Dear IFRTT subscriber
In my last newsletter, in March 2018, I referred to the protest action
(including the burning of trucks and looting of payloads) on some of the
national highways in South Africa. Many of these actions were a means of
expressing dissatisfaction with the employment of foreign drivers by SA
transport companies. Unfortunately this form of protest action has
continued on and off during the past year. In most cases, particularly
during the past number of weeks, the protest action has been related to
the dissatisfaction with service delivery by some local municipalities.
In terms of transport efficiency, cost and safety, such protest action
is very detrimental to the economy. General elections will be held in
South Africa this coming Wednesday, 8 May, so hopefully such protest
action will reduce considerably thereafter.
There is currently an EU-funded project underway in a large part of
Africa, the Tripartite Transport & Transit Facilitation Programme
(TTTFP), which primarily addresses the harmonisation of road user
regulations in member countries. The Tripartite currently consists of 22
member countries stretching from Egypt to South Africa, but excluding
West Africa. Topics being addressed include vehicle testing centres,
driver testing and driver license cards. Earlier this year, a draft
Model Law for Vehicle Load Management was circulated to participating
countries for comment. The Model Law primarily addresses the
harmonisation of means to regulate heavy vehicle loads by road
authorities. Topics include accreditation and auditing of weigh
stations, consequences of exceeding permissible maximum masses, abnormal
(indivisible) loads and demerit points systems. Of particular interest
is a section entitled “Performance-based Scheme”, which makes provision
for the relevant Minister to introduce a scheme for High Capacity
Vehicles (HCVs) based on certain requirements. Of course, the Model Law
is at a very high level, and it is up to individual countries to decide
whether and when to introduce such a scheme. However, the inclusion of
the performance-based approach to heavy vehicle design and operation in
the Model Law does give recognition to the importance of such an
approach and I believe that in the long term, it will facilitate the
possibility of HCVs that meet certain agreed performance standards to
operate in various countries as well as on various Regional Corridors in
Africa.
During February and March, the 59thand 60th RTMS/PBS awareness
workshops were held in Johannesburg at the Head Offices of Coca Cola
Beverages South Africa (CCBSA) and Toyota SA respectively. The RTMS
(Road Transport Management System) self-regulation accreditation scheme,
which is based on the SA national standard, SANS 1395, now has over 17
000 participating heavy vehicles, including some 2 500 buses. At the
60thworkshop, Toyota Hino was presented with a special award in
recognition of their ongoing support of the RTMS/PBS workshops over the
past 10 years. At the 59thworkshop, RTMS certificates were awarded to
six companies, including CCBSA (with approx. 840 trucks including their
owner driver fleet) and a number of smaller emerging operators. Given
the context of high levels of non-compliance in the heavy vehicle sector
in many developing countries (speeding, overloading, lack of vehicle
servicing & maintenance, poor driver health and inadequate driver
training), one of the identified benefits of the RTMS has been to
provide a best practice framework for emerging operators as a basis for
developing a sustainable business based on sound fleet management
principles. This has become more evident through the case studies
presented by smaller operators at the RTMS workshops (see
rtms-sa.org/presentation
( http://www.rtms-sa.org/presentation) )
The RTMS NPC recently signed an agreement with the Smart Freight Centre
(based in Amsterdam) to promote and present their Smart Transport
Manager’s Training (STMT) course in South Africa. The first two 2-day
courses were presented during the week of 8 April in Johannesburg with a
total of 27 delegates attending. The aim of the course is to share good
practice with fleet managers regarding ways to reduce vehicle emissions.
Focus areas include fuel management, driver skills, vehicle
specification and maintenance, performance monitoring and utilising
technology. Feedback from the delegates was well above expectation. The
STMT course is planned to be presented in Durban, Cape Town and
Johannesburg during the second half of 2019.
The effect of climate change continues to be evident on the African
continent. Cyclone Idai that hit Beira in Mozambique on 14 March causing
catastrophic flooding and over 700 deaths can most certainly be regarded
as an extreme weather event. During the second half of April, severe
flooding occurred in Durban with 70 people losing their lives.
We are well into autumn in South Africa. Last weekend I spent 2 nights
in Clarens, a quaint town near Lesotho and the Drakensberg mountains,
where the minimum temperature was 3°C. However in Johannesburg and
Pretoria the temperatures are currently ranging between about 10 and
26°C.
All the best and drive safely
Paul Nordengen
IFRTT Vice-President: Africa
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