The new Mobile Roller Brake Testing (MRBT) machines being introduced as part of the ``Road to Zero” road safety campaign are proving to be anything but. Mobile that is.

In fact, the first five of the six new machines that should have been deployed around the country by NZ Police Commercial Vehicle Safety Teams earlier this year remain in storage at its Stanley Street base in Auckland. The sixth unit has yet to be completed as parts have been delayed.

Police Vehicle Safety Officers have been trained to use the machines but eight months after their public launch in late-February, they remain idle with Police unable to provide a timeline for introduction.

The MRBT units should have been rolled out to carry out random checking of heavy vehicle braking systems nationwide, supplementing the permanent roadside facilities in the Bay of Plenty and in North Canterbury.

CVST officials had identified braking system issues as a safety issue and had identified a 67% failure rate for vehicles tested at the Paengaroa site between 2018 and 2021.

New Zealand Truck & Driver asked the NZ Police for comment regarding the delayed introduction.

“Police operate Permanent Roller Brake Machines (PRBMs) in Paengaroa and Glasnevin, but the mobile versions of the roller machines are being stored in Auckland until the trailers used to tow them have had an identified safety defect resolved,” says Senior Sergeant Mike Moloney, Relieving National Manager, Commercial Vehicle Safety Teams.

“Police are currently working with the manufacturer, supplier and an independent engineer to resolve the safety issues before the RBTMs can be deployed more widely throughout New Zealand.

“Safety is our number one priority and we are still able to use the non-mobile RBTM machine’s in areas where they are located.”

We also asked the Police if there was any timeframe for the units to go into service.

“This is a priority for Road Policing. We are working very closely with all concerned, all going well we hope to have this issue resolved by early next year, we can’t give an exact date though because safety is our priority.”

The NZ CVST opened tenders for the supply of six new machines in 2020. The tender requirement was for a roadside brake tester that had the capacity to test fully laden vehicles. It needed to be in a self-contained trailer with a generator and an overall weight around 3000kg.

Police went with the BM Autoteknik BM20200 system from Denmark capable of testing cars, vans, four-wheel-drives and heavy vehicles to a COF-B standard.

Another requirement was for the system to be set up using just two people and be ready for operation within 15 to 20 minutes of arrival to site.

The MRBTs were to allocated around the country one per each to the four CVST areas and the other two in a “floating” role.