Call to reform lighting and marking regs

Transport and crane association ESTA has moved closer to harmonising lighting and marking regulations for abnormal road transport in Europe.

The European association of abnormal road transport and mobile cranes has completed a report and will start lobbying industry organisations and political groups to win support for its proposals.

The report was done by a stakeholder group created by ESTA in 2018. It suggests adapting the existing ECE R48 regulation – one of the regulations overseen by the World Forum for the Harmonization of Road Vehicles – as the basis for agreed Europe-wide lighting and marking standards for abnormal road transport, superseding the plethora of local and national rules in operation.

Co-chaired by ESTA’s Section Transport president André Friderici and vice-president Iffet Türken, the group’s members included representatives from BSK, TLN, Tii, Broshuis, Kässbohrer, Hipertrans and Faymonville.

Türken said, “The group included all types of stakeholders – transport companies, manufacturers and associations. This is the first time that all of these stakeholders have taken a joint position on this subject and I am delighted that we have managed to create a common document.”

If the proposals are adopted, all the signatories to the World Forum – who include all EU countries – would be required to apply them.

Türken added, “We are playing a long game here. We won’t be able to change things overnight, but we have made a start.”

Earlier in 2019 Ton Klijn, ESTA director, wrote to the IRU, the powerful international road transport industry association, seeking support for the working group’s proposals. ESTA members and the European heavy transport industry have long been frustrated by what they see as a plethora of petty and unnecessary regulations that can sometimes be used as a kind of protectionism by local authorities.

“Minor infringements of local regulations can be extremely expensive and time-consuming,” Türken said. “And the situation is not improving – indeed, many of our members believe it is actually getting worse.

“You can easily lose half a day or more because a sign is in the wrong language, for example. Surely it can’t be beyond our industry and our regulators to agree accepted common standards,” Türken continued.