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About one in five trucks stopped in Northland is still unfit to drive, police say, just days after they issued a warning to drivers to make sure their vehicles are up to par.
On Tuesday, police said 96 of the 534 trucks stopped during the first three days of the incident were in no condition to move, about 18 percent.
On Friday, police said 1201 heavy vehicles had been stopped to date, and 222 failed their inspections. Twenty-two had serious failures and received non-operational orders.
The operation, conducted in partnership with Worksafe, was in response to more than 800 container trucks carrying Christmas cargo to Auckland after a container ship unloaded at Northport to avoid having to wait weeks to enter Auckland’s congested ports.
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The police have issued a total of 156 infringement notices and 56 written warnings.
Denise Piper / Things
Large container trucks have been hauling cargo between Northland and Auckland.
Sergeant Major Mike Flatt said the continuing trend of fault identification is disappointing.
“In one case we identified seven failures in a single truck that stopped on State Highway 1. Two other trucks had four identified failures each.
“The largest percentage of failures identified is still related to lighting, wheels and brakes, which continues to be of concern to us.”
Brett Aldridge, senior director of safer commercial transportation for Waka Kotahi, reinforced police concerns.
“What we are finding on the side of the road is a real concern and should serve as a stark warning to the trucking industry that it must comply with safety standards,” Aldridge said.
“We will follow up with the operators to make sure they have the right systems and processes in place so their fleets are well maintained and safe.
“When we find security problems, we will not hesitate to take action.”
The road safety operation will continue for the next several weeks as more containers are transported.
