MPs have called for the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) to be given extra powers to get unsafe foreign vehicles off the road.
The Commons Transport Committee report, which looked into the enforcement activities of VOSA, said the agency needed more access to ports to prevent dangerous vehicles from entering Britain.
Louise Ellman MP, committee chairman, said VOSA was recognised as a model of best practice but lacks sufficient access to ports to inspect vehicles and drivers effectively – and is also hampered by some data-sharing regulations.
The report also said that licensing rules for buses and coaches also need to be tightened.
A spokesperson for VOSA said it welcomed the report and said the agency had already made ‘significant progress’ in some of the areas mentioned.
Click here to read the full BBC News report.
This is another example of the affect of years of down-grading roads policing. In the past, police forces provided Traffic Divisions. These were divisions of police officers who were highly selected, well trained and dedicated to their role. They were very knowledgeable about large vehicle technology. They knew about tachographs, driver’s hours and operator licence regulations. They were specialists in Construction and Use offences but also spotted other crimes. More importantly they patrolled the roads 24 hours a day. The deterioration in roads policing started thirty years ago. Please look at the BBC News website that inspired the above entry on the Newsletter of Road Safety GB. Find the comments of James Galbraith,the Kent Traffic Division Police Officer. He says it all, but how long are politicians particularly the Commons Transport Committee, going to ignore people like James whilst looking for a new solution to an old problem. To rub salt into the wounds read Clive Briscoe’s sad story on the same BBC News webite. We owe it to road safety and the general public to campaign robustly for the reinstatement of dedicated Traffic Divisions and ensure quality roads policing.
Roy Buchanan, Principal Road Safety Officer, Sutton
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