The Fors Community Partnership is seeking to treble membership levels as part of its strategy to take the scheme national.
Aecom, supported by CILT and Fleet Source, took over the day-to-day running of Fors in February following a TfL tender process that saw them awarded a five-year concession.
Steve Agg, chief executive at the CILT, told delegates at the FTA Managing Freight in London conference that the ambition is to triple the membership level from the 3,000 currently on the scheme, as the scheme is more widely adopted outside of London.
He added that some international operators that run trucks in London will also spread the scheme’s reach overseas.
Increasing numbers of local authorities and businesses are showing an interest in Fors across the UK to demonstrate they employ quality operators, said Agg.
Setting the appropriate fee levels for the privately-run scheme to become financially self-sustaining has been a vital component to get right for the Fors to be able to achieve its expansion aims, said Agg.
"It won't be a surprise to anyone that we spent a lot of time looking at how we could make the numbers work, how to make it attractive enough for those in the scheme to want to continue and to attract others. Because we do want people to want to be in it.
"So the cost element was definitely a potential stumbling block, but we think we priced it reasonably. It's got to be paid for, it's got to be sustainable and we think we got it about right," he said.
He added that there had been a contiunance of people joining the scheme, and no kickback or large hiatus from industry about the costs.
A newly formed governance group comprising members from across the industry has also been created to ensure the Fors standards are upheld and continuously evolve to keep the scheme relevant.
Agg said this was important to ensure Fors remained attractive to both operators and contract specifiers requiring the scheme’s accreditation on jobs.
Jacqueline O'Donovan, MD at London-based Fors gold member O'Donovan Waste Disposal, said: "I'm on the board of governance and think the scheme is going in the right direction. We fully support it and think it's good for the industry."
