See an item on the ITV Wales news tonight regarding Irish haulage companies expecting their HGV drivers to exceed the normal driving quota as set by the government in this country. One driver they followed had been driving continuously for over 20 hours and refused to go any further. He was threatened with loss of all his pay if he did not continue and missed the ferry. I realise, especially with the cost of fuel that all haulage firms muct be driving on a very tight budget but to expect a driver to act in this manner or lose his pay is over the top. The company when approached in Ireland refused to be interviewed - wander why?
HGV Driving
- Thread starter colin(bridgend)
- Start date
Christ, the company I work for are so strict, they check tachos evey week and if you go over your max hours or your driving hours you get a letter to sign and kept on file in case anythng untoward happens. Last week went over driving hours on 1 day by 8 mins. (Had past the last services with enough time to get back to base and then roadworks on motorway held me up with slow driving speed next stop depot) still got letter.
Irish haulage companies are, and always have been, a law unto themselves.
I will admit having got off the ferry at Holyhead with caravan, got onto A55 and done a steady 65-70 mph (obviously not during `normal` hours) only to be passed by a load of Irish registered 44 fridges doing a good 80mph plus. What 56mph limiters?
With regards to drivers hours, there has always been a not insignificant number of hauliers that dont play the game, be it hours, maintainance, licensing,etc. In the current climate, we can expect that those fighting for survival will take a chance and disregard the legislation (we recently lost a job to a competitor running old vehicles who is doing in one day what our guys with state of the art equipment, satellite tracking and congestion-linked sat-nav working very hard but legally stand no chance of doing in a single day - go figure!), the chances of getting caught are slim.
Come on, how often do YOU see a police car. And how many drivers falling asleep at the wheel will the laughably named "safety cameras" going to catch?
I will admit having got off the ferry at Holyhead with caravan, got onto A55 and done a steady 65-70 mph (obviously not during `normal` hours) only to be passed by a load of Irish registered 44 fridges doing a good 80mph plus. What 56mph limiters?
With regards to drivers hours, there has always been a not insignificant number of hauliers that dont play the game, be it hours, maintainance, licensing,etc. In the current climate, we can expect that those fighting for survival will take a chance and disregard the legislation (we recently lost a job to a competitor running old vehicles who is doing in one day what our guys with state of the art equipment, satellite tracking and congestion-linked sat-nav working very hard but legally stand no chance of doing in a single day - go figure!), the chances of getting caught are slim.
Come on, how often do YOU see a police car. And how many drivers falling asleep at the wheel will the laughably named "safety cameras" going to catch?
Angus
I am appalled with your claim to have been travelling at 65 to 70 mph on UK roads with a caravan. Your actions are not mitigated by the time of day levels of traffic, or by what other drivers do. The UK speed limit for caravans is 60mph on motorways and de restricted dual carriageways.
I am appalled with your claim to have been travelling at 65 to 70 mph on UK roads with a caravan. Your actions are not mitigated by the time of day levels of traffic, or by what other drivers do. The UK speed limit for caravans is 60mph on motorways and de restricted dual carriageways.
John L, I duly note your indignation, and will also disregard it.
Yes, given conditions I will usually travel at an indicated 65mph (true 61mph).
I also travel solo at speeds in excess of 70mph on our motorways when conditions allow, along with about 90% of the driving population.
You may well be as appalled at my actions as I am at your self-righteous indignation.
I don`t consider myself to be a perfect driver, but apart from a nice lady choosing not to observe a "STOP" sign and T-boning the rear quarter of my car, I have driven well in excess of three-quarters of a million miles, and ridden probably 250k on motorcycles without accident or prosecution. But unlike a vast majority of the people I have to share the road with, I take my driving and riding very seriously.
Was it Gary Player who said "the more I practice, the luckier I get"?
Yes, given conditions I will usually travel at an indicated 65mph (true 61mph).
I also travel solo at speeds in excess of 70mph on our motorways when conditions allow, along with about 90% of the driving population.
You may well be as appalled at my actions as I am at your self-righteous indignation.
