TC tells hauliers to ensure HGV parking is safe

Scotland’s Traffic Commissioner, Joan Aitken, has called on hauliers to make sure the place where they keep their vehicles is “safe and suitable” at all times after suspending a haulier whose parking arrangements had compromised road safety.

Alex Campbell Haulage Ltd of Tain was suspended from running vehicles for two months because of practices at its operating centre.

Aitken found the company’s operating centre had become so cluttered that it was not possible for vehicles to turn around safely inside the yard. This lead to HGVs reversing into the site from a public road.

“It is patently clear to me that the reversing manoeuvres into the access road to the operating centre were inherently less safe than taking entry in forward gear,” she added.

This had resulted in an incident in 2014 in which a reversing lorry had been hit by a private car at speed. The driver of the car was killed.

Ordering a two month suspension of vehicle operations for Alex Campbell Haulage Ltd from 23:59 on 30 June, Aitken said road safety had been compromised and another road user had come to grief. She noted that the company’s operating centre had improved and been cleared “beyond all recognition” from what was observed in 2014.