A European Court of Justice (ECJ) order could force the Irish government to improve and expand its mandatory training programmes for road hauliers. The European Commission (EC) has asked judges to rule that Ireland's current training system is insufficient to meet the safety standards required by the European Union (EU) Directive on training professional drivers.
It says member states must introduce an initial training system based on coursework and a test, or just a test. Ongoing training
is also required: 35 hours every 5 years.
Although these arrangements are supposed to be implemented from September 2009 for goods vehicle drivers, in Ireland "no appropriate national measures have been taken to comply with the Directive," said the EC, giving Irish drivers a competitive advantage in cost terms internationally. The Directive is designed to ensure drivers "have a certain minimum level of training in order to handle the demands of working in road transport today," stressed Brussels.
Reed Business Information Limited.©2008
