The Haulage Industry is Growing
The road haulage industry recorded a tremendous growth last year both in distances covered and the amount of material transported.
According to The Domestic Road Freight Statistics, the total freight carried by HGVs in 2015 saw an increase of 12% from 2014, recording a staggering 152 billion tonnes. The distance covered by the HGVs in the same period grew by 9% to 18.4 billion kilometers.
The data shows the significant growth achieved by the industry just over a period of one year. So, are we gong to see a spurt in growth this year as well?
What are the experts saying?
Jack Semple, the director of policy with the RHA, considers it to be an outstanding performance by a vast and diversified industry. He opined that the growth was exceptional considering the fact that the roads are now congested and busier than ever before!
When asked about the future of the industry, he impressed the necessity of the road authorities in maintaining and leveraging their basic infrastructure – the roads. It is not just for the benefit of haulage industry, but also for the economic improvement of whole UK.
The head of FTA’s national and regional policy, Christopher Snelling, views the growth as a step to match the increasing demands of the customers. It is also evident from the fact that the industry recorded a 1/5 increase in efficiency since 2004 with rising candidates looking for HGV jobs Southampton.
The popularity of HGV transportation
While HGV has gained traction in the past year, movement of foreign goods has decreased.
According to DfT, 2015 saw a drop of 9% in the volume of goods exported by the UK.
There was also a 4% decrease of goods entering the country.
Foreign registered HGVs accounted for only 1% of road freight in 2015. It only goes to show the increase in demand for HGV transportation with 98% of goods carried by them to the EU15 countries.
The European Commission (EC) and Department of Transport (DfT) has been at loggerheads over the issue of the introduction of an HGV Road User Levy. A recent claim has been circulating the media based on a meeting between the two agencies back in September.
The meeting was supposedly held to discuss the agenda of the Road User Levy and how it could be amended to suit the EU regulations. It was revealed by a close EU source to Motortransport.co.uk, who further added that the EC was waiting for responses from the UK authorities.
The Stance of European Commission
According to reports, the DfT was open to the suggestion of amending the current HGV Road User Levy to make it fall in line with EU rules.
The EC had already made a decision back in April to initiate legal procedures against the government of the UK for the levy. The charge according to them was against the EU regulations on the free movement of goods in the UK.
The levy has lead to the decrease in excise duty for trucks in the UK, making it a cash-neutral measure. It is seen as a punishment for foreign HGV operators and candidates looking for HGV jobs Southampton.
DfT Plays their Part
The claim was not reinforced by DfT. A spokesperson told the same website that they had notified EC about their opinion which views the HGV levy in line with the free movement of goods in the UK.
Is EC Ready to Wait?
The EC had already declared legal action against the German government for a similar type of levy charged from foreign drivers for using German autobahns. But in the case of UK government, EC did not proceed after serving them a formal notice in April.
The EU source cited the positive response from the government as the reason for EC’s wait. The case was different from Germany where the authorities were not even ready to enter into any negotiation.