At a recent FTA Transport Engineer's conference it emerged that a Procurator Fiscal has "invited" Vosa to "consider taking a more active approach" to enforcing vehicle lighting and marking rules.  This follows a fatal accident in Scotland where a minibus collided with an unlit and parked semi-trailer.  The recently updated but perhaps patchily enforced Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations demand reflective conspicuity marking on trucks over 7.5 tonnes and trailers over 3.5 tonnes registered from 10 July 2011.  "Properly applied conspicuity marking may help to cut the clear danger from unlit trailers," said Allan McKenzie, Deputy Head and Senior Manager Vehicle Legislation, Public Policy and Vehicle Legislation at the SMMT.  But the Regs require that vehicles over 2500kg are lit, if parked at night on a road with a speed limit of over 30mph."
More from Allan McKenzie on +44 (0)2 073 449 202 or amckenzie@smmt.co.uk