What are the rights and obligations of traffic officers when screening for overloading of trucks?

Question:

Can you please advise me on the rules and regulations on the distance and circumstances that a traffic officer can order a truck driver to drive to a weighbridge from a mat scale?

Answer:

A traffic officer is given certain powers in terms of the National Road Traffic Act – specifically in this case in terms of Section 3 I – ascertain the dimensions of, the load on, or the mass, axle mass load or axle unit mass load of, any vehicle, or the mass of any combination of vehicles, loaded or unloaded, and if necessary for the purpose of ascertaining such mass, require any vehicle or combination of vehicles to proceed to a mass-meter or mass-measuring device, and if the mass of any vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds the mass allowed in terms of this Act, prohibit the operation of the vehicle or combination of vehicles on a public road until the mass has been reduced or adjusted to comply with this Act: Provided that where the load on a vehicle includes any hazardous substance as contemplated in the Hazardous Substances Act, 1973 (Act 15 of 1973), the reduction and handling of the mass shall be undertaken in terms of that Act;

There is NO condition in these powers as to the maximum distance (or length of journey) relating to the direction to weigh. This would be for practical reasons.

In most cases the vehicle would have been subjected to some version of screening process (which in most cases is not more than 2km away for control more than for concern over distance from multi-deck scales).

The circumstance is clear – the provision is to “ascertain such mass” – so the officer can direct any vehicle whether “overloaded or not”.

Regards

Gavin

;

Gavin Kelly Technical & Operations Manager Road Freight Association

What are the rights and obligations of traffic officers when screening for overloading of trucks?

Motorists want a lot more visitors officers

25/6/14

By Bob Taylor

As several as 60% of motorists believe there are not adequate police officers on the road to enforce driving laws, according to an RAC survey.

Much more than half (51%) of drivers consider it is unlikely that motorists will ever get picked up for texting whilst stopped in visitors.

And 40 per cent reckon they stand tiny possibility of getting stopped by police for aggressive driving, the poll of 1,526 drivers identified.

The analysis also showed that only 29% believe drivers will get into difficulty for texting on the move although 42% feel it is unlikely.

24% think tailgaters will be pulled over

For the new offences of tailgating and middle lane-hogging only 24% and 22% respectively think motorists are most likely to be pulled up by a site visitors officer.

The only offences motorists believe are dealt with successfully are the ones that are enforced by way of cameras such as speeding and targeted traffic light violations.

A total of 45% reckon drivers are most likely to get caught for speeding, while 46% believe those operating red lights will get caught.

Of those motorists questioned who have speeding points on their licences, 49% said they have been trapped by a speed camera, even though only 24% have been caught by a police officer.

67% break 70mph motorway limit

The survey, the 26th annual poll of its type by the RAC, also showed that 34% are concerned about other drivers speaking on hand-held mobile phones and 22% are worried about other motorists breaking traffic laws normally.

In addition, 75% of motorists reported regularly seeing other men and women talking on mobile phones, with 44% saying they see this taking place during most of their vehicle journeys. However only 8% of drivers admit to employing a hand-held phone on most journeys.

On speeding, around 40% admitted breaking the speed limit on non-motorway routes, even though as many as 67% owned up to exceeding the 70mph limit on motorways. A total of 70% of drivers supported raising the motorway limit to 80mph.

Potholes have been a be concerned for 41% of motorists in this year’;s survey, compared with 36 per cent final year, even though 47% place the price of fuel as their principal motoring concern despite reductions in rates at the pumps of late.

31% worried young children could be distracted by smartphones

As several as 69% reckoned young children have been as protected, if not safer, on the roads than when they were young but 31% had been worried that kids could get distracted by smartphones although utilizing roads.

4 in 5 motorists felt uncomfortable driving on icy roads, with almost all (96%) avoiding driving in the snow if at all attainable. Younger drivers have been more concerned about driving in wintry conditions than older ones.

RAC technical director David Bizley mentioned: “Our analysis shows that millions of law-abiding motorists are frustrated with the reduction of site visitors police and believe that the possibilities of drivers becoming pulled up for breaking the law are now minimal.

“Motorists are tired of continually seeing other drivers breaking the law and obtaining away with it so it is hardly surprising that they want to see a greater police presence on our roads to enforce motoring legislation much more successfully, which would also act as a genuine deterrent.”

Motorists want a lot more visitors officers

Motorists want a lot more traffic officers

25/6/14

By Bob Taylor

As several as 60% of motorists think there are not adequate police officers on the road to enforce driving laws, according to an RAC survey.

More than half (51%) of drivers consider it is unlikely that motorists will ever get picked up for texting whilst stopped in traffic.

And 40 per cent reckon they stand little likelihood of becoming stopped by police for aggressive driving, the poll of 1,526 drivers identified.

The investigation also showed that only 29% think drivers will get into trouble for texting on the move even though 42% think it is unlikely.

