A timber haulier who racked up two prohibitions in the first two months of his O-licence has been refused permission to add a further three vehicles and three trailers to his licence. Instead, Carlisle-based Michael Johnston, trading as M Johnston & Kids, has been granted an additional vehicle and trailer by North Western Deputy Traffic Commissioner Mark Hinchliffe who considered the original application too big an increase.
The DTC was told Johnston had received a delayed prohibition and
two variation notices. A maintenance investigation in October 2006 was unsatisfactory because the inspection reports were not fully completed due to brake efficiencies not being recorded. Johnston said he transported timber mainly around Cumbria and to north Wales, although the overweight prohibition had arisen in Scotland, when the vehicle was loaded at the roadside on an incline.
The delayed prohibition had been for a speed limiter yet, when he took the vehicle to Scania at Carlisle, he was told the limiter was fine. The variation notices were for low brake efficiency. The brakes were relined but, on the second occasion, the automatic slack adjuster had wound itself off. In future, he would have roller-brake tests carried out every quarter. Work was readily available for the additional vehicles.
Johnston agreed to have a daily driver nil-defect reporting system, four-weekly safety inspections and correctly completed safety inspection records. He also agreed his maintenance
contractor would do an effective pre-MoT inspection before a vehicle was sent in for test. The DTC did not believe he was doing Johnston a disservice by limiting his expansion as it was doubling the responsibility he had now.
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