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Raising kerbside loading limits from 20 to 40 minutes has helped to reduce the number of Penalty Charge Notices received by operators by up to 75 per cent, according to the Freight Transport Association.
The changes were implemented following a campaign with Westminster City Council and other London Boroughs to get the limit raised.
A three month trial in Westminster saw the number of penalty notices issued drop by 48 per cent, which it estimates would add up to an annual saving of more than £1 million.
Furthermore, the FTA has forecast a saving of near to £5 million across London if the pattern is the same in other London boroughs.
Jim Valentine, director of Jayhawk, a fine art handling specialist, has reported a three quarter reduction in penalty notices following the changes.
He said: “With consignments that may be worth millions of pounds there is no possibility of rushing to get the job finished. As our shortest collections take about 26 minutes, we often got penalty notices at twenty minutes when we were nearly done. The change to 40 minutes has made an enormous difference to us.”
Operator 3663 also approves of the increased loading time. Following the company’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint it has been optimising loads to reduce the number of deliveries it makes, but this increased loading times.
Graham Rennie, director of fleet at 3663, said: “Operators are under tremendous pressure to reduce costs and minimise their carbon footprint but too often the restrictions on the street work against us. These recent changes have helped us towards staying legal and meeting our customers’ expectations.”
The FTA is now working with a number of London boroughs to tackle the problem of penalty notices being issued to drivers who are making legal deliveries, but who are away from their vehicle when it is inspected.
