Regulation 3 InterpretationI1

devices or equipment that are designed to reduce the aerodynamic drag of road vehicles, with the exception of elongated cabs, type-approved in accordance with—

(a) Article 4a of The Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations;

(b) Article 4a of The Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations (Northern Ireland); or

(c) Article 4a of The (European Union) Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations.

a trailer—

1. (a)

   which is an implement constructed or adapted—

   1. (i)

      for use off roads for the purpose of agriculture, horticulture or forestry and which is only used for one or more of those purposes, and

   2. (ii)

      so that, save in the case of an appliance manufactured before 1st December 1985, or a towed roller, its maximum gross weight is not more than twice its unladen weight; but

2. (b)

   which is not—

   1. (i)

      a vehicle which is used primarily as living accommodation by one or more persons, and which carries no goods or burden except those needed by such one or more persons for the purpose of their residence in the vehicle; or

   2. (ii)

      an agricultural, horticultural or forestry implement rigidly but not permanently mounted on any vehicle whether or not any of the weight of the implement is supported by one or more of its own wheels; so however that such an implement is an agricultural trailed appliance if

      • —part of the weight of the implement is supported by one or more of its own wheels, and

      • —the longitudinal axis of the greater part of the implement is capable of articulating in the horizontal plane in relation to the longitudinal axis of the rear portion of the vehicle on which it is mounted.

an agricultural trailer which—

(a) has an unladen weight which does not exceed 510 kg;

(b) is clearly and indelibly marked with its unladen weight;

(c) has a pneumatic tyre fitted to each one of its wheels;

(d) is designed and constructed for the purpose of conveying one agricultural trailed appliance or one agricultural, horticultural or forestry implement.

a bus so constructed that—

(a) it can be divided into two parts, both of which are vehicles and one of which is a motor vehicle, but cannot be so divided without the use of facilities normally available only at a workshop; and

(b) passengers carried by it can at all times pass from either part to the other.

the Directive adopted by the Council or the Commission of the European Communities F13or the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union of which identifying particulars are given in the item in column 3 of Table I in Schedule 2 in which that number appears in column 2; where such a Directive amends a previous Directive mentioned in column 3(d) of the Table F14the reference to the amending Directive includes a reference to that previous Directive as so amended.

Any reference to a Directive which has been amended by the Act of Accession is a reference to the Directive as so amended.

1. (a)

   F17a trailer which is—

   1. (i)

      equipped with 2 or more wheels,

   2. (ii)

      designed to be used in combination with a semi-trailer without any part of the weight of the semi-trailer being borne by the drawing vehicle, and

   3. (iii)

      not itself a part either of the semi-trailer or the drawing vehicle when being so used; or

2. (b)

   a trailer which is—

   1. (i)

      equipped with 2 or more wheels;

   2. (ii)

      designed to be used in combination with a semi-trailer with part of the weight of the semi-trailer being borne by the drawing vehicle;

   3. (iii)

      not itself a part either of the semi-trailer or the drawing vehicle when being so used; and

   4. (iv)

      used solely for the purposes of agriculture, horticulture or forestry, or for any two or for all of those purposes.

a vehicle constructed or adapted for the carriage both of passengers and of goods or burden of any description, being a vehicle of which the unladen weight does not exceed 2040 kg, and which either—

1. (i)

   is so constructed or adapted that the driving power of the engine is, or by the appropriate use of the controls of the vehicle can be, transmitted to all the wheels of the vehicle; or

2. (ii)

   satisfies the following conditions as to construction, namely—

   1. (a)

      the vehicle must be permanently fitted with a rigid roof, with or without a sliding panel;

   2. (b)

      the area of the vehicle to the rear of the driver's seat must—

      1. (i)

         be permanently fitted with at least one row of transverse seats (fixed or folding) for two or more passengers and those seats must be properly sprung or cushioned and provided with upholstered back-rests, attached either to the seats or to a side or the floor of the vehicle; and

      2. (ii)

         be lit on each side and at the rear by a window or windows of glass or other transparent material having an area or aggregate area of not less than 1850 square centimetres on each side and not less than 770 square centimetres at the rear; and

   3. (c)

      the distance between the rearmost part of the steering wheel and the back-rests of the row of transverse seats satisfying the requirements specified in head (i) of sub-paragraph (b) (or, if there is more than one such row of seats, the distance between the rearmost part of the steering wheel and the back-rests of the rearmost such row) must, when the seats are ready for use, be not less than one-third of the distance between the rearmost part of the steering wheel and the rearmost part of the floor of the vehicle.

the cab of a vehicle or a combination of vehicles that complies with—

(a) Appendix 5 of Annex I of The Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations;

(b) Appendix 5 of Annex I of The Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations (Northern Ireland); or

(c) Appendix 5 of Annex I of The (European Union) Type Approval Masses and Dimensions Regulations.

