Greek (57) unmasked

Truck driver cheated: 23 hours a day on the road

Police carried out checks on the Brenner highway (archive photo) at the weekend.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

Time is money: a motto that is widespread in the international haulage industry! There is often cheating and manipulation - especially with regard to driving and rest times. In Tyrol, the traffic police have now uncovered a particularly blatant case. A Greek truck driver (57) was on the road for up to 23 hours a day.

On Saturday morning, the police carried out checks on heavy goods vehicles on the Brenner highway (A13) near Gries. At around 8.30 a.m., the Greek driver's articulated lorry came into the officers' sights. The driver and the vehicle were examined more closely. When the driver's card was checked, several inconsistencies were immediately noticed.

Rapid card changes in half of Europe
For example, driving times of three different drivers were found. "However, the times were not recorded as multi-driver operation. In many cases, cards were changed in France, Italy, Germany and Austria without any major interruption in time, i.e. immediately following the withdrawal - without any reference to the driver's company headquarters or place of residence," the investigators say. It is therefore suspected that the 57-year-old used two other driver cards in addition to his own.

The 57-year-old driver confessed fully during questioning.

Die Polizei

A combination of the driving times on the three driver cards then revealed several infringements, some of them very serious. The Greek driver had been on the road with his articulated lorry for up to 23 hours a day - only nine or ten would have been permitted. In some cases, the 57-year-old is said to have driven for 13 hours without interruption - only 4.5 hours would actually be permitted.

Tickets confiscated, driving prohibited
During the interrogation, the driver confessed fully. "The driver's cards were confiscated. The Greek driver was banned from continuing his journey," said the investigators. The 57-year-old also had to pay a security deposit. Charges will follow.

Nepalese also cheated with the driver card
On Sunday evening, the Tyrolean police caught another lorry driver who did not take driving and rest times very seriously. The Nepalese driver (47), who was pulled out of traffic at the Radfeld checkpoint on the Inntal highway in the lowlands, is also said to have cheated with his driver card. He was also reported and ordered to pay a security deposit.