By Jonathan Bhana-Thomson, CEO, Heavy Haulage Association
The Association has always been seen as providing advocacy for the large, oversize end of the freight sector with heavy overweight loads, as well as for the house mover group – however we are now including in our membership group those operators that move smaller oversize loads on a regular basis.
We have formed a General Oversize sector group which aims to provide better information to those transport operators that are moving loads that are oversize, but not overweight, and need to comply with the piloting, travel times, lighting and signage requirements for Category 1 to 3 over-dimension loads.
Identifying the category
While the rules and requirements for transporting smaller over-dimension loads are in the Vehicle Dimension and Mass Rule, the first step is to establish which size category that the load/vehicle is in. This is a combination of width and forward distance. Essentially, the wider it is, and the longer the vehicle is from the rear axis forward, increases the category of the load, and the requirements that are placed on the load when moving.
Calculating the forward distance can be complicated at times, and also the front and rear overhang can impact on which category the load is in, so it pays to be fully aware of the details of these calculations.
Travel times
The larger the load the more restrictive the travel times, and whether the load is travelling in an identified City Area, can also affect the permitted travel times.
The basis of the restriction is that having over-dimension loads travelling at off-peak times in built-up areas will make the transport of the load safer. There are, however, nationwide rules for travel on the weekend that need to be abided by, and at present these do vary according to the size of the load, so attention to these requirements is important.
Load pilot requirements
The use of load pilots to accompany the load is to warn oncoming and following traffic that there is a load that is a larger than usual on the road.
The oversize load of vehicle may be wider than the traffic lane or may need to swing out into the opposing lane to negotiate a turn.
A load pilot may not be needed to actively manage the traffic at all sections of the journey, but they may be required on tighter sections of road to slow traffic down as it passes the load.
For loads carried on transporters, generally the requirement is that a load pilot is required when the load exceeds 3.1 metre in width and then extra pilots are added according to the VDAM Rule (for example at night; when the load is in Category 3; or where there is excess rear overhang.) For each load the requirements will encompass a variety of factors and be specific to that load, so they need to be analysed thoroughly.
Lighting and signage
The requirements for the oversize sign and warning flags or hazard panels, all depend on the size of the load, and whether the load is being transported during the hours of darkness.
At night the signs need to be reflective so that the headlights of oncoming vehicles can pick up the fact that the oversize load is there, and with the hazard panels at the bottom corners of the load – the outline of the edge of the load.
Equally, not displaying these panels when they are permanently fixed on transporters can be a compliance issue to attend to. The requirements for lighting are there for the same reason for those loads that require them – to identify the extent of the load to oncoming traffic.
There are many aspects to be aware of when transporting loads that are in Category 1, 2 or 3, and it’s the aim of setting up this new sector group to promote awareness of the requirements so that there is better overall compliance with the rules.
The Association welcomes interest from companies involved in the transport of these over-dimension loads to join our sector, and to get ready access to good information to aid transportation of these goods in conformity with VDAM.
We also want to hear from those operators that find that the rules need to be tweaked to better suit today’s roading environment. We currently have a schedule of small changes to VDAM in front of the Ministry of Transport to result in more common-sense rules, and we look forward to bringing these amendments to fruition in a revised version of VDAM.
Parting words from Jeremy Sole- a final column