(a) movable plant or equipment being a motor vehicle or trailer specially designed and constructed for the special purposes of engineering operations, and which cannot, owing to the requirements of those purposes, comply with all the requirements of these Regulations and which is not constructed primarily to carry a load other than a load being either excavated materials raised from the ground by apparatus on the motor vehicle or trailer or materials which the vehicle or trailer is specially designed to treat while carried thereon; or

(b) a mobile crane which does not comply in all respects with the requirements of these Regulations.

a device carried on a motor vehicle or trailer when in use on a road, which consumes gas and which is none of the following—

(a) a device owned or operated by or with the authority of a gas transporter for the purposes of detecting gas;

(b) an engine for the propulsion of a motor vehicle;

(c) a lamp which consumes acetylene gas;

(d) a fuel cell.

a holder of a licence under section 7(1) of the Gas Act 1986 except where the holder is acting otherwise than for purposes connected with—

(a) the carrying on of activities authorised by the licence;

(b) the conveyance of gas through pipes which—

(i) are situated in an authorised area of the licence holder; or

(ii) are situated in an area which was an authorised area of the licence holder, or an authorised area of a previous holder of the licence, and were so situated at a time when it was such an area; or

(c) the conveyance through pipes of gas which is in the course of being conveyed to or from a country of territory outside Great Britain.

(a) in relation to a motor vehicle, the sum of the weights transmitted to the road surface by all the wheels of the vehicle.

(b) in relation to a trailer, the sum of the weights transmitted to the road surface by all the wheels of the trailer and of any weight of the trailer imposed on the drawing vehicle.

a tractor, not being an agricultural motor vehicle, which—

(a) has an unladen weight not exceeding 7370 kg,

(b) is designed and used primarily for work off roads, or for work on roads in connection only with road construction or maintenance (including any such tractor when fitted with an implement or implements designed primarily for use in connection with such work, whether or not any such implement is of itself designed to carry a load), and

(c) has a maximum speed not exceeding 20 mph.

the weight of a vehicle when it carries—

1. (a)

   in the case of a motor vehicle,

   1. (i)

      no person; and

   2. (ii)

      a full supply of fuel in its tank, an adequate supply of other liquids incidental to its propulsion and no load other than the loose tools and equipment with which it is normally equipped;

2. (b)

   in the case of a trailer, no person and is otherwise unladen.

(a) butane gas in any phase which meets the requirements contained in the specification of commercial butane and propane issued by the British Standards Institution under the number BS 4250: 2014 and published on 30th November 2014; or

(b) propane gas in any phase which meets the requirements contained in the said specification; or

(c) any mixture of such butane gas and such propane gas.

(a) in the case of a vehicle equipped with a Ministry plate in accordance with regulation 70, the design gross weight shown in column (3) of that plate or, if no such weight is shown, the gross weight shown in column (2) of that plate F32(where the plate is in the form required by Schedule 10 or 10B) or in column (4) of that plate (where the plate is in the form required by Schedule 10A or 10C).;

(b) in the case of a vehicle not equipped with a Ministry plate, but which is equipped with a plate in accordance with regulation 66, the maximum gross weight shown on the plate in respect of item 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 8 in the case of a motor vehicle and item 6 of Part II of Schedule 8 in the case of a trailer;

(c) in any other case, the weight which the vehicle is designed or adapted not to exceed when the vehicle is travelling on a road.

a mechanically propelled vehicle, not being a motor tractor, a motor cycle or an invalid carriage, which is constructed itself to carry a load or passengers and the weight of which unladen—

(a) if it is constructed solely for the carriage of passengers and their effects and is adapted to carry not more than seven passengers exclusive of the driver does not exceed 3050 kg;

(b) if it is constructed for use for the conveyance of goods or burden of any description, does not exceed 3050 kg;

(c) does not exceed 2540 kg in a case falling within neither of the foregoing paragraphs.

1. (a)

   an NHS trust or NHS foundation trust established under the National Health Service Act 2006 which has a function of providing ambulance services;

2. (b)

   an NHS trust established under the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006 which has a function of providing ambulance services;

3. (c)

   the Scottish Ambulance Service Board.

the vertical distance between the ground and the point on the vehicle which is furthest from the ground, calculated when—

(a) the tyres of the vehicle are suitably inflated for the use to which it is being put;

(b) the vehicle is at its unladen weight; and

(c) the surface of the ground under the vehicle is reasonably flat;

but, in the case of a trolley bus, exclusive of the power collection equipment mounted on the roof of the vehicle.

in relation to a vehicle, the distance between transverse planes passing through the extreme forward and rearward projecting points of the vehicle inclusive of all parts of the vehicle, of any receptacle which is of a permanent character and accordingly strong enough for repeated use, and any fitting on, or attached to, the vehicle except—

