Truck strikes took centre stage in the national media this weekend when the BBC covered a rallying cry from the Local Government Association (LGA) for new legislation.
The LGA would like to see local councils given more powers to ban truck drivers from using sat-navs specifically designed for cars to stop oversized or overweight vehicles being driven along unsuitable roads.
The Road Haulage Association (RHA) responded quickly, supporting the view that car sat nav’s are not appropriate, but disagreeing with the need for new legislation to enforce this.
“Surely using the right sat-nav system for the right vehicle is a matter of common sense,” said RHA chief executive Richard Burnett. “HGV-specific sat-nav systems have the ability to make journeys for HGV drivers safer and more cost-efficient and that’s a big issue for us. But, we remain firm in our view that these systems should only be used as a driving aid. Drivers should pay attention to road signs at all times.”
We support Richard’s view. Transport is already one of the most regulated industries – and rightly so given the responsibilities of the operators. But does it need more legislation for something that really should just be a matter of common sense?
Granted, the potential risks to using inappropriate mapping systems are significant and when they do occur they can cause significant damage, both to vehicles and to the road infrastructure. But transport operators can very effectively prevent these problems by using the right mapping systems, along with route planning and optimisation tools.
Microlise navigation tools are powered by ALK’s CoPilot software. It will only map routes suitable for the class of vehicle being driven for that particular journey as well as avoiding impassable objects, such as bridges.
Using Microlise navigation, bridge strikes can be resigned to the past and without the need for the involvement of the local council or passing more laws in parliament.
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