Skip to main content

UK vehicle agency introduces remote enforcement

The UK Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) is to introduce remote enforcement for more compliant transport operators. The remote enforcement office (REO) will be tested by VOSA in an initial six month trial scheduled to start in October.
September 17, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
The UK Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) is to introduce remote enforcement for more compliant transport operators.  The remote enforcement office (REO) will be tested by VOSA in an initial six month trial scheduled to start in October.

VOSA examiners currently visit an operator’s premises to inspect vehicles; the REO will request relevant information to be sent to its office where it will be reviewed and recommendations made to the operator.

According to VOSA, introducing an efficient, less burdensome method for dealing with the more compliant operators will release resources to target the serious/serially non-compliant operator. The more encounters a non-compliant operator has the greater the cost to their operation, thus removing any competitive advantage by running a non-compliant operation.

VOSA will use an operator’s history of compliance to identify those most suitable for this approach and will monitor data from these operators to ensure they remain complaint.

Commenting after the recent Freight Transport Association Transport Manager Conference, VOSA’s Richard Denby said: “VOSA has been listening to feedback from the industry and the Trade Associations, especially the FTA and are looking to change the way we deliver enforcement. We want compliance to equal good business value, and to ensure that a non compliant operator does not have a competitive edge over a compliant operator and cannot have a greater profit margin than a compliant operator. We want a level playing field so that non compliant operators cannot unfairly bid for contracts above a compliant operator.”

Related Content

  • Preparations building for French national truck toll
    September 12, 2012
    The Autostrade led Ecomouv consortium is developing the next big system of truck tolling likely to be introduced in Europe – France’s ‘Eco-tax’. Jon Masters reports. Since October last year, a consortium of companies has been working on developing the technological and administrative systems necessary for a national system of truck tolling in France. Eco-tax, France’s truck toll, is not necessarily going to be implemented. The Ecomouv consortium has been set up as a long term concessionaire, but so far only
  • Vancouver's metro transport promotes alternatives to driving
    January 26, 2012
    David Crawford looks at Vancouver and the legacy of a Olympic transport success
  • Cooperative infrastructures, cooperative enforcement?
    March 2, 2012
    A dozen years from now, will enforcement still be constrained by the legislative thinking which currently prevails? Or will the needs of the wider transport community bring about some welcome changes?
  • Developing ‘next generation’ traffic control centre technology
    July 4, 2012
    The Rijkswaterstaat and Highways Agency have joined forces to investigate what the market can do to realise an idealistic vision for traffic control centre technology. Jon Masters reports One particular seminar session of the Intertraffic show in Amsterdam in March was notably over subscribed. So heavy was the press to attend that your author, making his way over late from another appointment, could not get in and found himself craning over other heads locked outside to overhear what was being said. The