1. (i)

   for all purposes—

   1. (a)

      any driving mirror;

   2. (b)

      any expanding or extensible contrivance forming part of a turntable fire escape fixed to a vehicle;

   3. (c)

      any snow-plough fixed in front of a vehicle;

   4. (d)

      any receptacle specially designed to hold and keep secure a seal issued for the purposes of customs clearance;

   5. (e)

      any tailboard which is let down while the vehicle is stationary in order to facilitate its loading or unloading;

   6. (f)

      any tailboard which is let down in order to facilitate the carriage of, but which is not essential for the support of, loads which are in themselves so long as to extend at least as far as the tailboard when upright;

   7. (g)

      any fitting attached to a part of, or to a receptacle on, a vehicle which does not increase the carrying capacity of the part or receptacle but which enables it to be

      • —transferred from a road vehicle to a railway vehicle or from a railway vehicle to a road vehicle,

      • —secured to a railway vehicle by a locking device, and

      • —carried on a railway vehicle by the use of stanchions:

   8. (h)

      any plate, whether rigid or movable, fitted to a trailer constructed for the purpose of carrying other vehicles and designed to bridge the gap between that trailer and a motor vehicle constructed for that purpose and to which the trailer is attached so that, while the trailer is attached to the motor vehicle, vehicles which are to be carried by the motor vehicle may be moved from the trailer to the motor vehicle before a journey begins, and vehicles which have been carried on the motor vehicle may be moved from it to the trailer after a journey ends;

   9. (i)

      any sheeting or other readily flexible means of covering or securing a load;

   10. (j)

       F37...

   11. (k)

       any empty receptacle which itself forms a load;

   12. (l)

       any receptacle which contains an indivisible load of exceptional length;

   13. (m)

       F38any receptacle manufactured before 30th October 1985, not being a maritime container (namely a container designed primarily for carriage on sea transport without an accompanying road vehicle); ...

   14. (n)

       any special appliance or apparatus as described in regulation 81(c) which does not itself increase the carrying capacity of the vehicle; F39...

   15. (o)

       F40any rearward projecting buffer made of rubber or other resilient material F41; F42...

   16. (p)

       any aerodynamic devices and equipmentF43; or

   17. (q)

       any camera-monitor system.

2. (ii)

   for the purposes of F44regulations 7, 13A, 13B and 13C—

   1. (a)

      any part of a trailer (not being in the case of an agricultural trailed appliance a drawbar or other thing with which it is equipped for the purpose of being towed) designed primarily for use as a means of attaching it to another vehicle and any fitting designed for use in connection with any such part;

   2. (b)

      the thickness of any front or rear wall on a semi-trailer and of any part forward of such front wall or rearward of such rear wall which does not increase the vehicle's load-carrying space.

the distance between longitudinal planes passing through the extreme lateral projecting points of the vehicle inclusive of all parts of the vehicle, of any receptacle which is of permanent character and accordingly strong enough for repeated use, and any fitting on, or attached to, the vehicle except—

1. (a)

   any driving mirror;

2. (b)

   any snow-plough fixed in front of the vehicle;

3. (c)

   so much of the distortion of any tyre as is caused by the weight of the vehicle;

4. (d)

   any receptacle specially designed to hold and keep secure a seal issued for the purposes of customs clearance;

5. (e)

   any lamp or reflector fitted to the vehicle in accordance with the Lighting Regulations;

6. (f)

   any sideboard which is let down while the vehicle is stationary in order to facilitate its loading or unloading;

7. (g)

   any fitting attached to part of, or to a receptacle on, a vehicle which does not increase the carrying capacity of the part or receptacle but which enables it to be

   • —transferred from a road vehicle to a railway vehicle or from a railway vehicle to a road vehicle;

   • —secured to a railway vehicle by a locking device; and

   • —carried on a railway vehicle by the use of stanchions;

8. (h)

   any sheeting or other readily flexible means of covering or securing a load;

9. (i)

   any receptacle with an external width, measured at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, which does not exceed 2.5 m;

10. (j)

    any empty receptacle which itself forms a load;

11. (k)

    any receptacle which contains an indivisible load of exceptional width;

12. (l)

    F45any receptacle manufactured before 30th October 1985, not being a maritime container (namely a container designed primarily for carriage on sea transport without an accompanying road vehicle); ...

13. (m)

    any special appliance or apparatus as described in regulation 81(c) which does not itself increase the carrying capacity of the vehicle F46; F47...

14. (n)

    any apparatus fitted to a bus which enables it to be guided wholly or mainly by means of wheels bearing outwards against fixed apparatus, provided that no part of the apparatus projects more than 75mm beyond the side of the bus when the wheels of the bus are parallel to its longitudinal axis F48; F49...

