Photo: North Yorkshire Police

Police concerned by level of non-compliance in dangerous goods transport

After a recent inspection, officers from North Yorkshire Police Road Policing Group have expressed concern over the lack of compliance with the rules covering the transport of dangerous goods.

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During the inspection, conducted last week, specialist officers from the North Yorkshire Police Road Policing Group teamed up with the DVSA and Teesport Harbour Police and Cleveland Police. The operation involved spot checking the safety of vehicles carrying chemicals and other dangerous goods on the roads.

Officers examined a total of 11 vehicles, 8 of which were carrying hazardous goods. The drivers of these 8 vehicles and the companies that put them on the road network were “swiftly dealt with” according to the police. There were various breaches of dangerous goods regulations including load security and availability of required protective equipment.

Moreover, there were 5 breaches of drivers hours regulations detected and two fixed penalties notices issued in respect of these breaches.  Officers were pleased to report that all the vehicles inspected were found to be in good mechanical condition.

Roads policing Sergeant Andy Morton, one of the officers involved in the operation, highlighted his unease over the findings of the inspection:

“It concerns me greatly that of the 8 dangerous goods carrying vehicles inspected, 6 had in some way breached the regulations. We are continuing to see high levels of non-compliance in this area of business which needs to improve. The carriage of these products is a high risk activity and I am appealing to hauliers involved in this area of work to take extra care in ensuring they comply with the rules”.

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