•Heavy commercial vehicles hauling containers have been breaching the rule, where 40-foot high cube containers being used are higher than the allowed limit.
•Most traders prefer to use the 40-foot high cube shipping containers as they give more room to stack goods unlike general shipping units, they offer a little extra height.
Image: EMOJONG OSERE
A row is brewing between transporters, shippers and the government over the implementation of the EAC vehicle load act, which limits the height of vehicles.
The government, through the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) has been enforcing the East African Community Vehicle Load Control Act, 2016, meant for the region.
The Act puts the maximum overall height of vehicles at 4.3 metres, unless it is an abnormal load, which is allowed, subject to the authority granting and exemption permit which gives conditions on times of travel and routes to be followed, to protect public safety and road related infrastructure.
Heavy commercial vehicles hauling containers have been breaching the rule where most 40-foot containers being used are higher than the allowed limit.
Most traders prefer to use the 40-foot high cube shipping containers as they give more room to stack goods unlike general shipping units, they offer a little extra height.
The regional rule has, however, not been fully enforced as authorities allowed shipping lines and transporters to continue using high cube units.
KeNHA’s move comes as Kenya leads her regional peers in fully enforcing the law, which is meant to reduce damage on roads, among others.
Each Partner State is mandated to enforce these laws within their highways under the EAC Act, 2016.
Those using the high cube containers or any other abnormal load on the road must obtain a permit.
Transporters and shipping lines have however raised concerns over the decision, calling on the government to allow them to continue using the units.
In a notice issued on Friday, the Kenya Transporters Association (KTA) told transporters in the country to stop loading 40-foot high cube shipping containers until KeNHA “resolves the matter officially.”
It also wants importers to stop using the high cube containers into Kenya and transiting through Kenya.
Trucks of standard dimensions loaded with standard 40ft high cube shipping containers are exceeding the prescribed height by a maximum of 0.2 metres.
“Importers stop using standard 40-foot high cube containers into Kenya and transiting through Kenya as KeNHA will impound the trucks and containers,” KTA chairman Newton Wang’oo said in the notice.
KTA has requested a 0.2-metre tolerance to allow transporters to load these containers, noting the height has no negative impact on the roads or related infrastructure.
“It is only in Kenya that trucks carrying standard 40ft high cube shipping containers are being impounded. Meanwhile, countries operating under the same East Africa Axle Load regulations (2016), like Tanzania, are not impounding similar trucks or requiring permits for the same,” Wang’oo noted.
The Shippers Council of Eastern Africa (SCEA) has called on KeNHA to engage stakeholders, against the backdrop that both the trucks and high cube containers meet the various standards.
“Raising the total height to 4.5 metres from the current 4.3 metres would be ideal. Meanwhile, SCEA requests KeNHA to stop the arrests as a way out is being discussed,” SCEA acting chief executive Agayo Ogambi said.
KeNHA however said it was implementing the law that is not only meant for Kenya, but the region, even as it dismissed claims of impounding of vehicles.
“It is the law. If there are any changes needed, then the law can be amended when all the EAC Partner States are agreed in the same, otherwise other EAC Members would accuse the country of not being compliant with the implementation of the Act,” a top official at KeNHA told the Star.