I thank the Deputies and Senators for the opportunity to come before the committee. My name is Vincent Caulfield. I am president of the association and Liam Brewer is a member of the management team. There is a ten member board, including myself, and we are an entirely voluntary organisation but we have a staff of three people who work full time in our office.
The Irish Road Haulage Association was founded in 1973 and its primary function was to promote professionalism, excellence and safety in the road haulage industry. Since our inception, our industry has changed and progressed in many areas but in other ways it has remained the same, with certain concerns dating back some 35 years which still await resolution. That is not because of any lack of effort on behalf of the Irish Road Haulage Association but can be attributed, for the most part, to a lack of understanding and a failure to address these issues by successive transport Ministers and relevant Departments.
To date, there is little or no recognition of the vital services provided by the haulage industry. International hauliers deliver Irish produce and Irish manufactured goods to all corners of Europe and beyond. With each return journey there is another valuable load of cargo for delivery to the Irish market. In addition, the major contribution by national hauliers to the infrastructural developments taking place in recent times cannot go unmentioned. All of this has been achieved by a small dedicated group of hard working, highly motivated people for very little reward and, unlike many other industries, with no financial assistance whatsoever from the State. Regrettably, the revenue contributed from our industry, and the services provided, have largely gone unnoticed. A truck is still seen by most other road users as a large, intimidating vehicle commanding a disproportionate amount of road space on an already congested road.
There are a number of issues affecting our industry and I very much appreciate this opportunity to raise three of them before the committee. These issues are as follows: heavy goods vehicles being allowed to use the outside lane of a two-lane motorway for overtaking; the impending introduction of a carbon tax; and permits for transporting abnormal loads.
In regard to overtaking on motorways, this safety concern has become more relevant recently due to the extension of our motorway network throughout the country and the recent upgrading of some dual carriageways to motorway status. The outcome of this change is that cars and light commercial vehicles can increase their speed by 20 kilometres per hour but it restricts heavy goods vehicles to the utilisation of only one lane. We believe, and statistics prove, that the safest roads to travel on are motorways or dual carriageways because by their very design they are the safest place to overtake slower moving vehicles. The restriction on the use of the outside lane on motorways for heavy goods vehicles should only apply on three lane motorways as is the case in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
The Irish Road Haulage Association is very concerned that the proposed carbon tax on fuel will result only in increased operating costs to hauliers. Current proposals appear to be motivated by a desire to create a new mechanism for collecting tax rather than by a genuine commitment to reducing carbon emissions. Carbon tax must be targeted at those who can effect change — manufacturers, traders, distributors and consumers. The road haulage industry is simply facilitating the movement of goods for other parties. The IRHA recognises and accepts the environmental issues associated with carbon emissions and is supportive of effective solutions that have the potential to reduce them, but the opportunity to achieve such reductions will be lost if the Government does not examine this issue in its entirety.
Regarding abnormal load permits, until recently, in order to transport a load that exceeded the regulations governing weight, length or width, a permit was required from relevant local authorities authorising such a movement. In some instances this could involve obtaining permits from four, five or even more local authorities for the movement of one such load because of the journey involved. The cost of these permits varied for each local authority from €100 to €300 and even more in some instances. In addition, the advance notice required also varied from two to four days depending on the local authority that was being dealt with.
Following consultation between the Irish Road Haulage Association, the Road Safety Authority, the Department of Transport and the Garda Síochána, agreement was reached on a new permit system on designated routes for loads of up to 27.4 m in length and 4.3 m in width, which did not exceed permitted axle weights. These permits can be obtained via e-mail from the permitting officer of the Garda Síochána who is based in the Phoenix Park. The difficulty is that permission to move will only be granted for five days after the application is submitted. Furthermore, the limited availability of designated roads that fall under the revised permit system is a cause of concern. In Northern Ireland, only 24 hours' notice is required for such movements on all roads. Consigners will not wait five days for the movement of these loads and consequently unauthorised movements will take place due to the inefficient system currently in place.
Another issue which is adversely affecting the licensed haulage industry is the continued use of agricultural tractors as haulage vehicles on public roads. A report on this activity commissioned by the Road Safety Authority was presented to the Department of Transport in March 2009. To our extreme disappointment, however, the Department has so far failed to act. Furthermore, a recent High Court ruling by Mr. Justice Hedigan in August 2009 stated that vehicles engaged in haulage must comply with all regulations that apply to this industry. Agricultural tractors fall a long way short in this regard but nevertheless those who drive them continue to do so undeterred.
A recent statutory instrument signed by the Minister for Transport, Deputy Dempsey, requires that individuals who have convictions for serious offences in the past must surrender their haulage licences within three months. While this measure has been welcomed by our association, we believe that greater deterrents must be put in place for those who operate without valid licences; otherwise, operators who have had their licences revoked will continue to trade without them.
I again thank the Chairman for this opportunity to bring some of the issues affecting our industry to the attention of the committee.
