Cabotage: DfT analysis suggests that take-up was "low"

The Department for Transport (DfT) has released its analysis on additional cabotage rights following responses from hauliers and the road transport sector.

It follows the decision by the government to not continue with additional cabotage rights beyond 30 April.

According to the analysis provided to the DfT, it “suggests that the take-up of the additional cabotage rights has been low”.

The department reported that: “The qualitative feedback from the consultation responses was that, while the use of the additional cabotage rights has been low in overall terms, the rights were helpful in some sectors in the run-up to Christmas 2021”.

But it did also state that “some UK haulage operators” did report that the impact of the additional cabotage rights on their businesses was “greater than DfT’s overall assessment would suggest”.

You can read the government’s response here.