60Users of certain goods vehicles to hold operators' licences
(1)Subject to subsection (2) of this section and to the other provisions of this Part of this Act, no person shall, after the appointed day for the purposes of this section, use a goods vehicle on a road for the carriage of goods—
(a)for hire or reward ; or
(b)for or in connection with any trade or business carried on by him,
except under a licence granted under this Part of this Act (hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as an " operator's licence ").
(2)Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply—
(a)to the use of a small goods vehicle as defined in subsection (4) of this section ; or
(b)to the use of a vehicle of any class specified in regulations.
(3)It is hereby declared that, for the purposes of this Part of this Act, the performance by a local or public authority of their functions constitutes the carrying on of a business.
(4)For the purposes of subsection (2)(a) of this section a small goods vehicle is a goods vehicle which—
(a)does not form part of a vehicle combination and has a relevant plated weight not exceeding three and a half tons or (not having a relevant plated weight) has an unladen weight not exceeding thirty hundredweight; or
(b)forms part of a vehicle combination (not being an articulated combination) which is such that—
(i)if all the vehicles comprised in the combination (or all of them except any small trailer) have relevant plated weights, the aggregate of the relevant plated weights of the vehicles comprised in the combination (exclusive of any such trailer) does not exceed three and a half tons ;
(ii)in any other case, the aggregate of the unladen weights of those vehicles (exclusive of any such trailer) does not exceed thirty hundredweight; or
(c)forms part of an articulated combination which is such that—
(i)if the trailer comprised in the combination has a relevant plated weight, the aggregate of the unladen weight of the motor vehicle comprised in the combination and the relevant plated weight of that trailer does not exceed three and a half tons;
(ii)in any other case, the aggregate of the unladen weights of the motor vehicle and the trailer comprised in the combination does not exceed thirty hundredweight.
In any provision of this subsection " relevant plated weight" means a plated weight of the description specified in relation to that provision by regulations; and in paragraph (b) of this subsection " small trailer " means a trailer having an unladen weight not exceeding one ton.
(5)A person who uses a vehicle in contravention of this section shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £200.