The new Regulations will come into force on 4th April 2005 and will apply to commercial drivers and crews of Heavy Goods Vehicles and Public Service Vehicles in Great Britain. Transport Minister David Jamieson said, "These Regulations should deliver safety benefits for drivers and other road users, improve drivers' working conditions and help make the road transport sector more attractive as a career choice. We have worked closely with industry and unions to ensure that the new arrangements are practical, clear and equitable. We intend to review the new rules in the light of operational experience to make sure that this remains the case"

The rules were supposed to come into force on March 23rd but obviously this date has been missed, and pushed back 'til April. To those of use who have been following the passage of the RTD, this comes as no surprise at all. Over the past few weeks and months no one from Government has been able to provide a comprehensive answer regarding the finer points of the RTD as it will be implemented in UK law.

Public guidance on the regime, that is, how it will actually effect people 'on the ground', will, according to the DfT Web site, "..be published on the . [sic]" . Note the sentence is unfinished.

Once again it would seem that the lack of information will persist until the end.

The complete announcement is available here

http://www.dft.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2005_0025