Majority of truckers complying with weight regulations – Edghill

Since the introduction of weigh-in-motion scales last month, approximately 2,000 trucks have been tested, and, according to Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill, the majority of these vehicles are operating within their respective weight limits.
The regulation stipulates that trucks are allowed to transport 15-tonne of goods per axle.
Weigh-in motion scales have been deployed across the country to test these trucks. Being caught with an overweight vehicle results not only in a ticket but also in the vehicle being clamped and held in place until the excess weight is removed.
“It’s working better than I anticipated. I thought we would have had some pushback from the truckers and the owners of the trucks…,” Edghill told the Starting Point podcast on Wednesday.
He noted that even, “the owners of the loam pits, the sandpits, the stone quarries…have agreed with us that the trucks are not going to leave their premises overladen.”
The Public Works Minister said authorities have to work with farmers and stakeholders in the forestry sector to ensure they too are complying with the regulation.
About 20 weigh-in motion scales and 1000 clamps have been procured.
“I’m not going to say here exactly where the scales are because they are movable scales so you might find a team here today and you see another team somewhere else. We’re just moving…all the way in the bush, where nobody ain’t seeing, from the time you leave the quarry and you come out, you going on a scale,” Edghill explained.
The government is now moving to address the issue of speeding among truck drivers. In fact, authorities are gearing up to introduce an Auto Control Speed Management System.
A sensitisation exercise, hosted by the Guyana Police Force and the Ministry of Home Affairs, is currently underway with stakeholders. The session is intended to explain the requirements of the new system and outline the roles and responsibilities of truck drivers and owners. The media was banned from covering the event.