The Road Traffic (Carriage of Explosives) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the 1991 regulations” means the Classification and Labelling of Explosives Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1991(1);

“attendant” means a person who accompanies the driver in the vehicle during the journey to help ensure the safety and security of the explosives;

“blasting explosive” means the explosive substance allocated on classification the UN Number 0081, 0082, 0083, 0084, 0241, 0331 or 0332;

“carriage” and related expressions shall be construed in accordance with paragraphs (4) to (6);

“Class 1” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2 of the 1991 regulations;

“classified” means classified under the 1991 regulations;

“Compatibility Group” and “Compatibility Group letter” have the meanings assigned to them by regulation 2 of the 1991 regulations;

“consignor” means a person who consigns (whether as principal or as agent for another) explosives for carriage by road;

“detonating cord” means the explosive article allocated on classification the UN Number 0065 or 0289;

“detonating fuzes” means the explosive articles allocated on classification the UN Number 0106, 0107, 0257 or 0367;

“detonators” means the explosive articles allocated on classification the UN Number 0029, 0030, 0255, 0267, 0360, 0361, 0455 or 0456;

“Division” and “Division number” have the meanings assigned to them by regulation 2 of the 1991 regulations;

“explosives” means explosive articles or explosive substances which—

(a)

have been assigned on classification to Class 1; or

(b)

are unclassified;

“explosive article” means an article containing one or more explosive substances;

“explosive substance” means—

(a)

a solid or liquid substance, or

(b)

a mixture of solid or liquid substances or both,

which is capable by chemical reaction in itself of producing gas at such a temperature and pressure and at such a speed as could cause damage to surroundings or which is designed to produce an effect by heat, light, sound, gas or smoke or a combination of these as a result of non-detonative self-sustaining exothermic chemical reactions;

“freight container” means a container as defined in Article 11 of the International Convention for Safe Containers (CSC);

“gunpowder” means the explosive substance allocated on classification the UN Number 0027;

“inspector of vehicles” means a person appointed by the Department of the Environment as an inspector of vehicles for the purposes of any provision of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981(2);

“military explosive” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2 of the 1991 regulations;

“motor vehicle” means a mechanically propelled vehicle intended or adapted for use on roads;

“operator” means in relation to a vehicle which is engaged in the carriage of explosives—

(a)

any person who is required to hold a road freight vehicle licence under section 17(2) of the Transport Act (Northern Ireland) 1967(3) other than a person described in subsection (1)(b) or (c) of that section; or

(b)

where no such licence is held—

(i)

(in the case of a foreign goods vehicle) the driver of the vehicle; and

(ii)

(in the case of any other vehicle) the keeper of the vehicle; and for this purpose, where the vehicle is on hire or lease to any person, that person shall be treated as its keeper.

“police force” means the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Royal Ulster Constabulary Reserve;

“road” means a road within the meaning of Article 2(2) of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981;

“semi-trailer” has the same meaning as in regulation 2 of the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1989(4);

“smokeless powder” means (except in paragraph 9(c) of Part II of Schedule 4) the explosive substance allocated on classification the UN Number 0160 or 0161;

“trailer” means a vehicle drawn by a motor vehicle but does not include a semi-trailer;

“UN Number” means United Nations Serial Number, that is to say, one of the four-digit numbers devised by the United Nations and allocated by the Health and Safety Executive or the Secretary of State to an explosive article or explosive substance as a means of identification;

“vehicle” includes a motor vehicle, trailer and semi-trailer.

(2) Any reference in these regulations to an explosive specified in Part I, Part II or Part III of Schedule 1 is a reference to an explosive of the description specified in column 1 of the said Part I, Part II or Part III, as the case may be, allocated on classification the UN Number specified opposite thereto in column 2 of that Part.

(3) Any reference in these regulations to the quantity of any explosive shall be construed as a reference to the net mass of explosive substance.

(4) Any reference in these regulations to the carriage of explosives in a vehicle includes a reference to the carriage of explosives on a vehicle or in a freight container attached to a vehicle, and, for the purposes of these regulations, a motor vehicle and a trailer or semi-trailer attached to it shall be deemed to be one vehicle, and articles or substances or both of them carried in one vehicle shall be deemed to be carried together.

(5) Subject to paragraph (6), a vehicle shall be deemed for the purposes of these regulations to be used for the carriage of explosives from the commencement of loading the vehicle with the explosives for the purpose of carrying the explosives on a road until all the explosives have been unloaded, whether or not the vehicle is on a road at the material time.

(6) A trailer or semi-trailer containing explosives shall not be deemed for the purposes of these regulations to be used for the carriage of explosives if it is not attached to a motor vehicle at the material time, and accordingly if the trailer or semi-trailer is loaded with the explosives before it is attached to the motor vehicle the carriage begins when the trailer or semi-trailer is attached to the motor vehicle for the purpose of carrying the explosives on a road and ends when it is detached from the vehicle, or when all the explosives have been unloaded, if earlier.

(1)

S.R. 1991 No. 516

(2)

S.I. 1981/154 (N.I. 1) to which there are amendments not relevant to these regulations

(3)

1967 c. 37 (N.I.)

(4)

S.R. 1989 No. 299