Weightwatchers - from another forum.

[Thingy]

I was over on one of the Manufacturer forums and a post caught my eye. I cannot vouch vouch for the accuracy, truth or content of the post, but i thought it may be of interest over here. I personally dont know of this, i thought they just used the protbale axle kits.

Did you know that we've all been joined up to this new club?

An article in this month's MMM outlines how 'Big Brother' is now able to monitor the weight of our vehicles as we drive along our smart motorways.

Anyone not sure about their running weight should visit their local weighbridge and take actions accordingly.

"Weight limits are monitored by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (which took over from VOSA in 2014).

New technology means that your motorhome can be weighed while it's in motion and many motorways have this technology built in. It's linked to cameras that detect number plates and can automatically compare the vehicle's actual weight with its registered weight.

This weight-in-motion (W1M) system was primarily brought in to tackle overladen trucks, but works just as effectively on motorhomes. We know VOSA has targeted vehicles leaving or arriving at motorhome shows in the past. We understand there are at least 12 WIMs in the road network but some estimates now put this at nearer 50.

If you're caught driving an overweight motorhome, you'll either get an on-the-spot fine of up to £300 per offence, or be issued with a court summons. If the 'van is deemed unsafe, you may be prevented from carrying on with your journey.

Additionally an overloaded motorhome may be uninsured and, if you are over 3,500kg and your licence doesn't allow for that, then you could face two offences - an overloading offence and a licence offence with fines of up to £1,000 for the licence transgression and six penalty points."

"PENALTIES FOR BEING OVERLOADED

If you are caught overladen, the penalties are:

Less than 10% - £100 fixed penalty.

10% up to but not including 15% -£200 fixed penalty.

15% and over - £300 fixed penalty.

30% and over - Court summons The DVSA allows a 5% leeway (this 5% leeway is not recognised in Europe) before issuing a penalty notice. For extreme cases of overloading, the fines can be up to £5,000. If the tyres are overloaded, no leeway is given"

 

[thosoneill]

The only weigh in motion site that I am aware of in Scotland is the erskine bridge on the A898

 

[Raywood]

Never heard of it myself but it could be a warning to us all long term, although I doubt we are at risk just now. With lorries there is a legal limit on axle weight so going over this would be fairly easy to recognise. With cars and caravans each has its own limits and therefore it would mean identifying the make and model and then checking it against manufacturers figures. I do not see this happening except possibly unless you have something ridiculously high.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I have been aware of this concept for some time, and the obvious use is to determine toll charges, but it seems the technology has moved on, and now there is a prospect that it could be used for enforcement purposes.

You might like to look at
http://www.cross.cz/en/products-weigh-in-motion?gclid=CjwKCAjwh9_bBRA_EiwApObaOOX9tv2CaRhF6SSsNvN-JNo9jceRroXjthTp4CVphc4ExKKUlw-fqhoCacYQAvD_BwE,
This company is claiming a weight measurement accuracy of 3%. What it doesn't tell me is if that is 3% of the measured values or if it's 3% of the full scale value, but assuming their claim is accurate, then it seems it is practical to look at smaller vehicles like cars and caravans.

Ray makes the point that in the UK caravans do not carry a machine readable registration mark, so it couldn't identify over loaded caravans, but the tow vehicle database will identify tow vehicle axle limits as well as GVW GTW.

If nothing else such systems may highlight outfits that are towards the maximum limits and could be used to prompt roadside checks.

This type of technology is bound to continue to improve and will be used more extensively. It will be harder to getaway with over loading.

 

[Hutch]

Their are a few of u on Slimming World. And we are doing well. Until the Jacobs table at The Woosies fest.

 

[Lutz]

Such weight-in-motion monitoring systems are undoubtedly aimed primarily at trucks.That being the case, I doubt whether they have a resolution of less than 50kg even though they may be quite accurate. If that is so, they would only be suitable for catching those caravan outfits which are exceeding their gross train weight limit by a very significant margin.

 

[Dustydog]

Such weight-in-motion monitoring systems are undoubtedly aimed primarily at trucks.That being the case, I doubt whether they have a resolution of less than 50kg even though they may be quite accurate. If that is so, they would only be suitable for catching those caravan outfits which are exceeding their gross train weight limit by a very significant margin.

And this may explain why none of us can quote one single case where a successful overweight prosecution has succeeeded

 

[Raywood]

Part of the problem is that in many cases the police are involved after an accident and if the caravan is damaged checking the actual weight is then impossible. The reports on motorway checks suggest that for the time being because most overloading problems are minor and can be rectified on the spot, drivers are allowed to continue with a warning after rectification. I would assume though this is recorded and if you are caught again then you might be in trouble.
I think there will have been prosecutions, but they are unlikely to be reported in the press so go unnoticed by the general public.