2 minute read
LEgAL
The transport industry in Ireland appears to have reached operational levels which are generally acceptable to its customers, and competition between companies no longer seems to depend on either the timing of the collection of the goods to be transported, or the speed with which those goods are delivered. Customers are more concerned with the appearance of the vehicle and, in those cases where the driver has to communicate directly with the customer, the client now requires polite and civil drivers.
Competition, however, is still the key ingredient in commercial life and every business, whether large or small, still needs to find that point of advantage which will favour the service that they are offering to that of others. Every country has had to respond to the threat posed by Covid-19, but those in the transport industry - an industry that depends on social contact - have had to face a plethora of new regulation which continue to be made. It seems that governments of all sorts have felt under pressure to appear to be playing their part, by introducing some new transport related legislation. The road haulier has the difficult task of trying to keep up with, or ahead of, all this new legislation.
Here in Ireland the Government has had to acknowledge that there is a significant shortage of truck drivers and has taken steps to address this by allowing a greater number of drivers from outside the European Union (EU) to work here, in addition to a relaxation of the permit system. These steps have not been greeted with enthusiasm because it is feared that any involvement of a Government office would simply increase the bureaucratic burden.
The Government is in the process of producing a ten-year strategy for the road haulage industry which may be a reaction to the belated recognition of the importance of the haulage industry to the economic welfare of the country. The combined effect of the combination of Covid-19 and Brexit, together with the departure of the UK from the EU, has been to reduce the need for transport here, which, of course has increased the pressure on the road transport industry. In the context of the need for haulage, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) between the EU and the UK reached at the end of last year is extremely valuable. In particular regulatory standards between the two countries have been largely standardised.
One constant and increasing problem is the amount of carbon pollution resulting from the use of diesel engines. There are immediate sources of power that do not appear to present any threat of pollution, electricity is one, as is nuclear power in one form or another, and there is also natural gas, but diesel engines have to produce a constant source of sufficient energy to move a fully loaded HGV and, as this is written, there is no convenient alternative. It seems probable that electric motors will always be cleaner but will never have the necessary power.
Currently transport managers may have less reason to be concerned about regulatory controls but more reason to keep up to date with technical developments.
Transport Managers must continue to look ahead
Text: Jonathan Lawton – jonathan@fleet.ie
TRANSPORT
