Truckers ...

[mjt]

The French have implemented it well, if I remember correctly lorries are not allowed on the Autoroutes at the weekend or at certain times?

Could be wide of the mark but on certain days it was bliss!

Aye, anything over 7.5 tonnes is banned 10pm Saturday - 10pm Sunday, and from 7pm during the summer (school) holidays.

Same in Germany. Trucks are banned on Sundays and public holidays, and on Saturdays in July.
Except fresh produce like milk, livestock, etc.

 

[Ampeg]

Had a great experience with a couple of daft mother truckers on the way back from Southampton last week.
Truck 1 is overtaking truck 2, truck driver 1 whilst on his phone attempts to pull back in before hes passed 2 resulting in 2 swerving out of the way.
2 then undertakes 1 on the hard shoulder as traffic comes to a standstill, pulls alongside for a bit of abuse no doubt. He completes his h/s undertake then procedes to swerve all over the place every time truck 1 tries to overtake him.

Shocking behaviour from both of them on a crowded M27 .

 

[James_N]

but bloody hard job?

Yes

99% of the general public struggle to drive cars properly. Most could not even get a lorry in gear let alone figure how to drive it!

After doing many thousands of miles around europe with my dad who has been a trucker all his life, nothing car drivers ever do nowadays suprises me and its one of those jobs people just dont relise how hard it is or how much pressure is put on them, untill they actually do the job themselves

People might get annoyed at truckers, and yes there are some idiot ones out there, but always remember how you get your food from the supermarket

 

[233]

Aye, anything over 7.5 tonnes is banned 10pm Saturday - 10pm Sunday, and from 7pm during the summer (school) holidays.

Same in Germany. Trucks are banned on Sundays and public holidays, and on Saturdays in July.
Except fresh produce like milk, livestock, etc.

that just seems stupid

why not ban them between the hours of i dont know 7am and 9:30am and say 4pm and 6pm

 

[mjt]

that just seems stupid

why not ban them between the hours of i dont know 7am and 9:30am and say 4pm and 6pm

Almost all businesses are shut on Sundays in France and Germany.
They most certainly are not at 7am during the week

 

[Scania]

Do truckers try to make driving less enjoyable for the rest of us?

Yes, why on earth would we want to do otherwise?

Did Oxford -> Maidenhead -> Birmingham -> Oxford trip today along the M40/A404/M42 ... and the number of snail racing morons really started to annoy me, causing constant mini traffic jams!

So you were unable to use lane 3 on the M40 & M42 and that huge distance thats the A404 did your head in? Diddums.

Add to that the fact that I had to several times brake/swerve to avoid trucks who simply "pulled out" into the middle lane while I am there!

Great anticipation skills there, many truckers are inconsiderate morons, many not. Its not rocket science to assume a truck is going to pull out into your path, apparently without looking - however wrong & dangerous that action is - just as I have to assume that most cars will think nothing of pulling into my braking distance and allow for that!

Often the truck pulls out for no apparent reason simply because the following vehicle can't see what the truck has to pull out to avoid....

Bunch of inconsiderate ****s if you ask me.

Tar us all with the same brush why don't you?

What most car drivers fail to appreciate is if trucks were driven inconsiderately ,i.e. in the manner many cars are driven by clueless idiots, RTA figures would be FAR higher than they are now.

9 times out of 10, we have to allow for car drivers or kill them, it really is that simple.

Sure, there are a lot of morons in HGV's but don't kid yourself its the majority.

Trains with trucks only doing the last short bit


Besides, stuff will still get there if they don't snail race

Your a bit behind the times there...

The award wining Stobart trains operate six days a week between England and Scotland carrying goods primarily for retail giant Tesco.

Daily services depart from DIRFT in the Midlands travelling to Mossend and Grangemouth, with goods being delivered to sites across the central belt of Scotland. Every Monday to Saturday at 05:00 a Stobart Rail service departs Grangemouth heading to Inverness, carrying 20 containers of goods for delivery to retail stores across the Highlands on behalf of Tesco. This single service removes 42 truck movements from the busy A9 resulting in 252 less road journeys per week.

http://www.stobartgroup.co.uk/Services/Rail/Freight-Transportation/


If I were to react to car drivers as you do to truckers, I'd fill this forum with rants! - Instead, I know what to expect, allow for it & enjoy my work.

 

[Scania]

why not ban them between the hours of i dont know 7am and 9:30am and say 4pm and 6pm

Because the UK's "Just in time" supply chain would fall flat on its arse and the OP would be bleating that theres no Fuel in the petrol station, food on the supermarket shelf, or bricks at the builders merchant.

Many forget, with VERY few exceptions, if you have it, at some stage, its travelled by truck (not lorry - but thats another thread! )

 

[Type_R]

If only all truckers realised their HGV isn't allowed in the fast lane on the motorway! At least on two occasions recently I have seen 3 way action on the motorway

And yes they were all on UK plates, not Euro-muppets not knowing the rules.

