Last week, the Association of Manufacturers and the Association of Carriers forwarded a request to Mr. Avner Flor, Senior Vice President of the Ministry of Transportation with a request to postpone traffic regulations for the harnessing and transportation of cargo. According to the manufacturers and carriers, the public cannot comply with the implementation of the regulations. The letter is signed by Gabi Ben Harosh, Chairman of the Carriers’ Council, and Yehuda Hyman, Vice President of the Manufacturers Association.
The manufacturers and carriers state in their letter that following the discussion that took place with Avner Flor and his team on Sunday, September 4, with the participation of the representatives of the importers and manufacturers, Gabi Ben Harosh, the Chairman of the Carriers’ Council, Alberto Amsalem from the Port of Ashdod, and Vadi Israel from the Israel Police, the reasons why it is not possible to comply with the regulations were presented .
The reasons are: it is not possible to enforce the regulation that excludes the transport of steel cylinders for a large number of reasons and there are also difficulties and there is ambiguity in the application and realization of regulation 85 for cargo harnessing. This is due to the fact that the transportation system is not yet prepared for the subject in regards to driver training. Also, the transport system itself is not prepared and there is a very limited supply of trailers equipped with the appropriate cradles. Also, there is no precise characterization of the solutions for the regulation – there are different solutions, therefore a joint professional team must be established with the representatives of the manufacturers, the carriers’ council and the Ministry of Transportation in order to produce agreed solutions.
It also became clear at the hearing that the police are neither aware nor up-to-date on the installation of taps and for now cannot enforce them. Also, the permanent cradles will require repeated transports (double trips) – this is on the order of 100,000 rolls per year. Therefore, the installation will significantly increase the density on the roads, the air pollution and will also significantly increase the risks of road accidents due to the increase in the volume of transport.
The carriers and industrialists claim that the installation will double the transportation costs for all metal importers and producers in Israel and as a result will increase the cost of living. In addition, according to them, fulfilling the new regulation will require a considerable increase in the truck fleet in the country, in order to carry out all the transports.
“In light of all the above-mentioned reasons,” the manufacturers and carriers state in their letter to Mr. Befleur from the Tehhavora office, “it is very clear that the economy is not prepared for the implementation of regulation 85 and we, the representatives of the manufacturers and carriers, request to postpone the regulation and at the same time establish a joint professional team as soon as possible to determine the characterization of the regulation, taking into account to the safety needs required by the device and at the same time to provide an adequate response to the economic and operational limitations arising from the use of such a device.’