I don`t consider myself to be a perfect driver, but apart from a nice lady choosing not to observe a "STOP" sign and T-boning the rear quarter of my car, I have driven well in excess of three-quarters of a million miles, and ridden probably 250k on motorcycles without accident or prosecution. But unlike a vast majority of the people I have to share the road with, I take my driving and riding very seriously.
Was it Gary Player who said "the more I practice, the luckier I get"?
ok this is from an irish driver that i use to know,who use to work for a irish haulier
he was told when he was in the uk to ignore the drivers hours because all that the police would do if he was caught driving over the hours limits would be to park him up untill he had his proper rest hours
and as for speed limiters on irish hgvs.....well they dont have them......its only recently that the irish drivers have begun to slow down and abide by the rules because now the drivers can now be prosecuted in any eu member state and if you get banned in the uk you are also banned in the rest of the eu
hgv dave
he was told when he was in the uk to ignore the drivers hours because all that the police would do if he was caught driving over the hours limits would be to park him up untill he had his proper rest hours
and as for speed limiters on irish hgvs.....well they dont have them......its only recently that the irish drivers have begun to slow down and abide by the rules because now the drivers can now be prosecuted in any eu member state and if you get banned in the uk you are also banned in the rest of the eu
hgv dave
The lorry I drive if I'm lucky will nudge 60 mph however whilst keeping check on my mirrors every so often find that the Dutch lorries heading for Ireland have a pretty good turn of speed, and once they past you you lose sight of them pretty quickly.
Andrew.
Andrew.
hi all
the drinks company I work for are so keen to keep within the regs you can be suspended for going out of hrs, so much so that if your load is late loading or tipping we are told to abandon it and take a new load needing less hrs to deliver.
this however is not a problem with forien drivers one came in from spain got tipped reloaded with empties and when back to spain all in one go I don't know how many stops he had to take I don't speak spanish but it could not have been many as he had to catch a ferry 6hrs after he left us.
colin
the drinks company I work for are so keen to keep within the regs you can be suspended for going out of hrs, so much so that if your load is late loading or tipping we are told to abandon it and take a new load needing less hrs to deliver.
this however is not a problem with forien drivers one came in from spain got tipped reloaded with empties and when back to spain all in one go I don't know how many stops he had to take I don't speak spanish but it could not have been many as he had to catch a ferry 6hrs after he left us.
colin
While I cannot make any comment about any particular nationality of HGV drivers I do know that here in Central Europe all the trucks have tachographs and there are regular checks by the Police. There is also a total shutdown betwen 8 pm on Saturday and Sunday midnight of anything over about 7 tons.
I am sure there are foreign cowboys out there but there are plenty of them in the UK already. I always laugh when you see a truck with the sign on the back 'driven carefully, if not call etc' The telephone lines would be redhot if we did call every time because bad driving is so prevalent. Remember these are the same idiots who cannot read service areas that state 'Caravan Parking Only'.
I am sure there are foreign cowboys out there but there are plenty of them in the UK already. I always laugh when you see a truck with the sign on the back 'driven carefully, if not call etc' The telephone lines would be redhot if we did call every time because bad driving is so prevalent. Remember these are the same idiots who cannot read service areas that state 'Caravan Parking Only'.
See in the paper today that EWS trains have won a contract for the transportation of containers from Felixstowe harbour to Yorkshire. They were going to use road transport but the problems associated with it swayed the contract to be awarded to the railways.
