RFA works with consultants on axle mass issue

In the battle against the department of transport (DoT) proposal to reduce the permissible single rear axle mass for freight vehicles from the current 9 000-kilograms to 8 000-kgs, the Road Freight Association (RFA) has now established a working relationship with the consultants who are examining the proposal in terms of the department’s road freight strategy, according to the association’s technical and operations manager, Gavin Kelly. The truckers’ main complaint was that this shift would lead to an average payload reduction of 15.72% – varying between 2.45-tonnes and 5.62-t depending on the size of the road rig. At the same time it would do nothing to cure the continued disintegration of the secondary road network – which was the DoT’s reasoning behind the mass reduction. This deterioration, said the RFA, was due to no periodic maintenance, repair or development having been done over the past few years, and budget allocations for road works and road-user revenue streams having been appropriated for other programmes. A third reason cited was a lack of foresight and forward planning at departmental level – with the RFA pointing out that many roads were not originally built for either the weight or the traffic volumes now experienced. But, despite extensive efforts, there was an initial failure to get any sort of official response from the DoT, except an official hint that the letter outlining the proposal had been released pre-emptively – and was supposed to be examined in terms of the national transport masterplan (Natmap). Eventually, however, a meeting was arranged with two deputy directors-general – and the RFA were requested to submit full detailed comments on the issue. This multi-page document, according to Kelly, is now in the hands of Taemane Blue – the consultants conducting the freight strategy investigation. “Dealing with them,” Kelly told FTW, “is so different from struggling to deal with the DoT. We’ve built up a good relationship with them and feel that they actually listen to what we tell them. “And, if they use the bulk of what we have submitted to them, the axle mass issue should be hit on the head.” The RFA has scheduled another meeting with the consultants, and FTW will provide an update on the axle mass matter following the meeting.