Under attack

TEXT: CARI SIMMONS

Every truck driver knows the dangers of the road, but traditionally traffic safety has been the focus of their worries. Today, however, another threat looms – that of organized crime against drivers and their loads.

The results of a joint International Road Transport Union (IRU) and International Transport Forum (ITF) survey contain shocking figures: Over one recent five-year period one in six truck drivers in Europe was attacked.

The report states that approximately 60 percent of attacks targeted the vehicle and the load; the remaining 40 percent targeted the driver’s personal belongings – documents, money, credit cards, mobile phones, TVs and even clothing.

Truck drivers attacked while asleep

Most of the reported attacks occurred between 10 pm and 6 am, says Peter Krausz, IRU Head of Goods Transport and Facilitation and co-author of the IRU-ITF report. “Drivers appear to be more at risk when parked and potentially asleep in their cabs, but it should be noted that over 20 percent of the attacks still occur during daylight hours.”

Drivers are also physically attacked, but a third never report to the police, according to the report, because of a lack of trust in the authorities, language difficulties or fear of the consequences.

Need for secure parking sites

While many crimes go unreported and statistics vary among studies and organisations, it is evident that drivers need a “safe haven” on the roads. “Crime is going on in many areas,” says Danish Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Anne E Jensen. “It is very frustrating if you cannot sleep or rest without risking attack.”

At the request of truck drivers in her constituency, Jensen, took the issue to the EU Commission. “They wanted the EU to support the establishment of a network of safe parking lots along the European motorways,” she says.

Jensen joined forces with Dutch MEP Corien Wortmann-Kool, who is also on the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee, and together they managed to get EU funding for the project.

Truck drivers attracted by safe parking

The first secure parking site opened this year, in Valenciennes France, and the EU Commission aims to upgrade 80 parking areas to so called secure parking areas throughout Europe, says Jensen. “The safe parking lot should also provide good facilities or they will not be attractive for the drivers,” she says, adding, “Parliament is also putting money into parking lots by the EU borders to Russia, where trucks often are waiting in queues of about 50 kilometres. It has inspired the Russian authorities to take a similar initiative.” 

The secure parking sites, which will be indicated with a blue flag, must have adequate perimeter protection, vehicle and pedestrian access control, adequate lighting, proper signage, a means of surveillance (CCTV/ patrols) and appropriate security procedures.

Having secure parking sites is a positive step, says Wortmann-Kool, but she stresses that more needs to be done. “Not only should the parking be safe,” she says, “but there should be enough secure parking spaces along the Trans-European Network. This is a problem especially in the summer when there is no space left for truck drivers or the spaces are too small. From our point of view, the European Commission should make sufficient parking spaces part of the requirements for building the Trans-European Network and routes.”

Shortage of secure parking

Germany, France, Austria, Sweden and Spain are identified as countries where there is a shortage of truck parking.

The fight against truck attacks does not end in the parking lot. In addition to establishing safe parking facilities, the IRU recommends equipping vehicles with robust security devices, having transport companies and shippers agree on secure routes and parking areas, and establishing national police road-freight crime units or similar types of organisations to fight crime on the roads in each country.

Despite such efforts, the European Parliament’s study Organised Theft of Commercial Vehicles and Their Loads in the European Union states that shippers and thieves are caught in a spiral.

One step ahead

“When cargo theft starting increasing about 10 years ago, shippers responded by re-evaluating their supply and distribution chain and applying strategies such as driver background checks, advice on safety behaviours and installations of all kinds of technical systems,” the study says. “The criminal organisations reacted with even more aggressive methods. They now make use of bogus police officers, knockout gas that disables the driver and brute force to enter the vehicle.”

With truck transport being the European Union’s dominant mode of freight transport, responsible for transporting almost 75 percent of all goods, the battle against truck crime must be won. Anne Jensen sums it up: “Truckers form the backbone of the EU internal market for transport. We owe it to them to ensure that they can do their job under decent working conditions.”

5 crime stoppers

• Wherever possible, decide where to park for rest periods before starting the journey and always park in the most secure, well-lit location that can be found.

• Sensible precautions should be taken at all times, not just during the night.

• When parked and the trailer is empty, consider leaving the rear doors/curtain open.

• When you leave your vehicle, even for short periods – at a fuel station, for example –always lock your vehicle and take the keys with you. Keep them with you in a safe place at all times.

• Do not attract attention to your wallet when in fuel stations, shops or restaurants and consider carrying cash and valuables distributed about your person.