Latest Industry news – Page 130

  • Calais-vehicle-check-lr
    Article

    Migrant gangs step up attacks on British truckers

    2020-02-26T16:54:00Z

    The RHA has repeated its plea to the French authorities to do more to protect truck drivers from violent migrant gangs looking to enter the UK illegally.The call comes after an HGV driver was allegedly threatened with guns and knives at a French service station on Thursday night (20 February).The ...

  • Article

    Government urged to maintain 10-year freeze on fuel duty in March Budget

    2020-02-25T16:40:00Z

    The government is being urged not to raise fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget following speculation that the first increase in a decade is on the cards.Reports suggest that the plan under consideration is an increase of around 2ppl, although the rise may not be introduced until next year.However, the ...

  • MT Awards winners 2019
    Article

    Entries now closed for 2020 Motor Transport Awards

    2020-02-21T14:06:00Z

    The deadline to enter the 2020 Motor Transport Awards has now passed and the judges have started the process of reviewing the entries.This year, to reflect the increasing pace of adoption of electric and other alternative fuelled vans, the awards include two new categories: Clean Fleet Van of the Year ...

  • Article

    Doctors on Wheels still offering D4 driver medicals

    2020-02-21T10:22:00Z

    Doctors on Wheels is circumventing a DVLA ban on its D4 medicals by offering HGV drivers medicals with self-employed doctors, MT has learnt.DVLA stopped accepting all D4 medicals from Doctors on Wheels (DoW) from 20 June last year.The decision was triggered by an investigation into the company, which saw raids ...

  • apprentice-compass-326x245
    Article

    New probe points to major flaw in apprenticeship levy

    2020-02-20T14:19:00Z

    Hundreds of millions of pounds raised by employers and intended to pay for apprentices has not been used and has instead paid back to the government, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information act.The data obtained by the BBC showed that 55 of the largest employers in England ...

  • M1_MiltonKeynes_sunset_shutterstock-2-326x245
    Article

    FTA "appalled" by points-based immigration plan

    2020-02-20T13:36:00Z

    Classifying HGV drivers as ‘low skilled’ and refusing potential applicants from getting visas could cause the industry to grind to a halt, business groups have warned.The government this week unveiled its plan to move away from the UK’s reliance on “cheap labour” from Europe and instead “encourage people with the ...

  • m1-night-326x245
    Article

    IR35 rollout could trigger mass exodus of foreign HGV drivers

    2020-02-19T08:50:00Z

    The industry is sailing headlong into a “perfect storm” of conditions that will push the current shortage of HGV drivers to crisis levels, according to recruiter Driver Require.It said the culmination of Brexit, a drop in the exchange rate and impending IR35 legislation, which aims to close a limited company ...

  • OperationStack_PA-678x381
    Article

    New M20 barrier "ignores basic welfare needs of HGV drivers", Unite claims

    2020-02-18T12:43:00Z

    The Unite union has strongly criticised plans to rely on a movable concrete barrier on the M20 to deal with cross channel disruption while ignoring the welfare needs of HGV drivers.It said the replacement of former traffic initiative Operation Brock with a new system was going ahead without consultation with ...

  • LogisticsUK_Logo_RED-DBlue_RGB_800px (002)
    Article

    FTA to rebrand and become Logistics UK

    2020-02-18T12:04:00Z

    The FTA has announced that it will change its name to Logistics UK from the end of May.The move comes as the organisation looks to achieve more for its members and change the way it is perceived by people outside the industry."For people who don’t really know us, the ...

  • OperationStack_PA-326x245
    Article

    New M20 barrier will be marked improvement on Operation Brock, government insists

    2020-02-17T12:47:00Z

    A movable concrete barrier on the M20 that can be set up "within hours" to keep Kent’s roads moving at times of cross-channel disruption will be on standby from later this year, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced today (Monday 17 February).Once a specialist vehicle is in place, Highways England will ...

