A specialist engineer says he is deeply disturbed at how much effort the Transport Agency is putting into a clampdown on motorhomes and horse trucks.
Waka Kotahi now requires vehicles that have had cab modifications since 2005 to be signed off by specialist engineers.
A heavy vehicle certifier, who RNZ agreed not to name, said the agency was going too far. I am deeply disturbed by the amount of resource NZTA has put into this [in relation to actual safety issues] and I think the reasons for it should be communicated, he said.
Some cabs might be unsafe but the criteria they are proposing does put the hoop too high .
The New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi says it s looking at ways to lessen the immediate impact of enforcing a rule that has forced some motorhomes and horse trucks off the road.
An online protest group has been set up over rule changes to campervans and horse trucks Waka Kotahi is now enforcing.
Photo: 123RF
The requirement to get a specialist engineer s signoff for any truck cab modified since 2005 is now being enforced.
But there are few specialists willing to do the costly work.
Some owners turning up for a Certificate of Fitness, are now being rejected and told they must, for the first time, get a sign-off - called an LT400 - for their modified cab, which could take months and cost $10,000-30,000.
Auckland company VanLab is among those affected if regulations outlaw porta-potties in freedom camping vehicles.
VanLab has sold hundreds of campervan conversion kits since launching 18 months ago, but company owner Andy Jones is a worried man. Changes to freedom camping regulations could throw a spanner in the works for his business, rental fleets, and thousands of campervan, caravan and motorhome owners facing the possibility of costly upgrades to ensure their vehicles are classed as self-contained. Jones, an aeronautical engineer and former McLaren supercar designer, uses 3D scanning technology to create custom-made conversion kits that slot together like a giant jigsaw, and he says moveable porta-potties make the best use of available space.