15. (o)

    any aerodynamic devices and equipmentF50; or

16. (p)

    any camera-monitor system.

and the reference in paragraph (n) above to the side of a bus is a reference to the longitudinal plane passing through the extreme lateral projecting points of the vehicle inclusive of all parts of the vehicle, of any receptacle which is of permanent character and accordingly strong enough for repeated use, and any fitting on, or attached to, the vehicle except those items referred to in paragraphs (a) to (n).

the distance measured horizontally and parallel to the longitudinal axis of a vehicle between two transverse planes passing through the following two points—

1. (a)

   the rearmost point of the vehicle exclusive of—

   1. (i)

      any expanding or extensible contrivance forming part of a turntable fire escape fixed to a vehicle;

   2. (ii)

      in the case of a motor car constructed solely for the carriage of passengers and their effects and adapted to carry not more than eight passengers exclusive of the driver, any luggage carrier fitted to the vehicle; and

2. (b)

   1. (i)

      in the case of a motor vehicle having not more than three axles of which only one is not a steering axle, the centre point of that axle;

   2. (ii)

      in the case of a motor vehicle having three axles of which the front axle is the only steering axle and of a motor vehicle having four axles of which the two foremost are the only steering axles, a point 110 mm behind the centre of a straight line joining the centre points of the two rearmost axles; and

   3. (iii)

      in any other case a point situated on the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and such that a line drawn from it at right angles to that axis will pass through the centre of the minimum turning circle of the vehicle.

a tyre which—

(a) is provided with, or together with the wheel upon which it is mounted forms, a continuous closed chamber inflated to a pressure substantially exceeding atmospheric pressure when the tyre is in the condition in which it is normally used, but is not subjected to any load;

(b) is capable of being inflated and deflated without removal from the wheel or vehicle; and

(c) is such that, when it is deflated and is subjected to a normal load, the sides of the tyre collapse.

• F51a mechanically propelled vehicle which is used on a road by or on behalf of–

  1. (a)

     the Central Scotland Water Development Board;

  2. (b)

     a ferry undertaking;

  3. (c)

     a highway or roads authority;

  4. (d)

     a local authority;

  5. (e)

     a market undertaking;

  6. (f)

     the National Rivers Authority;

  7. (g)

     an operator of F52an electronic communications code network;

  8. (h)

     a police authority F53or local policing body;

  9. (i)

     F54a universal service provider (within the meaning of F55Part 3 of the Postal Services Act 2011) in connection with the provision of a universal postal service (within the meaning of F56that Part);

  10. (j)

      a public electricity supplier within the meaning of Part I of the Electricity Act 1989;

  11. (k)

      F57a public gas transporter within the meaning of Part I of the Gas Act 1986;

  12. (l)

      a statutory undertaker within the meaning of section 329(1) of the Highways Act 1980;

  13. (m)

      an undertaking for the supply of district heating;

  14. (n)

      a water authority within the meaning of the Water (Scotland) Act 1980; or

  15. (o)

      a water or sewerage undertaker within the meaning of the Water Act 1989;

  for the purpose of works which such a body has a duty or power to carry out, and which is used only for the carriage of–

  1. (i)

     the crew, and

  2. (ii)

     goods which are needed for works in respect of which the vehicle is used.

registered under any of the following enactments—

(a) the Roads Act 1920,

(b) the Vehicles (Excise) Act 1949,

(c) the Vehicles (Excise) Act 1962, or

(d) the 1971 Act

and,

in relation to the date on which a vehicle was registered, the date on which it was first registered under any of those enactments.

a requirement that the brakes of a motor vehicle (as assisted, where a trailer is being drawn, by the brakes on the trailer) comply—

(i) in a case to which item 1 in Table 1 in regulation 18 applies, with the requirements specified in regulation 18(3) for vehicles falling in that item;

(ii) in any other case, with the requirements specified in regulation 18(3) for vehicle classes (a) and (b) in item 2 of that Table (whatever the date of first use of the motor vehicle and the date of manufacture of any trailer drawn by it may be).

in relation to a motor vehicle, a braking system so designed and constructed that—

(a) it comprises two independent sections of mechanism capable of developing braking force such that, excluding the means of operation, a failure of any part (other than a fixed member or a brake shoe anchor pin) of one of the said sections will not cause a decrease in the braking force capable of being developed by the other section;

(b) the said two sections are operated by a means of operation which is common to both sections;

(c) the braking efficiency of either of the said two sections can be readily checked.

a pneumatic tyre which is designed for use on a motor vehicle only—

(a) in the event of the failure of one of the tyres normally fitted to a wheel of the vehicle, and

(b) at a speed lower than that for which such normally fitted tyres are designed.