25 April 2004 - Carriage Regulations Come into Force on 10 May 2004
New regulations on the carriage of dangerous goods by road and rail will come into force on 10 May 2004, the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) announced recently.
The Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2004 (the Regulations) consolidate into one set the previous extensive portfolio of over a dozen sets of regulations, and are relevant to the carriage of dangerous goods by road and rail.
Les Philpott, Head of Division within HSE Policy Group with responsibility for transport issues commented:
“These new Carriage Regulations are a tremendous step forward in simplifying the framework of rules on the land transport of dangerous goods. The direct referencing of RID and ADR recognises the arguments put to us that this approach would make it far simpler for those moving dangerous goods domestically and internationally to follow one set of rules. And future consultation will become a more straightforward process."
The Regulations:
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consolidate over a dozen sets of regulations
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implement EC Directives 2003/28/EC, 2003/29/EC and complete the implementation of Directive 1999/36/EC
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directly reference the 2003 texts of the international agreements – RID for rail and ADR for road – that govern the land carriage of dangerous goods
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take account of national derogations agreed with the European Commission in respect of certain transport operations involving local journeys or the movement of dangerous goods in small quantities
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carry forward the mandatory Emergency Action Code system for placarding certain GB-registered vehicles on GB journeys
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will be supported by a number of letters of authorisation allowing time-limited relaxations to some requirements, which can be found here.
The main changes brought about by the Regulations include:
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new limited quantity and load thresholds for transporting dangerous goods
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packaging requirements now based on RID/ADR
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the transport of diesel, gas oil and heating oil coming fully into scope
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new reporting requirements
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the phasing out of the competent person periodic inspection regime for transportable pressure equipment by 1st July 2006.
The Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2004 (S.I.2004 No 568) is accessible on the HMSO web site here.
The Regulations revoke:
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The Gas Cylinders (Pattern Approval) Regulations 1987 (S.I. 1987/116)
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The Pressure Vessels (Verification) Regulations 1988 (S.I. 1988/896)
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The Packaging of Explosives for Carriage Regulations 1991 (S.I. 1991/2097)
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The Carriage of Dangerous Goods (Classification, Packaging and Labelling) and Use of Transportable Pressure Receptacles Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/2092)
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The Carriage of Explosives by Road Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/2093)
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The Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (Driver Training) Regulations 1996
(S.I. 1996/2094) -
The Carriage of Dangerous Goods (Amendment) Regulations 1998 (S.I. 1998/2885)
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The Carriage of Dangerous Goods (Amendment) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/303)
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The Transport of Dangerous Goods (Safety Advisers) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/257)
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The Transportable Pressure Vessels Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/1426)
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The Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002 /2099)
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The Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Transportable Pressure Vessels (Amendment) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/1431) and other provisions.
