The Ukrainian Association of International Road Carriers (AsMAP) favors introduction of weighing systems on roads, AsMAP’s President Leonid Kostiuchenko has told the CFTS portal.
"We currently spend more than USD 180 million on unplanned repairs per year. Practically the entire chassis goes out of operation because of such roads. Therefore, we favor mandatory control on the roads," Kostiuchenko said.
According to him, out of the 11 million automobiles registered in Ukraine, only 36,000 engage in international transportation and about 3 million are trucks that do not belong to the association.
According to Kostiuchenko, many grain traders see transportation in overloaded trucks as a way of making savings without realizing the harm caused to the entire society.
"The ‘Law on Road Transport,’ in which we have insisted on two points, is currently being drafted. Firstly, the owner of goods, a port - if it is a container - or the freight forwarder should be held responsible for overloading. Secondly, the fine for repeated violation of the rules should be around UAH 90,000," said Kostiuchenko.
The Nikolayev divisions of the Automobile Road Service and the State Road Transport Inspectorate (Ukrtransinspektsia) installed a system for weighing trucks heading in the direction of Nikolayev on the Nikolayev-Dnepropetrovsk highway near the Sandora plant on Tuesday, 18 August. However, truck drivers blocked the highway and demanded removal of the weighing system.
