From today non-compliant truck operators on Scotland and Northern Ireland's roads will be more effectively targeted at the roadside by enforcement agents who have been granted similar stopping powers to those in England and Wales.
New measures mean that Vehicle & Operator Services Agency (VOSA) officers in Scotland and Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) officers in Northern Ireland can now stop commercial vehicles without police accompaniment. In Scotland, this will allow them to use Operator Compliance Risk Score (OCRS) data to better inform their routine checks of roadworthiness, drivers' hours, documentation and overloading, rather than responding only to observed evidence on the road.
The leading trade body has long been a strong supporter of affording enforcement officers greater powers to stop commercial vehicles. James Firth, FTA's Head of Road Freight and Enforcement Policy, said:
"This is something that our members across Great Britain and Northern Ireland have been very keen to see enacted as it will better enable enforcement agencies to remove unsafe trucks from the road more efficiently with the added benefit of using OCRS data in Scotland to target higher risk operators. It is simply a better use of time and resources, and will free-up police time too."