Public Works Ministry to implement stringent weight limits for heavy duty vehicles

Oct 02, 2011 News

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-“… we have one BK International truck carrying the weight of ten ordinary trucks combined.”

Billions of dollars are being spent on road construction in Guyana and while no one will complain that it is costing the taxpayer a hefty sum, they certainly will be upset at the way these very roads are being used.
Every one of these rehabilitated or new roads carries a specific weight limit, but just who is policing the type of vehicles and their laden weight on these roads is unknown.
Take for instance the Model M trucks which have a weight limit of five tons. It has been found that they sometimes exceed their limit by more six tons, causing significant damage to most of the roads they traverse.
Then there are the very trucks that belong to companies that are in the road building business, which are also doing great damage to the roads, prompting one businessman to remark that the administration is engaging in the penny wise pound foolish theory.
“These people are getting the contracts, so the more roads that are damaged, the more contracts they will get. It’s that simple,” the businessman reasoned.
For too long there have been numerous complaints of roads being destroyed a few months after they were built and in most cases the contractors’ liability is expired.
Road building comes under the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation and it is in the Ministry’s interest to ensure that the roads are used in such a manner that they last the specified period.

To this end the Ministry is strongly contemplating limiting access of container and other heavy duty trucks to certain roads and streets.
The move will be to prevent excessive damage by over laden trucks and will form part of the ministry’s maintenance policy of the roads.
Apart from over laden trucks with rubber wheels, concerns are also being raised by other industrial equipment that uses metal tracks, since these too cause significant damage to the roads.
Mr. Leon Goring is the Engineering Coordinator of the Ministry of Public Works, who has responsibility for the Weight Control Programme.
He informed that in the past there were weight stations in specific locations to check the weight of vehicles using certain roadways.
However, because of congestion, this initiative proved burdensome. In addition, the present legislation provides little deterrent to violators of the weight limits. For instance, the fine is still a measly $15 while the weight limits does not take into consideration the type of vehicles that are using the roads today, including container haulers.
“We had to review and redo the legislation. Under the old legislation, almost every vehicle on the road will be breaking the law,” Goring told this newspaper.
He spoke of a plan to put the necessary infrastructure in place such as weight stations, similar to the ones at the Demerara Harbour Bridge, the Guyana/Brazil crossing at Lethem and the Wismar Bridge.
“So if a vehicle looks suspicious we will pull them over and have them roll over a weight station,” Goring explained.
This position is welcomed by one local importer who explained that stringent measures are in place in other countries to ensure that trucks, especially container haulers and other heavy duty vehicles do not damage the roadways.
“There is a specific weight limit for the road that is required by the US Department of Transportation. You really cannot overload a container,” the importer stated.
He said that in one particular case, a trucking company was fined US$500 for an overloaded container.
“This is how serious these people are. But in Guyana we have one BK International truck carrying the weight of ten ordinary trucks combined,” the importer said.
In other road protection methods employed by the US administration, some vehicles with commercial licence plates cannot be driven on certain roads.
“These heavy container trucks do not only damage the roads, they also do damage to the trucks that haul them, the scales and even the hoists,” the businessman explained.
But the local Ministry of Works official revealed plans that provides a glimmer of hope for Guyana’s roads.
He pointed out that no village access road is configured to accommodate public road traffic and this is where the various Neighbourhood Democratic Councils come in.
“They can put up barriers to limit the types of vehicles that go into a community. Even a drinks truck going into a village road presents problems,” Goring told Kaieteur News.
But just how soon will the measures to save Guyana’s roads be put into place is anybody’s guess.

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