  • SevernBridge_shutterstock
    Article

    West of England councils mull congestion charges as traffic from toll-free Severn Crossing spikes

    2020-02-17T09:40:00Z

    Local councils near the Severn Crossing are considering congestion charges to cope with rising traffic levels triggered by the scrapping of tolls on the bridge.According to the latest local transport plan from the West of England Combined Authority (WECA), "charging measures and controls" may have to be introduced to tackle ...

  • Port_of_Dover_shutterstock-678x381
    Article

    RHA urges UK hauliers to prepare for ending of cabotage

    2020-02-14T09:21:00Z

    UK hauliers undertaking international work in the EU should prepare for the ending of cabotage from next year, according to the RHA.It is expected that the European Commission will disallow cabotage operations from UK companies in the EU from 1 January 2021 when the transition period ends.The RHA said this ...

  • Article

    Small transport businesses can expect "new era of growth", report claims

    2020-02-13T14:42:00Z

    Small businesses in transport and distribution are looking forward to “a new era of planning for sales growth” according to latest research, which claimed Brexit uncertainty had now been cast aside.Figures from Hitachi Capital Business Finance (HCBF) showed growth prospects for small firms in the sector had increased for the ...

  • Dover_Delays_PA-326x245
    Article

    HS2 go-ahead good news for tipper sector but will badly disrupt local road network, RHA warns

    2020-02-13T12:30:00Z

    The Road Haulage Association (RHA) has described the government’s decision to go ahead with high-speed rail link HS2 as a huge relief to the tipper sector but warned it will cause serious disruption to the wider transport and logistics industry.The work is expected to be completed by 2040 and will ...

  • Brexit-326x245
    Article

    “Urgent” government action needed to prepare for post-Brexit trade barriers, industry warns

    2020-02-12T10:09:00Z

    The logistics industry is calling for urgent action to prepare for a no-deal Brexit after the government confirmed this week that there will be trade barriers post-Brexit for both exports and imports.Speaking at a Cabinet Office event entitled Preparing Our Border for the Future Relationship, Michael Gove - the cabinet ...

  • Kevin Rooney
    Article

    "FORS not fit for purpose," insists West of England traffic commissioner

    2020-02-10T11:00:00Z

    Accreditation scheme FORS “isn’t fit for purpose”, with auditing processes that are no longer thorough enough, according to the traffic commissioner for the West of England, Kevin Rooney (pictured).Rooney’s comments at a recent compliance conference in Somerset appeared to reveal frustration among the traffic commissioners at FORS member companies attending ...

  • london-326x245
    Article

    RHA slams CAZ national charging plans as “anti-business” and “childish”

    2020-02-10T10:36:00Z

    Government plans for a national Clean Air Zone (CAZ) charging system that will not allow operators of non-Euro-6 trucks to automatically pay entry charges have been slammed as “anti-business, childish and unacceptable” by the RHA.The CAZ charging system is the brain child of the Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU), which ...

  • Nikola TRE
    Article

    Production hub revealed for Nikola TRE heavy-duty electric trucks

    2020-02-07T14:54:00Z

    The IVECO manufacturing facility in Ulm, Germany, is to be the production hub for the Nikola TRE battery electric and fuel-cell electric heavy-duty truck models.CNH Industrial brands IVECO and FPT took a $250m stake in Nikola last September.The announcement was followed in December with the unveiling of the Nikola TRE, ...

  • eActros charging
    Article

    RHA demands alternatively fueled vehicles have at least 12-year lifespan after petrol and diesel ban is brought forward

    2020-02-06T14:54:00Z

    The government must provide reassurance that cleaner lorries running on alternative fuels will last for at least 12 years if the industry is to decarbonise within the next 20 years, according to the RHA.Following an announcement this week that the UK has pulled forwards its ban on petrol and diesel ...

  • Goodman Enfield 1
    Article

    Goodman buys Enfield warehouse and distribution site

    2020-02-05T15:31:00Z

    Goodman has acquired a 187,466 sq ft warehouse and distribution site in Enfield.Only 14 miles from central London and in close proximity to the M25 via J25, the company says 'London Enfield' meets the growing need for high quality urban logistics space with strong connectivity.The site will provide customers with ...