Hauliers squeezed dry

25 Mar 2016 - by Liesl Venter

Costs, costs and

more costs remain

the biggest

challenge to the

road transport sector

in South Africa.

According

to Gavin Kelly,

spokesman for

the Road Freight

Association

(RFA), rising

operating costs

– like more taxes, fees

and levies – have been

challenging.

“The road freight

industry continues to be

seen as a soft target for

additional revenue,” said

Kelly. “Fuel increases,

labour and wage

increases, and the

decline of the rand

against major

currencies have all

been further issues

that have impacted

operations both

locally and

across the

borders.”

At the same time

the increased cost

of maintenance

and parts as well

as financing cost

increases have

compounded the

problem.

“The industry

has seen an

average increase of

124% in running

costs over the

past 10 years with

the impact now

evident,” said

Kelly.

With the global economic

downturn added to the mix

it makes for

an extremely

gloomy

picture.

“Some

South

African

commodity

importers

have had to

reduce their

volumes

significantly

or in some

cases ceased

importing

altogether

while utilising stockpiles,”

said Kelly. “Fleets

are standing idle and

numerous operators have

had to close doors. The

industry is slowly sinking

through the lack of work,

severe and crippling cutthroat

competition and

the cost of running decent

well-maintained f leets.”

With the South African

economy being commoditydriven

and due to a decline

in demand the transport

industry in particular, he

said, had been hard hit,

with work diminishing or

petering out entirely.

“Platinum mine

problems spilled over into

other mining sectors, while

the hopes of commodity

transporters looking to

move harvest crops instead

have been dashed by the

drought.”

He said because the

economy had shrunk, bulk

fuel deliveries had also

dipped.

“The effects are being

felt across the board,” he

said. “Replacement cycles

are being put on hold and

vehicles are being retained

for longer than ever before.

The resulting danger is

that as they move out of

warranty protection there

are limited resources to

maintain vehicles properly.”

INSERT & CAPTION

Replacement cycles

are being put on

hold and vehicles

are being retained

for longer than ever

before.

– Gavin Kelly