the enforcement authority in 2020/21 to check on trucks’ roadworthiness and the adherence of drivers to regulations.

The Department for Transport records that GB-registered lorries travelled 10,066 billion miles in 2020.

This means that an on-the-spot inspection of a truck only occurs on average once every 87,797 miles, the union pointed out.

Unite said it was particularly concerned about the lack of checks in the light of the government easing cabotage restrictions on foreign-registered trucks (Transport Operator 103), which can now undertake an unlimited amount of work for up to two weeks at a time in the UK. Such trucks fall outside of the net of measures covering the condition and operation of UK-registered trucks, including regular periodic maintenance inspections, and checks at operating centres.

Unite national officer Adrian Jones said: “Our professional lorry driver members, who abide by the rules, will be shocked by these figures. An unsafe lorry or a driver failing to follow the driving regulations has enormous safety implications for all road users.

“All road users should be seeking urgent reassurances that the companies who are taking advantage of the relaxation on the cabotage rules are doing so safely and complying with the law.”