Capital Equipment News December 2015

COMMENT

THE ROLE OF TRUCKING makes economic sense

A s the end of 2015 approaches, it’s time to reflect somewhat on the past year and the upheaval that has beset the country. It is always the ‘same old, same old’ issues even though every year they ap- pear take on a different guise. Most political issues seem to have a direct effect on the trucking industry. We seem to be the whip- ping boys of the political system. If this surfaces once more, I would like to be able to stand up for the trucking industry and highlight the dominant position a truck occupies in freight transport in spite of the negative publicity trucking always receives. Politicians are always on about reviving the railway system to take the loads off the roads because of their deterioration. This time delay tactic is used as an excuse not to repair the roads. Trucks have shaped the course of economic development since they have been avail- able and that’s about 100 years, evolving through the mechanical age to the technical marvels they are today.

demands of the modern economy more successfully than other transport methods. It is flexible and can reach almost any des- tination unencumbered by any predeter- mined routing. Also, it can achieve higher speeds and hence becomes a far quicker medium of delivering freight. This high-speed method of movement speaks volumes in favour of moving high value goods by truck so that the capital tied up in the load can be freed without delay as opposed to other means of transport, such as rail, which operates on a fixed timetable. Furthermore, a truck can be used to move smaller loads economically as opposed to rail which only performs well when moving bulk materials and large volumes of goods over long distances. Some operators have invested millions in vehicles to move bulk loads effectively by road. The differences in these performance profiles clearly indicate the different roles of the various modes of transport and impose clear limits from the start on any attempt to shift freight trans- port away from the roads.

ufacturers and the road haulers to make a concerted effort to minimise the negative aura surrounding trucks. Vehicle manu- facturers are continuously improving their designs to meet global standards with sig- nificant reductions in truck emissions and improvements in fuel consumption. The transport operators are now facing up to their responsibilities by making greater use of the trucks’ load capacities thus avoiding unladen journeys. So, if our National Authority wishes to open up rail transport again let it open it up to be competitive with the current transport methods and the competition will ultimate- ly lead to its efficiency. In particular, it can use its long distance potential and in this way increase its market share thereby opti- mising the entire transport system. On the other hand enforcing unreasonable legisla- tion to make road transport artificially more expensive in order to increase the appeal of rail would be going backwards.

Pierre Sanson, Editor

However the major importance of the truck for freight transport calls for vehicle man-

The technological advantage of a truck en- ables it to be used to master the transport

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