Targeted enforcement for freight vehicles

Background

The UK Department for Transport was keen to explore if success with targeted enforcement for roadside checks on domestic HGVs could be extended to all heavy goods vehicles on Britain’s roads. 
A previous study into the applicability of a vignette registration process was to be reviewed and compared against other approaches for developing a database linking a freight vehicle to its operator.  The premise was that the encounter history of the operator could then be used for targeted enforcement.

Business Challenge

Our client required:

• An understanding of the international transport industry in Great Britain and Northern Ireland
• An understanding of legal constraints on the applicability of potential solutions, particularly those related to data sharing between government departments and the implications of State Aid for issues affecting non UK commercial operators
•  An understanding and costing for large scale marketing
•  Careful stakeholder management in a sensitive arena to be explored

Our Approach

Consulting Stream led the review of the DfT paper and then developed the options workstream. 

• Candidate options were developed both from internal workshops and then through client, wider government and freight industry facing workshops
• Candidate solutions were assessed against a multidisciplinary assessment framework, evaluating the legality, high level cost benefit, stakeholder acceptability and operational feasibility of the options. 
• Four candidate options were then taken forward for more detailed review.  This analysis formed the basis of an interim report and a presentation to Ministers
• A recommendation and detailed examination of the design principles for the most practicable solution was then developed and presented in a final report.

The report was then used to inform Ministers in both the Department for Transport and HM Treasury of the likely impact, costs and benefits of the proposed scheme.

Business Outcome

The study showed that whilst some broad support for the preferred option could be gained, and the net business case was positive, the wider economic benefits related to the environment and safety from the scheme were relatively small.  The proposal did however compare well against the costs of achieving the same safety outcomes by manpower.  The risks associated with the legal issues identified were also assessed and described in the report.

Services Provided

• Study review
• Stakeholder management
• Options Development
• Analysis and design
• Multidisciplinary study management

Skills Deployed

• Scheme design
• Stakeholder management
• Analysis Framework Definition
• Project and Risk management
• Statistical, economic and financial analysis

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