Page 23 - SA Fruit Journal VOLUME 14

vehicle is not overloaded and that the load- ing and transportation is done in terms of the provisions of the Act.“330B. Consignor to have a method of determining mass”,1) A consignor shall use a method of establish- ing the mass of a vehicle and any axle or axle unit of such vehicle that is accurate as to ensure that such vehicle axle or axles are not overload- ed in terms of Part IV of Chapter VI.2) A consignor shall keep a record of the mass of every load transported from his or her premises as contemplated in sub regula- tion (1).3) The record as contemplated in sub regu- lation (2) shall be put at the disposal of any traffic officer or person appointed as contem- plated in section 50 or authorised as contem- plated in section 82 of the Act.By interpretation, the “Consignor” who is responsible for the loading should use ei- ther a weighbridge or suitable alternate axle weight measuring devise (such as a portable axle weigh mat) or other to measure and re- cord each axle or axle units mass; to ensure the axle masses comply to the loading regu- lations of a specific vehicle. A suitable form of capturing the Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) and axle masses is necessary, the consign- ment note could be adapted and used for this purpose; which is then kept on record.“330C. Goods declaration to be carried on a motor vehicle”,A person operating on a public road a motor vehicle which carries goods shall be in pos- session of a declaration containing the fol- lowing information:a) the licence number of each vehicle in the combination of vehicles;b) the nature and quantity of goods trans- ported;c) the contact particulars of the operator or in the case of a combination of vehicles, of every operator in the combination of vehicles;d) the particulars of the consignor and con-signee of the load or in the case of loads col- lected at and delivered to more than one con- signor and consignee, the particulars of every consignor or consignee;e) the name, residential and postal address of every natural person or in the case of a juristic person, the responsible director or member, an agent, consignor, consignee or operator listed in the declaration;f) the consignor and operator shall conclude a written agreement for the transportation of goods stating:i. the nature of the agreement;ii. the loading instructions; andiii. the responsibilities of the parties.g) Schedule of insurance as contemplated in regulation 330D.In terms of compliance to the above regula- tion 330D; in the case of a fruit packhouse, the consignment note could be considered an applicable form of declaration containing the required information as described above. The consignment note in its present form will be required to be formatted to contain the level of information as per point (a) to (f). The following recommendations are consid- ered in the adaption of the consignment note to be considered as a declaration:i. Vehicle and trailer licence numbers,ii. The nature and quantity of goods,iii. Mandatory weighing of cartons and or pallets with quantities contained within the consignment note to determine the gross payload mass of a load,iv. The particulars of the “Consignor” and “Consignee” as contained in (d) and (e) above.“330D. Consignor or Consignee to insure goods to be carried on a motor vehicle and the motor vehicle”,A consignor or consignee of goods shall not transport goods on a public road or accept goods unless such transportation is fully in- sured for damages that can occur as a result of an incident.By definition, a transport operator will be required to provide sufficient written evi- dence to the “Consignor” and “Consignee” that the vehicle and the goods to be trans- ported are suitably insured as required by the regulation, failing which the “Consignor” and “Consignee” is obliged not to transport goods or accept goods without such.Besides the above amendments to the regula- tions as contained in the 22nd Amendment, it is deemed to be prudent on behalf of fruit packhouses (or producers), cold storage fa- cilities and all affected parties, that an ap- pointed custodian (manager) be designated to familiarize themselves with all the relevant aspects of the Act. In particular:1. Interpretations and definitions. i.e. what constitutes a public road,2. Requirements of vehicles in compliance with regulations,3. Requirements of the loading of vehicles. i.e. vehicle masses, axle masses and load- ing,4. Requirements of drivers. i.e. licences, per- mits and driving hours,5. Obligations of the “Consignor” / “Con- signee” provisions. i.e. 330A to 330D of the regulations,6. Act or omission of manager, agent, or em- ployee of “Consignor” and “Consignee”,7. Criminal proceedings as a result of non- compliance to the Act.The Transport Act in its entirety can be ac- cessed from the following link: http://www. acts.co.za/index.html.For more information regarding the amend- ment to the Regulations, contact Mitchell Brooke mitchell@cga.co.za Tel: (031) 765 2514.The information contained herein has been reproduced and has been affirmed by Alta Swanepoel and Associates – leaders in trans- port Regulation, Legislation and Litigation matters.BEDRYFSNUUS 20 FEB | MAART 2015