● The government delegate has highlighted the awareness of the carriers with respect to the current regulations ● In the last campaign there was an increase in complaints of 45.4% ● The campaign will take place between the months of August and October and during it will be transported a little more than 1.84 million tons

The government delegate in Extremadura, José Luis Quintana, chaired today the meeting in which the next campaign of transport of tomatoes by road has been discussed with all the sectors involved. The meeting focused on analyzing compliance with the regulations that regulate the transport of goods by road and specifically, in one of its sections, the transport of tomato, and that establishes specific conditions to guarantee road safety and avoid possible traffic accidents.

The campaign will begin in August and will run until the beginning of October. During these dates, slightly more than 1.84 million tons of tomato will be transported on the roads of Extremadura, which will mean that more than 90,000 trips will be made between farms and processing companies, (which will mean around 1,300 trips per day), so it is necessary to establish a control on the vehicles that carry out this transport to prevent cargo loss or liquid spillage, fundamentally, from causing traffic incidents.

For this 2025, an estimated area of 19,500 hectares is cultivated in Extremadura, of which 17,000 are in the province of Badajoz and 2,500 in the province of Cáceres. 95% of this area is concentrated in Las Vegas del Guadiana and the rest in Las Vegas del Alagón-Árrago-Tiétar.

Data 2024

In global data, during last year’s campaign 2,176 vehicles were controlled, which has been 30% more than those controlled in the previous campaign. Of all of them, 612 were reported, which represents 28.12%. In addition, the number of vehicles reported increased from 448 in 2023 to 612 in 2024, which means a percentage increase of 45.4%.

The most frequent reports continue to be those related to excess weight and significantly increase those related to spills of liquids. There has also been an increase in complaints about tyre condition and load disposition.

As for the road incidents caused by the loss of liquid or product on the roads, the total number of them increased significantly, going from 67 incidents in 2023 to 163 in 2024, which means an increase of 143.28%.

A total of 16 vehicles were immobilised due to non-compliance with the appropriate conditions for transport and seven accidents related to the campaign were recorded.

In this section, the DGT recommends a lot of prudence and precaution on the road to avoid possible accidents and the Traffic Sector of the Civil Guard recalled the mandatory compliance with the rules in the transport of tomatoes. The government delegate stressed in this regard the importance of load placement and the good condition of tyres.

In any case, the Delegation has today highlighted the positive awareness appreciated in recent years among producers and carriers regarding the adoption of measures to improve the safety of these transports. “We believe that we move forward year after year and with these meetings we correct the deficiencies appreciated to avoid greater risks and have a campaign as safe as possible,” concluded José Luis Quintana.

Recommendations

Given the volume of tomato that will be transported, the recommendations are as follows:

• Use of authorised itineraries
• · Monitoring and cleaning of transport platforms to prevent the spillage of tomatoes and liquids
• Proper maintenance of transport vats/containers
• Avoid overloads and excessive heights
• Proper use of protective meshes
• Monitoring and good maintenance of tyres
• Compliance with the regulations on driving and rest times
• Avoid intrusions of unauthorized vehicles into motorways
• Special attention when moving through roads, roads and bays that serve the plots of cultivation