Operators in London and the south east were the least compliant in terms of keeping their vehicles well maintained last year.
This was one of the main findings from a recent investigation by MT’s sister title Commercial Motor, based on data released by the DVSA.
The DVSA’s data suggested that between 1 January and 31 December last year, 4.7% of the region’s total number of registered vehicles received a mechanical prohibition of some form- a total of 2,003 issued throughout the year.
While this was the biggest region in terms of prohibitions compared to the size of its vehicle parc, 2,003 prohibitions is a miniscule amount compared to the number of HGVs operating in the capital and surrounding areas.
A DVSA spokesman said a large proportion of these were issued by the Industrial HGV Task Force, which began in October. There is also a much higher volume of checks in the south east than any other region, he added.
Despite this, operators in the North East were handed the highest total number of prohibitions, but only marginally. Last year, trucks in this region received 2,004 mechanical prohibitions- just one more than south eastern operators.
Operators in the West were the most compliant in terms of mechanical prohibitions issued, the data showed (only 2.3% of registered HGVs received one), which again the DVSA said was in line with the number of HGVs checked in the area.
With the traffic commissioners and the DVSA hoping to get non-compliant operators off the roads quicker this year, The Hub expects the number of mechanical prohibitions issued to increase as enforcement is stepped-up.
DVSA chief executive Alastair Peoples also recently assured operators that the newly-formed agency will continue what Vosa was doing to tackle non-compliance before the merger, including targeted checks.