The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 1991

Vehicle Length

4.—(1) Regulation 7 shall be amended as follows.

(2) In the Table in paragraph (1)—

(a) for the entry in column 2 of item 1, there shall be substituted the following entry—

• “A motor vehicle drawing one trailer, where the combination of vehicles does not meet the requirements of paragraph (5A) and the trailer is not a semi-trailer.”; and

(b) after item 1 there shall be inserted the following item—

“1A

A motor vehicle drawing one trailer where the combination meets the requirements of paragraph (5A) and the trailer is not a semi-trailer.

18.35”

(3) In paragraph (2), there shall be added at the end the words “and item 1A in the Table does not apply”.

(4) In paragraph (3), after “1”there shall be inserted “,1A”.

(5) After paragraph (5), there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(5A) The requirements of this paragraph, in relation to a combination of vehicles, are that at least one of the vehicles in the combination is not a goods vehicle or, if both vehicles in the combination are goods vehicles that—

(a) the maximum distance measured parallel to the longitudinal axis of the combination of vehicles from the foremost point of the loading area behind the driver’s cab to the rear of the trailer, less the distance between the rear of the motor vehicle and the front of the trailer, does not exceed 15.65m; and

(b) the maximum distance measured parallel to the longitudinal axis of the combination of vehicles from the foremost point of the loading area behind the driver’s cab to the rear of the trailer does not exceed 16m;

but sub-paragraph (a) shall not apply if both vehicles in the combination are car transporters.”

(6) After paragraph (6), there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(6A) For the purposes of paragraph (5A)—

(a) where the forward end of the loading area of a motor vehicle is bounded by a wall, the thickness of the wall shall be regarded as part of the loading area; and

(b) any part of a vehicle designed primarily for use as a means of attaching another vehicle to it and any fitting designed for use in connection with any such part shall be disregarded in determining the distance between the rear of a motor vehicle and the front of a trailer being drawn by it.”

(7) In paragraph (7), for the words from “the transverse plane” in the second place they occur to the end of the paragraph there shall be substituted the words “the rear of the semi-trailer”.

(8) After paragraph (7A), there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(7B) For the purposes of paragraphs (5A), (6) and (7)—

(a) a reference to the front of a vehicle is a reference to the transverse plane passing through the extreme forward projecting points of the vehicle; and

(b) a reference to the rear of a vehicle is a reference to the transverse plane passing through the extreme rearward projecting points of the vehicle,

inclusive (in each case) of all parts of the vehicle, of any receptacle which is of a permanent character and accordingly strong enough for repeated use, and any fitting on, or attached to the vehicle but exclusive of—

(i) the things set out in sub-paragraph (i) of the definition of “overall length” in the Table in regulation 3(2), and

(ii) in the case of a semi-trailer, the things set out in sub-paragraph (ii)(a) of that definition.”

(9) After paragraph (8) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(9) No person shall use or cause or permit to be used on a road, a trailer with an overall length exceeding 18.65m unless the requirements of paragraphs 1 and 2 of Schedule 12 are complied with.”