A second heavy vehicle engineer has been suspended, following on from the suspension of Peter Wastney in 2017 and the revocation earlier this year of hundreds of tow bars, drawbeams and drawbars Wastney certified.

The second engineer suspended is Dick Joyce, who runs the biggest heavy vehicle certifying firm in Seaview, Lower Hutt.

NZ Transport Agency spokesperson Andy Knacksted said they were focused on ensuring the safety of heavy vehicles on New Zealand‘s roads.

“In the area of specialist heavy vehicle certification, we rely on the support of a network of qualified professionals to carry out the services which they are appointed to provide to a high standard. It is extremely disappointing when a person appointed to carry out these specialised services fails to perform their duties to the high standards required, as has been the case with Mr Wastney and now Mr Joyce.

“While we are disappointed that we have had to suspend Mr Joyce‘s HVSC authority, it should be noted that this action was taken in response to safety concerns identified during NZTA‘s regular auditing process. NZTA is committed to ensuring a high standard of heavy vehicle certifications to ensure safety, and we will be strengthening our capability in this area as an urgent priority.”

NZTA was currently recruiting for three additional auditors and two additional heavy vehicle engineers, and Knacksted said they would also be working to build engineering capability in the sector.

Knacksted said once the decision to suspend Joyce was taken, NZTA immediately began a process to examine other certifications carried out by him to determine whether there were any further safety issues in addition to those identified through the audits that gave rise to the suspension.

“Any additional safety issues identified will be addressed, and also taken into account by the Transport Agency in considering whether to take action to revoke Mr Joyce‘s authority permanently.”