The change is estimated to affect some 30,000 vehicles.
In an introduction to the DfT response to the consultation, Jesse Norman MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Roads, Local Transport and Devolution, said: “It is important that the regulatory regime keeps up as the vehicles used on our roads develop and adapt. Increased standardisation of design has made many formerly special, ‘untestable’ vehicles no different from a practical perspective from heavy goods vehicles.”
The document said that annual roadworthiness testing for heavy goods vehicles is covered by the Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1988 (as amended). The regulations contain a number of exemptions from the requirement for annual testing for certain vehicle types.
Following European Union directives 2009/40/EU and 2014/45/EU, which require all heavy vehicles adapted from HGV chassis to be tested, the consultation proposed to remove 12 of these exemptions, with the important caveat that this would only apply to vehicles that are based on an HGV chassis.
Other vehicles to be tested include tractor units pulling exempt trailers, engineering plant, asphalt and tarmac trailers, tower wagons and motor tractors.
Vehicles brought into testing will also be required to be plated, that is, receive a certificate stating its maximum vehicle weight and maximum train weight. In the decision, the Government said: “We believe plating is of benefit in the testing and enforcement process, particularly where the vehicles operating weight changes substantially during use.”
One exception to the plating rules is volumetric concrete mixers, plating of which would limit their operating weight to 32 tonnes. The Department for Transport said it was continuing to work on their maximum weight.
For those previously-exempted vehicles that cannot be tested in a normal ATF, DVSA will be able to designate additional ‘occasional’ sites.
Exemptions remain for heavy haulage trucks under the STGO regs, vehicles used for medical, educational and lab services, and showman’s vehicles.
Seventy responses were received, most of them in favour of the plan, DfT said.