A number of cities across the UK will start levying prohibitively high charges on older HGVs and vans, for air quality reasons during 2019. At the same time, London has plans the could see a number of HGVs banned from the capital for having insufficient direct vision. Operators need to plan procurement or other coping strategies now to ensure the business impact is minimised.
The Freight Transport Association’s Transport Manager Conferences will be covering the topic, ensuring that attendees have the latest information about what will happen where, as well as what vehicles will be affected and how they should plan to avoid the least disruption possible.
The Government has named 32 local authorities across England that have to take further action on air quality, but it is a complicated picture as to which of these will result in a charging zone affecting commercial vehicles. The conference will also give the FTA an opportunity to give its insight. The FTA will also brief on the effects of the London Direct Vision Standard, which could potentially see more than half of the +12 tonne HGVs that currently visit London banned completely by 2020.
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Christopher Snelling, FTA’s Head of Nation & Regional Policy, had this to say: “Over the next three years a series of blanket restrictions will come into force in UK cities for HGVs and vans. With retrofitting of existing vehicles unlikely to be an option for most operators, transport managers need to be prepared for what is ahead, so the procurement of future fleets can be planned.”
A Manufacturers Perspective – Swannells Transport – Haulage Companies in Huntingdon
This year, the conference will be sponsored by Iveco, who is also expected to give a vehicle manufacturer’s perspective on the proposed changes. Iveco’s Alternative Fuel Director, Martin Flach said: We applaud local authorities’ efforts to improve inner city air quality. The impact on truck operators is likely to be great, with many having to replace significant parts of their fleets to avoid incurring heavy penalties. This may be a fact they are not fully aware of. Iveco welcomes the opportunity to inform the audience at these important conferences.”
Last year, there were record numbers at the conference, something that the FTA is hoping to repeat this year.
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