 

[James_N]

If only all truckers realised their HGV isn't allowed in the fast lane on the motorway! At least on two occasions recently I have seen 3 way action on the motorway

And yes they were all on UK plates, not Euro-muppets not knowing the rules.

compare that with the amount of times you see muppet car drivers in lane 2 for mile after mile with nothing in lane 1!

 

[Maccapacca]

I usually find that idiot truck drivers are mainly without British plates, is this because of them being LHD and having less limitation in speed? or if I was a *insert stereotype* trucker and had driven around some of most openest clearest roads Europe has to offer then end up on the M25 / M20 / M42 / M6 etc I think I might find it intimidating regardless of experience.

 

[Scania]

If only all truckers realised their HGV isn't allowed in the fast lane on the motorway! At least on two occasions recently I have seen 3 way action on the motorway

And yes they were all on UK plates, not Euro-muppets not knowing the rules.

Funny that, in the 15 years I've been driving HGV's professionally, I've only done it myself once ,to avoid an accident, and seen it on enough occasions to count with my left hand (that has digits missing)...

Your unlucky or probably observing 7.5ton trucks, many of which are driven by people with glorified car licences and are clueless to HGV rules & regs.

If its a big one & you see it, report it.

 

[Type_R]

compare that with the amount of times you see muppet car drivers in lane 2 for mile after mile with nothing in lane 1!

Lol loads of times, but thats not the point. There are loads and loads of muppet car drivers, just search Motors and you will find several of them

Equally unsafe and dangerous truckers do exist and they are not as few and far between as some would like to believe!

 

[rypt]

So you were unable to use lane 3 on the M40 & M42 and that huge distance thats the A404 did your head in? Diddums.

Use your head.

I am in L3, truck pulls out from L1 into L2. Everyone in L2 behind the truck now suddenly wants to go into L3 to overtake the truck.

However, those L2 people are NOT doing the 0.9-1 lepton I (or other L3 inhabitants) are doing, they are doing the more usual ~70mph.
Which means by pulling out into L2 the truck has forced the slower L2 people into L3 causing L3 people to slow down.

You are also now trying to fit 2 lanes worth of traffic into 1 lane.

Great anticipation skills there, many truckers are inconsiderate morons, many not. Its not rocket science to assume a truck is going to pull out into your path, apparently without looking - however wrong & dangerous that action is - just as I have to assume that most cars will think nothing of pulling into my braking distance and allow for that!

Often the truck pulls out for no apparent reason simply because the following vehicle can't see what the truck has to pull out to avoid....

How am I supposed to anticipate whether this particular trucker wants to snail race or not, or whether he has seen me and will wait for me to pass or whether he wont.

It is not my responsibility to guess what the truck is going to do, it is HIS responsibility to check blindspots before making a manoeuvre, to indicate what manoeuvre is about to be performed, and do perform such manoeuvre without causing any other vehicle to brake or alter their course.

 

[Scania]

You tell me to use my head? You just described what will happen when trucks use lanes 1 & 2 - everybody piles into lane 3

You anticipate what others may or may not do & allow for it accordingly, just as I do each & every day.


Its not a race, plan ahead, allow more time for your trip, chill the **** out & get on with driving!


Its your responsibility to try to second guess other road users, its called roadcraft in my book.

 

[Disco Boy]

No amount of planning ahead is going to result in you not getting held up when two lorries are elephant racing on a busy motorway.

 

[rypt]

My complaint is that is slows me + others down though ...


EDIT:

No amount of planning ahead is going to result in you not getting held up when two lorries are elephant racing on a busy motorway.

exactly, I want to just sit at my steady 0.9-1 leptons.

 

[Scania]

As I say allow more time for your journey.

The UK is not geared for an HGV ban during peak periods, the supply chain would not stand it, much as I'm sure you don't like it, but trucks have as much right to use the road as you do - It could be argued that they serve the country a purpose - if its a 2 lane dual such as the A14, then I agree entirely, its the truckers who should anticipate etc, alas, many don't

Then again, come up against the **** You attitude many car drivers have toward trucks daily, and you may understand why many - not all - think "**** you" back!!

But on the M42, M6, M25 etc? You have lanes that HGV's are not allowed to use, if you can't appreciate that the lemming car drivers will all try to use that lane to get by rather than simply go with the flow (like variable limits) - thats hardly my problem nor concern.

We share the roads, cars & trucks, the sooner most drivers appreciate this & stop fighing for that extra 10ft of road space, perhaps, driving standards here will improve.

I won't hold my breath though.

 

[Antipasti]

Whats all this lepton's business?

 

[rypt]

Whats all this lepton's business?

Too used to talking on PH, where speeds are given in leptons





I never said HGVs should be banned, I said snail racing should be banned. Which will have little to no impact on HGV times but will free up roads for cars
Alternatively our motorways need to be widened

 

[233]

Whats all this lepton's business?

bad idea to state you do 90-100mph on a public forum

so you do 0.9-1 of a non existent amount