Capital Equipment News June 2016

COMMENT

THE RFA CONTINUES as a beacon for the truck industry

bulk materials and large volumes of goods over long distances. In addition, vehicle manufacturers are continuously improving their designs to meet global requirements for significant reductions in truck emissions and improvements in fuel consumption. The value of the truck to freight transport calls for vehicle manufacturers and road haulers to make a concerted effort to mini- mise any negative image surrounding trucks. Transport operators should also make great- er use of the truck’s load capacities to avoid unladen journeys. If our National Authority wishes to reopen rail transport, let it open up to be competitive with the current transport mode. Competi- tion will ultimately lead to greater efficiency and, in particular, its potential for long dis- tance transport to increase its market share. Enforcing unreasonable legislation to make road transport more expensive in order to increase the appeal of rail, would be going backwards.

T he RFA (Road Freight Association) has concluded another successful conference giving manufacturers and transporters the opportunity to express their opinions and concerns in view of losses to the Rand, dwindling investor confidence, low economic growth, rising interest rates, labour costs and a plethora of political and economic issues that have a direct bearing on the industry. With the impact of some of the proposed legislation and the strategic issues facing the industry, it behoves everyone involved to speak up for the trucking industry and high- light the important positions trucks occupy in freight transport. Politicians are often on about reviving the railway system to take loads off the roads but this tactic could be viewed as an excuse to delay repair to the roadway system.

development since they have been available, for about 100 years. They have evolved through the mechanical age to the technical marvels they are today. The technological advantage of a truck is what allows it to master the transport de- mands of the modern economy more suc- cessfully than other transport modes. It is flexible and can reach almost any destina- tion unencumbered by predetermined rout- ing. It can also achieve higher speeds and becomes a far quicker medium of delivering freight. These high-speeds are favourable for moving valuable goods so the capital tied up in the load can be freed without delay − as opposed to other means of transport, such as rail − which operate on a fixed time table. Furthermore, a truck can be used to move smaller loads economically compared to rail, which only performs well when moving

Pierre Sanson, Editor

Trucks have shaped the course of economic

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