On July 2, 2024, the Local Police of Bari reported discovering a Turkish industrial vehicle driver who had been driving for seventeen hours without taking a rest. The incident occurred during a routine roadside check, during which officers found Turkish and Bulgarian identity documents and a second tachograph card. The driver had used the latter to circumvent the regulations on driving and rest times.
By analyzing the data recorded by the tachograph and comparing it with the information on the driver's two cards, the officers determined that the driver had been driving almost continuously for seventeen hours. At the end of the inspection, the patrol issued a fine of 14,554 euros, confiscated the driver's license, and one of the two tachograph cards.
Following this incident, Paolo Uggè, president of the Fai, reiterated his request to the Government to enforce the regulations on the joint liability of the entire transport chain in the event of serious violations of the Highway Code. "I have personally urged ministers and prime ministers to hold every party in the transport chain directly accountable, but to no avail. The solution, provided for by a state law, can be found in Legislative Decree number 286/05 and the Codice della Strada."
Uggè also called on the Ministry of Transport to reactivate the Mobile Inspection Centers, which make checks more efficient and accurate. "Crying after the fact is useless. It is time to stop committing real omissions of duty by pretending that the regulations do not exist, because no one can shirk this collective responsibility," concluded the president of the Fai.
