Pursuant to Regulation 16A (2) of the Heavy Motor Vehicle Regulations 1974, pursuant to Regulation 90 (1) of the Traffic Regulations 1976, and pursuant to the powers delegated to me by the Director of Land Transport Safety,
I, Laszlo Andras Hidvegi, Senior Engineer Safer Vehicles Policy, hereby exempt the vehicles specified in Schedule 1 of this notice from the requirements in Schedule 2, subject to the conditions in Schedule 3, until the time specified in Schedule 5.
For the purpose of this exemption, the term "agricultural trailer" is defined in Schedule 4.
Schedule 1
All light tractors that are being used to tow heavy trailers, all heavy tractors and all heavy agricultural trailers.
Schedule 2
1. Regulation 16A (1) (c) of the Heavy Motor Vehicle Regulations 1974, requiring vehicles to comply with the New Zealand Standard 5446: 1987 Code of Practice for Heavy Motor Vehicle Towing Connections: Drawbar Trailers.
2. The requirement in Regulation 83 (b) of the Traffic Regulations 1976, according to which a trailer must be fitted with a brake that operates immediately to stop the trailer if it becomes disconnected from the towing vehicle.
Schedule 3
1. A towing connection must be suitable for its purpose, must be in safe condition and in good working order.
2. A coupling must be fitted with a locking device, and it must be possible to verify by visual inspection that the coupling is locked in its fully engaged position.
3. The towing connection, other than a three-point agricultural linkage, fitted to a tractor to tow a trailer, must have the following, clearly displayed in kilograms, on or adjacent to the coupling, by the time specified in point 7:
(a) The maximum mass of the vehicle or vehicles that can be towed by the tractor; and
(b) the permitted maximum vertical load for the coupling.
4. The towing connection, fitted to a heavy agricultural trailer to tow a vehicle, must have the following, clearly displayed in kilograms, on or adjacent to the coupling, by the time specified in point 7:
(a) The maximum mass of the vehicle that can be towed by the trailer; and
(b) the permitted maximum vertical load for the coupling.
5. The towing connection, other than a three-point agricultural linkage, fitted to a heavy agricultural trailer for the purpose of towing it, must have the following, clearly displayed in kilograms, on or adjacent to the coupling, by the time specified in point 7:
(a) The maximum mass of the trailer and any vehicles that can be towed by the trailer; and
(b) the maximum vertical load at the coupling when the trailer is fully laden.
6. The data in 3 (a), 3 (b), 4 (a), 4 (b), 5 (a) and 5 (b) must be accurate to within 100kg and must be established by the vehicle manufacturer, the manufacturer of the towing connection, a specialist certifier approved by the director, a chartered mechanical engineer or a registered mechanical engineer.
7. The data in 3 (a), 3 (b), 4 (a), 4 (b), 5 (a) and 5 (b) must be displayed by the time of a warrant of fitness inspection that is carried out after 1 September 2003.
8. A heavy agricultural trailer and a vehicle towing it, or a heavy tractor towing a trailer, which are connected by
a coupling other than a three-point agricultural linkage, must have a safety chain to ensure that the trailer and the towing vehicle remain connected if the coupling fails.
9. The safety chain must be permanently attached to the trailer and non-permanently connected to the towing vehicle.
10. The safety chain must have a breaking strength of at least twice the maximum mass of the trailer.
11. The safety chain must have markings stamped on to it by the manufacturer, from which the breaking strength of the chain can be established and verified either directly or indirectly.
12. The safety chain must not be attached to the trailer by welding of the chain itself.
13. The attachment point of the safety chain on the trailer must have a strength that is at least equivalent to the breaking strength of the safety chain.
14. The safety chain must be connected to a connection point on the towing vehicle that is of adequate strength to ensure that the towing vehicle and the trailer remain connected if the coupling fails.
15. The attachment point and the connection point for a safety chain, where practicable, must be fitted to a component that is not readily removable from the towing or towed vehicle.
16. The length and attachment of the safety chain must allow full articulation between the tractor and the trailer and, in the case of a coupling failure, the chain must prevent the connection from contacting the ground.
Schedule 4
For the purpose of this exemption, an agricultural trailer is a trailer that is designed exclusively for agricultural purposes.
Schedule 5
This exemption will lapse on the day when Land Transport Rule: Heavy Vehicles (Rule 31002) comes into force.
Dated at Wellington this 10th day of December 2002.
LASZLO ANDRAS HIDVEGI, Senior Engineer, Safer Vehicles Policy.