New drive to ease 'abnormal' restrictions

THE ABNORMAL load division of the Road Freight Association has commissioned a traffic flow survey as a last ditch effort to convince the transport authorities to ease up restrictions on the movement of abnormal loads over weekends, public holidays and at night. “The embargo days were set many moons ago,” says Sampie Swanepoel, who heads up the division. “We understand the need to restrict the movement of abnormal loads before public holidays and school holidays when traffic is at its peak, but we believe they stretch it too far. We have the greatest respect for their safety concerns but these restrictions are not only hampering our business, they’re affecting the economic growth of the country – particularly with the 2010 World Cup on the horizon.” According to Swanepoel, some off the provincial authorities have been very accommodating. “In Natal they were prepared to listen, they understood our problem, and relaxed some of the restrictions – and the same applies to the Free State and Mpumalanga. But the Gauteng authorities have been totally intransigent. “All we asked was to move loads on the roads up to 3.39 metres wide and 4.69 high where we don’t need escorts, but they were unwilling to accede to our request. “That means that we can use the roads in Natal but as soon as we reach the Gauteng border, we’re stuck.” Swanepoel believes it would be in everyone’s interests if heavy trucks were taken off the roads between 07:00 to 09:00 and 16:00 to18:00 during week days in the main city centres and allowed to travel over weekends and at night. “We don’t understand their reasoning, and that’s what we need to establish.” Consulting engineering company Vela VKE has been commissioned to undertake the survey which will be presented to the Abnormal Load Technical Committee of the Department of Transport. “Unless we are able to resolve the impasse, we will be stuck with loads in Durban piling up for Africa at the Gauteng border,” says Swanepoel. Apart from the cost to the economy, there are significant additional costs to the haulage industry.