Euro threat to lorry ban
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• Condition 11 of the London Lorry Ban, which forces operators driving through the capital to fit air brake hush kits, might be against EC law, according to the European Commission.
The House of Lords gave the 24 participating London boroughs permission to enforce the condition in August — it had previously been outlawed by both the High Court and Court of Appeal (CM 1-7 Aug).
The Commission was subsequently approached by the Freight Transport Association, the Road Haulage Association and five operators.
They lodged a complaint with the Commission after the Law Lords judged that the London Boroughs Transport Committee could force trucks of 16.5 tonnes and above using the capital at night and weekends to fit air brake silencers.
They overturned previous rulings made by the High Court and Court of Appeal which branded the condition unlawful, because it exceeded Construction & Use regulations and local authority powers.
Riccardo Perissich, directorgeneral of the European Commission's internal market and industrial affairs directorate, has written to UK Government officials in Brussels and to the Department of Transport, but they have yet to reply.
The Commission could take the battle to the European Court, which has the power to force the British Government to drop Condition 11. But the dispute could drag through the European courts for years. The LBTC, which has run the lorry ban for five years, says: This move is not unexpected." It says it is undeterred and is talkilig to truck manufacturers to determine which vehicles can be fitted with the silencers.