Its just another one of the many contracts that are being taken back on the rails as i stated in another thread (STOBART).
as i stated the roads have become saturated the fuel has become far too expensive and the time scales are now too short for road transport to be effective against the railways.
the old trains are allways late story is dead and buried, 93% of my companies trains where on time last month and we have a 91% average through out the past 2 years, and with the new "intermodal" services that the railways offer more and more companies are now returning to the rails, morrisons being the latest supermarket to join tesco amongst others, ford are moving most of theire cars by rail again as are vauxhall and nissan for the export market and if any one should need proof of how much freight is being moved by rail now just get down to trafford park and see the size of the trains comming out of the depot, they are absolutely huge with an average of 40 + wagons each carrying a 40 foot container.
the train really is comming back and fast.
as i stated the roads have become saturated the fuel has become far too expensive and the time scales are now too short for road transport to be effective against the railways.
the old trains are allways late story is dead and buried, 93% of my companies trains where on time last month and we have a 91% average through out the past 2 years, and with the new "intermodal" services that the railways offer more and more companies are now returning to the rails, morrisons being the latest supermarket to join tesco amongst others, ford are moving most of theire cars by rail again as are vauxhall and nissan for the export market and if any one should need proof of how much freight is being moved by rail now just get down to trafford park and see the size of the trains comming out of the depot, they are absolutely huge with an average of 40 + wagons each carrying a 40 foot container.
the train really is comming back and fast.
The only problem with freight going back onto the Railways big time is that. When Aslef or RMT or whoever it is now, decide to hold a gun to everyone head what do we do!!!!!!!!!
Monopolies have always been a unions Bread & Butter. I do agree by the way Icebreaker, Rail is the best form of travel for people or goods. Just needs safeguards
Monopolies have always been a unions Bread & Butter. I do agree by the way Icebreaker, Rail is the best form of travel for people or goods. Just needs safeguards
My thoughts exactly Frank. I think industrial action by rail unions years ago was one of the reasons freight went on the road in the first place. If less than 1000 tanker drivers can cause the chaos that's happening at the moment, think what rail unions could achieve.
The last general strike on the railways was in 1955 and I finished in 67 and during my time we never took any industrial action.
The reason why it went on the road is as clear as the nose on your face.
I've posted it before and I make no apologies for posting it again, corrupt politicians were to blame. People like Ernest Marples, the Transport Minister who employed an accountant from I.C.I. Fibres to slash the railways while his companies, Marples Construction and Marples Transport, took over.
The railways not only had to supply their own infrustructure like trackwork, signalling, buildings, bridges etc. but also the rolling stock, locomotives and wagons etc. There was also machinery for track laying and numerous other engineering pieces of equipment.
Along comes Joe Bloggs, buys a lorry and employs a driver after paying the road fund licence and bingo! he's in business.
Wheres the level playing field to let rail compete fairly.
Another point about railways, they blend in with the landscape, the same cannot be said about motorways like the M6 and the scar they leave.
The reason why it went on the road is as clear as the nose on your face.
I've posted it before and I make no apologies for posting it again, corrupt politicians were to blame. People like Ernest Marples, the Transport Minister who employed an accountant from I.C.I. Fibres to slash the railways while his companies, Marples Construction and Marples Transport, took over.
The railways not only had to supply their own infrustructure like trackwork, signalling, buildings, bridges etc. but also the rolling stock, locomotives and wagons etc. There was also machinery for track laying and numerous other engineering pieces of equipment.
Along comes Joe Bloggs, buys a lorry and employs a driver after paying the road fund licence and bingo! he's in business.
Wheres the level playing field to let rail compete fairly.
Another point about railways, they blend in with the landscape, the same cannot be said about motorways like the M6 and the scar they leave.
29 Jan 02 {pipe delimiter} England
South West Trains resume services
29 Jan 02 {pipe delimiter} UK Politics
'Extra'
South West Trains resume services
29 Jan 02 {pipe delimiter} UK Politics
'Extra'
And what about the idiots with car, car and caravan parking in the hgv area when I need a break BY LAW
Frank - Dr. Beeching had the same drastic effect on the railway system of this country as the guy (sorry can't remember his name) who virtually descimated our coal/mining industry. Without these idiots we could now possibly have a first class railway network and a damn good economical fuel industry instead of the mess we are in having to rely on our source of energy to be imported from all corners of the world. The Post office service is going the same way - what the heck is the matter with our politicians? We have an excellent service and then they decide to hatchet it until it becomes unviable.
