Govt urges ban on non-standard axles

To protect the country’s road infrastructure, the federal government has urged provinces to develop comprehensive plans aimed at banning non-standard axles. This initiative emerged from a high-level meeting led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, where key resolutions were adopted to implement the Axle Load Regime (ALR).

During the meeting, it was agreed that provinces, in collaboration with the National Highway Authority (NHA) and National Highway and Motorway Police (NHMP), should consider including smaller mining companies in their policy measures for establishing weighing stations, ensuring fair competition within the mining sector.

Several strategies regarding weighing of vehicle were discussed and approved. Provinces have been called upon to identify effective measures to address weighing inaccuracies often linked to unauthorized axle modifications and to formulate plans to prohibit non-standard axles.

The Provincial Excise Departments have been tasked with facilitating the installation of additional axles on goods vehicles to ensure adherence to national standards. Additionally, provinces must collaborate with the NHA and NHMP to identify new sites for weighing stations and upgrade the existing ones. To encourage private sector involvemen, a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework was also examined.

Furthermore, in an attempt to improve management, the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom (MoIT&T), with the NHA and provincial governments is working to create a National Dashboard which bring together axle load data from the entire road network helping to ensure safer and more efficient travel across the country.

In close collaboration with the MoIT&T and NHA, the provinces will install automated recognition cameras at all weigh stations guaranteeing precision and accountability in monitoring axle load.