ADR Transports

Safe transport of dangerous goods. Guaranteed.

General

The United Nations has drawn up the ADR Agreement on the carriage of dangerous goods by road in Europe. The international, generally accepted agreement determines under what conditions and regulations dangerous goods may be transported between the countries which have ratified the agreement. The purpose of the agreement is to increase transport safety and to determine the duties and responsibilities of the involved parties. The regulations deal with, for instance, transported goods, documents, means of transport and drivers.

In Finland the legislation governing the transport of dangerous goods is mainly based on the international agreement on the carriage of dangerous goods by road (ADR). The Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communications is the body responsible for overseeing and managing the overall supervision of the implementation of this law and its provisions. The law is applied to the transport of dangerous goods by road, rail, air and ship.

The consigner's responsibilities and obligations

It is important to fill in correctly the consignment note and safety instructions when transporting dangerous goods. The absence or incorrect filling in of the documents may lead to an interruption of the transport. Dangerous goods shall also be classified, packed and labeled in accordance with the law and regulations issued on the basis of the law. Please note also the ADR markings of an "Empty containers" transport. The consigner's or forwarder's responsibilities:

1. The information on the consignment note, names and addresses of the consigner and consignee and delivery addresses

• the carrier
• description and number of parcels
• total mass of the goods (volume or gross mass) and net mass for explosives
• UN number of the transported substance
• name and transport class in accordance with the ADR substance list
• packing group I, II or III

2. Product classification in accordance with ADR legislation
3. ADR checklist for the driver
4. Exterior marking of the product with danger labels
5. Complying with the prohibition to load on the same vehicle
6. Packing the goods in accordance with regulations
7. Mentioning ADR goods when ordering the transport
8. In transports of explosives a "transport permit" (regulation 1385/94, paragraph 37)
9. The consigner shall immediately take possession of the goods if the police has ordered a load transported in violation of the regulations to be discharged (Act on the Transport of Dangerous goods, paragraph 15)
10. If the dangerous substance which is to be transported has to be loaded into several vehicles, each batch shall have its own consignment note.

Consignee's responsibilities

1. Take care of cleaning of the vehicles and containers as provided by the regulations and of the removal of risk factors of the transported substance
2. ensure that danger labels have been removed from completely empty and cleaned containers

Written safety instructions

For emergencies and accidents the consigner shall draw up safety instructions and hand them over to the driver. The instructions shall be in Finnish and, if required, in Swedish. In international ADR transports, the instructions shall be delivered in a language read and understood by the driver (s) and in the languages of the country of departure, the countries of transit and the country of destination. Ready-made instructions cards can be purchased from, for instance, various expert organizations.

The instructions shall contain the following facts:

• the substance's or object's packaging group, class and UN number
• the type of danger caused by the transported dangerous goods and measures for the driver and personal protection
• general measures, for instance, warning road users and passers-by and calling the police or fire brigade
• additional measures connected to a minor leak to prevent the spreading of the substance if it can be performed without danger to personnel;
• special measures for special products, if required;
• indispensable equipment for general measures and, if required, also for special measures

Packaging

ADR transport regulations also always require use of type approved packaging. ADR regulations include ADR packaging regulations, package types and requirements and testing regulations concerning packaging.

Dangerous goods shall be packed in a way that they remain in the package during transport. If a package or container meant for transportation of dangerous goods is damaged, it is forbidden to carry out the transport.

Additional information on ADR transports is available from, for instance: On the website of the Ministry of Transport and Communications. Additional information on ADR transports is also available from VR Transpoint sales personnel and Dangerous Goods Safety Advisors (DGSA).

Website of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

Dangerous Goods Safety Advisor (DGSA)

Directive 96/35/EC has been adopted on Dangerous Goods Safety Advisors (DGSA). In Finnish legislation the issue is regulated by the statutes "Regulation on the Dangerous Goods Safety Advisors (DGSA)" (Asetus vaarallisten aineiden maakuljetusten turvallisuusneuvonantajasta (127/99, 5.2.1999))" and "Decision by the Ministry of Transport and Communications on the Dangerous Goods Safety Advisors for the transport of dangerous goods by road" (Liikenneministeriön päätös vaarallisten aineiden maakuljetusten turvallisuusneuvonantajasta (188/99, 8.2.1999)).

The operator shall itself determine on the basis of the above statutes whether the company shall appoint a DGSA.

The DGSA shall have a valid certificate of a DGSA degree. Examinations to obtain the degree are organized by the Finnish Transport Safety Agency (Trafi).

Transpoint has trained and appointed DGSAs for each profit centre.

Further information on DGSAs is available from, for instance, the website of Trafi (driving licences and examinations). Additional information is also available from LTL Logistics sales personnel and DGSAs in customer service positions.