24% consider tailgaters will be pulled more than

For the new offences of tailgating and middle lane-hogging only 24% and 22% respectively believe motorists are most likely to be pulled up by a targeted traffic officer.

The only offences motorists believe are dealt with effectively are the ones that are enforced by means of cameras such as speeding and traffic light violations.

A total of 45% reckon drivers are likely to get caught for speeding, even though 46% consider those running red lights will get caught.

Of these motorists questioned who have speeding points on their licences, 49% stated they had been trapped by a speed camera, although only 24% have been caught by a police officer.

67% break 70mph motorway limit

The survey, the 26th annual poll of its type by the RAC, also showed that 34% are concerned about other drivers talking on hand-held mobile phones and 22% are worried about other motorists breaking traffic laws generally.

In addition, 75% of motorists reported often seeing other people speaking on mobile phones, with 44% saying they see this taking place throughout most of their vehicle journeys. Yet only 8% of drivers admit to making use of a hand-held phone on most journeys.

On speeding, around 40% admitted breaking the speed limit on non-motorway routes, even though as a lot of as 67% owned up to exceeding the 70mph limit on motorways. A total of 70% of drivers supported raising the motorway limit to 80mph.

Potholes had been a worry for 41% of motorists in this year’;s survey, compared with 36 per cent last year, whilst 47% place the expense of fuel as their primary motoring concern in spite of reductions in rates at the pumps of late.

31% worried young children could be distracted by smartphones

As a lot of as 69% reckoned kids have been as safe, if not safer, on the roads than when they have been young but 31% have been worried that youngsters could get distracted by smartphones whilst making use of roads.

4 in 5 motorists felt uncomfortable driving on icy roads, with practically all (96%) avoiding driving in the snow if at all feasible. Younger drivers had been far more concerned about driving in wintry circumstances than older ones.

RAC technical director David Bizley stated: “Our research shows that millions of law-abiding motorists are frustrated with the reduction of site visitors police and believe that the chances of drivers getting pulled up for breaking the law are now minimal.

“Motorists are tired of continually seeing other drivers breaking the law and getting away with it so it is hardly surprising that they want to see a greater police presence on our roads to enforce motoring legislation a lot more successfully, which would also act as a genuine deterrent.”

Motorists want a lot more traffic officers

Motorists want a lot more targeted traffic officers

25/6/14

By Bob Taylor

As many as 60% of motorists believe there are not enough police officers on the road to enforce driving laws, according to an RAC survey.

More than half (51%) of drivers think it is unlikely that motorists will ever get picked up for texting while stopped in traffic.

And 40 per cent reckon they stand little chance of being stopped by police for aggressive driving, the poll of 1,526 drivers found.

The research also showed that only 29% think drivers will get into trouble for texting on the move while 42% think it is unlikely.

24% think tailgaters will be pulled over

For the new offences of tailgating and middle lane-hogging only 24% and 22% respectively think motorists are likely to be pulled up by a traffic officer.

The only offences motorists believe are dealt with effectively are the ones that are enforced via cameras such as speeding and traffic light violations.

A total of 45% reckon drivers are likely to get caught for speeding, while 46% think those running red lights will get caught.

Of those motorists questioned who have speeding points on their licences, 49% said they were trapped by a speed camera, while only 24% were caught by a police officer.

67% break 70mph motorway limit

The survey, the 26th annual poll of its kind by the RAC, also showed that 34% are concerned about other drivers talking on hand-held mobile phones and 22% are worried about other motorists breaking traffic laws generally.

In addition, 75% of motorists reported regularly seeing other people talking on mobile phones, with 44% saying they see this happening during most of their car journeys. Yet only 8% of drivers admit to using a hand-held phone on most journeys.

On speeding, around 40% admitted breaking the speed limit on non-motorway routes, while as many as 67% owned up to exceeding the 70mph limit on motorways. A total of 70% of drivers supported raising the motorway limit to 80mph.

Potholes were a worry for 41% of motorists in this year’;s survey, compared with 36 per cent last year, while 47% put the cost of fuel as their main motoring concern despite reductions in prices at the pumps of late.

31% worried children could be distracted by smartphones

As many as 69% reckoned children were as safe, if not safer, on the roads than when they were young but 31% were worried that children could get distracted by smartphones while using roads.

4 in 5 motorists felt uncomfortable driving on icy roads, with nearly all (96%) avoiding driving in the snow if at all possible. Younger drivers were more concerned about driving in wintry conditions than older ones.

RAC technical director David Bizley said: “Our research shows that millions of law-abiding motorists are frustrated with the reduction of traffic police and believe that the chances of drivers being pulled up for breaking the law are now minimal.

“Motorists are tired of constantly seeing other drivers breaking the law and getting away with it so it is hardly surprising that they want to see a greater police presence on our roads to enforce motoring legislation more effectively, which would also act as a genuine deterrent.”

Motorists want a lot more targeted traffic officers