Thanks for Googling to correct me Frank (yet again) :O)
I was talking in the time frame of when I was on the railways and freight was lost to the roads due to the reasons I posted above. In the dates you have furnished freight had been lost to rail for over 30 years. Thankfully as Icemaker points out and the press, it's starting to move the other way again.
Sorry you wasted your time Frank ;O)
I was talking in the time frame of when I was on the railways and freight was lost to the roads due to the reasons I posted above. In the dates you have furnished freight had been lost to rail for over 30 years. Thankfully as Icemaker points out and the press, it's starting to move the other way again.
Sorry you wasted your time Frank ;O)
All the time in the world. Being a good capitalist I have the computer on most of the day. Buying and Selling Shares in various companies, today was a very profitable day with Barclays Bank. Lucky I never had Shares in Railtrack or Northern Rock both in dodgy business.
ps I also bet
ps I also bet
Hang on a min trucker I am a lgv driver as well So I know where you are coming from, BUT this bounces bothways what about the trucks that park in the caravan bays.
All drivers are recommended to take a break after 2 hours driving
It does my head in when people openly brag on here about driving 4-500 miles without a break
Icemaker,
why is it then that when rail companies want to shift their rolling stock they send it by road?
You will often see Allaleys of Studley Warks. shifting rolling stock around the country on the back of their lorrys because it is cheaper than to send it by rail
why is it then that when rail companies want to shift their rolling stock they send it by road?
You will often see Allaleys of Studley Warks. shifting rolling stock around the country on the back of their lorrys because it is cheaper than to send it by rail
It has absolutely nothing what so ever to do with price.
The reason rolling stock is sometimes moved by road is usually down to damage to the train that has put the vehicle out of gauge, it can be any thing from a collision to a de railment that has warrantied the trains track certification to be removed, some times it can just be that the train is no longer certified due to withdrawal from main line duties so it has to be moved by road to the point where it can be repaired and re certified.
Due to the closure of most of the coach work depots apart from doncaster and birmingham you will see trains being moved by road due to the above, we had a class 158 passenger train taken by road from newton heath to birmingham not too long ago after a shunting accident, the damage was minor but had put the train out of gauge so it was taken away by road but returned once re- certified by rail.
As i said its got nothing to do with cost, if a train is certified but needs to be moved it is usually just coupled to another thats going that way any way and costs nothing as the track fees are paid for the original service.
The reason rolling stock is sometimes moved by road is usually down to damage to the train that has put the vehicle out of gauge, it can be any thing from a collision to a de railment that has warrantied the trains track certification to be removed, some times it can just be that the train is no longer certified due to withdrawal from main line duties so it has to be moved by road to the point where it can be repaired and re certified.
Due to the closure of most of the coach work depots apart from doncaster and birmingham you will see trains being moved by road due to the above, we had a class 158 passenger train taken by road from newton heath to birmingham not too long ago after a shunting accident, the damage was minor but had put the train out of gauge so it was taken away by road but returned once re- certified by rail.
As i said its got nothing to do with cost, if a train is certified but needs to be moved it is usually just coupled to another thats going that way any way and costs nothing as the track fees are paid for the original service.
Icemaker,
I hear what you are saying but why dosnt the rolling stock travel piggy back on the network if it is out of use?
I hear what you are saying but why dosnt the rolling stock travel piggy back on the network if it is out of use?
For the reason i have given above graham, the train would be out of gauge so there would be a very real chance of it hitting platforms and bridges as it was moved, we only have a 2 inch safety margin on platforms so the train does not need to be too badly damaged to be out of gauge, if the train is not damaged but has lost its track safety certificate then it is not allowed to run on network rail lines untill re certified so it cant be taken by rail and no train can travel piggy back on the rails due to height gauge restrictions with bridges. Trains are conciderably higher than a lorry so would not fit under bridges even on super low wagons.
Any train that is required to be kept in service receives its exams in plenty of time to keep it certified for main line duties so you will never see these trains on lorries.
Any train that is required to be kept in service receives its exams in plenty of time to keep it certified for main line duties so you will never see these trains on lorries.
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