Irresponsible HGV driver

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Mon 9 Jun 2014 21:24
Irresponsible HGV driver - Trilogy

Earlier this evening I followed, actually I couldn't keep up at legal lmits, an HGV (pallet company) driver. He/she was driving up to at least 60 mph in national speed limit areas and well in excess of the 40 mph and 30 mph limit in villages. The rear wheels we throwing up dust from ill judged cornering. This was a driver possessed, quite clearly with a death wish and with zero regard for the safety of others. In one 30 mph limit he was tailgating a car driver.

The one upside was the number of the company he/she worked for was on the rear. BTW, this was a very high vehicle too. This has to be some of the worst HGV driving I have ever seen. Generally, IMO, these drivers are some of the best on our roads.

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Mon 9 Jun 2014 21:31
Irresponsible HGV driver - Wackyracer

I hope you'll report it to the company or to the 'Well driven' scheme if it was displaying a sticker for it.

These rogue drivers give others a bad name.

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Mon 9 Jun 2014 21:54
Irresponsible HGV driver - daveyjp
All you can do is report it and see if the company care. Most wagons are now fitted with tracking systems so the company will know where he was and the speeds he was doing at the time.

Yesterday I had no problem reporting a bus driver who I saw texting whilst driving with a busload of passengers. These are modern buses with CCTV everywhere, so I hope one is on the drivers cab.

Edited by daveyjp on 09/06/2014 at 21:55

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Tue 10 Jun 2014 00:20
Irresponsible HGV driver - Andrew-T

Might it have been nicked?

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Tue 10 Jun 2014 01:01
Irresponsible HGV driver - gordonbennet

Checked your speedo against a sat nav recently Trilogy?

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Tue 10 Jun 2014 09:19
Irresponsible HGV driver - dan86

Gb has a point the speedo in the hgv is calibrated on a regular basis unlike the one in your car.

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Tue 10 Jun 2014 09:20
Irresponsible HGV driver - Trilogy

Checked your speedo against a sat nav recently Trilogy?

Checked against police roadside readouts.

I know the limit for him on A roads. He was way, way over in 30 and 40.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 09:41
Irresponsible HGV driver - gordonbennet

I can't make any specific observations about this particular episode as i wasn't there.

Many lorry drivers take not a great deal of notice of the 40mph vehicle limit on NSL roads, in practice those who adhere to the limit end up at speeds of between 35 and 38mph, 40 being the legal limit.

The problem at 40 or less mph is that people behind get frustrated, and all too often those who are not competent to do so are driven to overtake, not an ideal scenario.

A lorry driven at 50mph on the other hand, will appear to be travelling at 55mph to many car drivers behind from their optimistic speedo, only 5 mph below their legal limit on NSL single lane roads, they don't get frustrated and usually only the competent will then overtake.

I don't want to get into an argument over the legalities or not of this, i'm only giving my opinion of many years at the helm, and that most police officers take a sensible view about this in practice providing of course that they observe some competence in the way the lorry is being driven...ie the driver immediately notices the officer and adjusts speed accordingly...otherwise known as not taking the p.

I suspect the limit for lorries will be raised fairly soon to 50mph on two way roads anyway.

Edited by gordonbennet on 11/06/2014 at 09:44

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 10:14
Irresponsible HGV driver - Trilogy

gordon, Thanks for your comments. The worst part of the episode was the excess speed in the villages. That was when he/she lost me.

BTW, being stuck behind a Morrisons HGV at 40 mph can be frustrating. However, I can understand why some companies stick to the speed limit. There are significant cost savings.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 10:32
Irresponsible HGV driver - gordonbennet

The worst part of the episode was the excess speed in the villages. That was when he/she lost me.

Yes, that i have a big problem with too, open road is one thing. Where people etc are likely to be encountered is quite another, especially for a supposed pro.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 12:15
Irresponsible HGV driver - Wackyracer

The reason most HGV drivers like myself stick to the limits is because, I don't want 3 points and a fine at the end of the day. I go to work to earn money and not to give it away in the way of fines.

We are hourly paid so getting the job done quicker is a disadvantage for us financially too and lastly because alot of companies now put pressure on drivers that speed (which I'm happy about).

However, Some of those people who are in the companies to enforce this non speeding policy do not know what they are talking about. I had a disagreement with a manager who insisted that the maximum speed for a hgv on the motorway is 56mph because that is what the limiter is set to. Even producing a copy of the highway code from my bag and showing him the relevant page still could not persuade him that it is 60mph.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 15:47
Irresponsible HGV driver - Trilogy

I've just phoned the relevant company asking to speak to the transport manager. The guy was sorry I had to phone him. He said he would carry out an internal investigation. In addition he gave me his name, so I could ask for him if I needed to in future. In fact he was one of the company directors.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 18:49
Irresponsible HGV driver - concrete

I've just phoned the relevant company asking to speak to the transport manager. The guy was sorry I had to phone him. He said he would carry out an internal investigation. In addition he gave me his name, so I could ask for him if I needed to in future. In fact he was one of the company directors.

Result there Trilogy, well done. The company I worked for had some excellent HGV drivers and really skilled at handling heavy trailers with plant on, especially into tricky city centre sites. They had no time for speeders, especially in urban areas. The old excuse about better brakes on trucks does not stand up. They used to say it is easy to stop the wheels going round but it doesn't stop the vehicle! Food for thought.

Cheers Concrete

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 19:16
Irresponsible HGV driver - Wackyracer

That is good Trilogy, Nice when companies take these things seriously.

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Wed 11 Jun 2014 20:08
Irresponsible HGV driver - galileo

The reason most HGV drivers like myself stick to the limits is because, I don't want 3 points and a fine at the end of the day. I go to work to earn money and not to give it away in the way of fines.

We are hourly paid so getting the job done quicker is a disadvantage for us financially too and lastly because alot of companies now put pressure on drivers that speed (which I'm happy about).

In view of your very logical explanation above, why do so many HGV drivers insist on overtaking another HGV which is 0.1 mph slower, thereby causing several minutes delay to non-HGV road users stuck behind during the manoeuvre?

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Thu 12 Jun 2014 00:45
Irresponsible HGV driver - Wackyracer
In view of your very logical explanation above, why do so many HGV drivers insist on overtaking another HGV which is 0.1 mph slower, thereby causing several minutes delay to non-HGV road users stuck behind during the manoeuvre?

I can't answer that one really, As I will only overtake if I have a fair advantage. If the truck infront is only a little bit slower I just take a couple of clicks off the cruise control and stay put.

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Thu 12 Jun 2014 13:21
Irresponsible HGV driver - galileo

You have my respect and good wishes, Wacky. If only your approach was universally followed!

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