Cops & Lorries

[Hibbo]

On the A90 between Dundee and Aberdeen (just north of Watford) this morning I saw that at least a dozen HGVs had been pulled over by the filth, almost every layby had a cop car and a truck in it (in both directions). I noticed a bird in a VOSA jacket looking over one truck so assume they were over all of them.

Anyone ken what's going on?

Blanket tacho checks? Clamping down on unlicensed foreign drivers? Major drug smuggling ring?

Anything that makes the roads safer can only be a good thing, I'm just intrigued as to why the traffic cops were out in such force this morning?

 

[Blobcat]

You will probably find it is a multi agency initiative, including HMCE, Department of Work & Pensions as well as the Police and Vosa. They are probably trying out their new fingerprint scanners.
There was a lot of them in Swansea doing the same last week, the route west from me to the Ferries is also a popular place for the stop checks.

 

[Ultymate]

More than likely just routine checks we get it on the A55 main route to Holyhead here in N. Wales from time to time, it's quite often done at night, full documentation checks and they let the wheel tappers and shunters loose on them and some are diverted off onto the local weighbridges Rumours have it they caught an Irish 14 yr old driving a 38 tonner one night? It's hell on wheels out there when the Irish truckers are late for their ferry sailing.

 

[bitonw]

tacho cops

No, they just after your tacho...:-( it's an easy target... And if your an ADR driver... VOSA -> ADR = time...

 

[Ultymate]

Don't think they need to put you on a weighbridge in the middle of the night to get your tacho disc

 

[bitonw]

Don't think they need to put you on a weighbridge in the middle of the night to get your tacho disc

No, I know but what I ment was that your a very easy target with tacho... And sure they will check every thing! In the Netherlands they even have electronic weightbridges in the road... So you or your company will receive a nice envelope... :-(

 

[Flying Scot]

Don't think they need to put you on a weighbridge in the middle of the night to get your tacho disc

nope but need a puter now with lectronic tachos i wunder can you log the time your stopped as rest time

 

[OmniCognateNeutronRangler]

I just think it's funny to see truck drivers being held up...."paybacks are a bitch" as they say.

to contriversial ?

 

[Ultymate]

You obviously never done any TTTTTtruckin:mrgreen:

 

[bitonw]

nope but need a puter now with lectronic tachos i wunder can you log the time your stopped as rest time

Yes, as long your not on the drivers seat your fine (by law). But it's difficult to record your rest time if the tacho disc is in the hands of the cops / vosa...

 

[Flying Scot]

Yes, as long your not on the drivers seat your fine (by law). But it's difficult to record your rest time if the tacho disc is in the hands of the cops / vosa...

You can take your 45 min rest breaks in the driving seat - not your daily rest of course unless your Irish and doing that at 50MPH. BUT back to being stopped once the chart comes out Mr(s) Plod/VOSA/VI will have to note that they removed it and sign the back of the tacho disc - a digital one has built in facilities for these people - says he munching his Yorkie Bar

 

[Flying Scot]

mind you the Irish will have a great NEW excuse once digital tachos are on all vehicles

The Digital Tacho will be set to Universal Time Co-ordinated (UTC) - as another name for Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) - all records will be against this time. The visual display will probably be set to the local time, but this will not affect the internal time. What needs to be remembered is that the stored record will be an hour behind in British Summer Time - for example - a driver starts at 0600 (6am), the record will show 0500 (5am). There will be no difference in the winter as we are back to GMT.

honest osifer with all these different times i wiz kunfoosed and dinnae ken what time it is so i just kept oan drivin fir the ferry yi ken

Apologies to any Irish MB drivers on the forum excluding Atego and Actros drivers of course

 

[Hibbo]

Hope HMRC was involved, checking no-one is using untaxed fuel! :-D

 

[C220GJS]

Hope HMRC was involved, checking no-one is using untaxed fuel! :-D

Lucky they weren't checking cars then!!!

 

[Flying Scot]

NO MB's SHEEESH FORDS and NO Mr(s) Plod

Powers to Stop

Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) enforcement staff are currently being accredited with the power to stop vehicles for roadside spot checks. In the past, Police officers always had to be present during spot checks as only they had the authority to stop vehicles.

The Police Reform Act 2002 allows Chief Constables to accredit VOSA staff with the power to stop goods and passenger vehicles. VOSA started to pilot the new powers from late 2003 in 6 areas, involving Greater Manchester, Metropolitan, Northumbria, North Wales, Cambridgeshire and Staffordshire Police forces. Subject to agreement by individual Chief Constables, the Power to Stop scheme is now ready to be rolled out to the other 36 forces in England & Wales over the next 12 months.

The Association of Chief Police Offices (ACPO), Department for Transport (DfT), the Home Office and the trade associations have supported the accreditation of VOSA staff:

"The previous method of working was not always an efficient use of police time and meant VOSA staff were reliant on the availability of uniformed officers to carry out checks. This new agreement now means Traffic officers can concentrate on their core policing duties of casualty reduction and tackling crime and disorder." - Inspector Steve Wilson of the Met’s Traffic Operational Command Unit

VOSA officers will operate using distinctly liveried Ford Galaxies with yellow & black battenburg side markings, yellow & orange chevrons at the rear and a roof bar with amber lights & variable matrix signing. They have been independently assessed by the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) and trained in driving and stopping vehicles by North Wales Police. The officers will be confined to using marked vehicles, they will also use the ‘stand & stop’ method to stop and direct vehicles into a check-site.


I WONDER how your average driver will know that this change is in effect and that these people have the power to stop you.

MMMMM getting SERIOUSLY silly now NOT ENOUGH POLIS so we give powers to 'others' MMMMMMM CAN i have a BIG GUN please i would like to be a law enforcement officer i have a few targets already in mind.

 

[Flying Scot]

Powers to Stop

the Power to Stop scheme is now ready to be rolled out to the other 36 forces in England & Wales over the next 12 months.

HE HE sorry GUYS

NOT Scotland

ITS TIME!!!!! (for those in the know)

 

[bitonw]

I know those VOSA guys very well... And the powers they have. I was ADR driver.

 

[Hibbo]

HE HE sorry GUYS

NOT Scotland

ITS TIME!!!!! (for those in the know)

Good info David, can you point us to any more? For example, not all VOSA geeks will be trained and thus authorised to pull us over, so if we get pulled over by one of these gimps, what qualification and autorisation should we ask to be shown?

PS. Bosch 3rd generation common rail is quite some system!

 

[Shambolic]

We have it at a roundabout in Balloch near Dumbarton.
They have a traffic cop standing at the roundabout and he directs all traffic from small vans up to HGVs into an adjacent carpark.
They then proceed to check the safety...tyres, brakes etc and then "dip" the fuel to check for Red diesel !!

Seen many a truck and transit leaving on the back of a wagon!!!

 

[johnmc]

We have it at a roundabout in Balloch near Dumbarton.
They have a traffic cop standing at the roundabout and he directs all traffic from small vans up to HGVs into an adjacent carpark.
They then proceed to check the safety...tyres, brakes etc and then "dip" the fuel to check for Red diesel !!

Seen many a truck and transit leaving on the back of a wagon!!!

A neighbour at our old house lost a brand new Landcruiser like that. Never got it back. Bought red diesel off a "bloke down the pub".

John