April 2011 Newsletter
Dear IFRTT Forum subscriber, Training, education, capacity building, expertise etc. are generally lacking in various sectors in most Developing Countries, and South Africa is no exception. In addition, a large proportion of heavy vehicles in such countries operate at unacceptable levels of fitness. I recently attended my third “Brake & Tyre Watch” in Bloemfontein, a private initiative by a local trucking magazine, Fleetwatch, in an attempt to address the above two problems in the road freight industry. The first day consisted of lectures by industry experts, particularly with regards brakes and tyres, to approximately 60 traffic police officers. The second day consisted of on-the-job training at a vehicle testing centre, where heavy vehicles were thoroughly checked by experts together with groups of officers. Of the 26 trucks checked, 22 were served with discontinuation notices and a further three charged for brake- or tyre-related offences and subsequently released. To date, over... Read More