Start time 07.30. Arrive yard about 07.15. Ask security for the keys for the unit I had been allocated for the day. No, no keys. Just then a lass who works for our company (but I hadn’t seen before) rolls up in a van to see the security man & I think collect some paperwork. She says the truck is not back yet, hang on a bit, it will be back soon and says she will check when she gets back to the office. (the yard is remote from the office). I drive round in my car to our compound. I notice my trailer has a unit still hooked up under it. I phone the office and ask if I should take that unit instead. No, it’s in for 6 weekly inspection today. I tell them of another unit that is there and am told to take that one. Drive back to the gate in my car to get the keys for both units. Put my stuff in the unit I’m going to use, card in, walk round checks, fill in paperwork, etc.
Then get in the other unit, pull it out from under my trailer & park it up.
Move my unit to the adblue tank only to find the nozzle still broken and unusable 4 days after management knew about it.
Got under my trailer and coupled up. Checked the trailer over, load security, etc.
After dropping the keys for the unit I’d moved back at the gate I eventually left the yard at 08.27.
Drove from Skelmersdale to ■■■■■■■■■■■ (J6 M80 Scotland) stopping twice, once for 15 minutes, once for 9 minutes.
On arrival at the delivery point, 2 trucks already in the small yard and everything has stopped for lunch. (a small co.)
Waited 49 minutes on the road outside and took lunch break.
After tipping drove to Alloa. (over the new Kinkardine [Clackmannanshire] bridge) After initially being refused loading due to a shortage of roof straps in the trailer (already reported) got loaded and left about 5pm. A bit of rush hour traffic on the A91 near Bannockburn but otherwise a good run down. Arrived back in the yard at 22.20 just 4 minutes short of 15 hours duty. 759 kms. 9 hrs 44 driving. It doesn’t leave much wiggle room if anything goes wrong does it? Apparently this is a regular run for this company. It was a lovely run in the sunshine, over 20 years since I’d been up there in a wagon, but think it is expecting a lot in a day.
If the problems at the shift start hadn’t existed you’d have had a much easier day and on a regular day its unlikely you’d see those problems because it wouldn’t be a bank holiday. No idea why you went to Adblue pump at start of shift, as long as it has enough in do the run and fill it up at the end of the day.
Yeah its a bit of a long day but I doubt they have a driver who does it every day of the week and “its a regular run” could mean its done as little as once a week or maybe once a fortnight.
Driveroneuk:
Start time 07.30. Arrive yard about 07.15. Ask security for the keys for the unit I had been allocated for the day. No, no keys. Just then a lass who works for our company (but I hadn’t seen before) rolls up in a van to see the security man & I think collect some paperwork. She says the truck is not back yet, hang on a bit, it will be back soon and says she will check when she gets back to the office. (the yard is remote from the office). I drive round in my car to our compound. I notice my trailer has a unit still hooked up under it. I phone the office and ask if I should take that unit instead. No, it’s in for 6 weekly inspection today. I tell them of another unit that is there and am told to take that one. Drive back to the gate in my car to get the keys for both units. Put my stuff in the unit I’m going to use, card in, walk round checks, fill in paperwork, etc.
Then get in the other unit, pull it out from under my trailer & park it up.
Move my unit to the adblue tank only to find the nozzle still broken and unusable 4 days after management knew about it.
Got under my trailer and coupled up. Checked the trailer over, load security, etc.
After dropping the keys for the unit I’d moved back at the gate I eventually left the yard at 08.27.
Drove from Skelmersdale to ■■■■■■■■■■■ (J6 M80 Scotland) stopping twice, once for 15 minutes, once for 9 minutes.
On arrival at the delivery point, 2 trucks already in the small yard and everything has stopped for lunch. (a small co.)
Waited 49 minutes on the road outside and took lunch break.
After tipping drove to Alloa, Clackmannanshire. (over the new Erskine bridge) After initially being refused loading due to a shortage of roof straps in the trailer (already reported) got loaded and left about 5pm. A bit of rush hour traffic on the A91 near Bannockburn but otherwise a good run down. Arrived back in the yard at 22.20 just 4 minutes short of 15 hours duty. 759 kms. 9 hrs 44 driving. It doesn’t leave much wiggle room if anything goes wrong does it? Apparently this is a regular run for this company. It was a lovely run in the sunshine, over 20 years since I’d been up there in a wagon, but think it is expecting a lot in a day.
I’d have said you were hanging the job out. A decent driver would’ve been back in the yard early afternoon.
He’d have had plenty of time if he hadn’t gone down to Clydebank and the Erskine bridge to get from ■■■■■■■■■■■ to Alloa. He probably wasted 2+ hours there. Only got himself to blame.
it’s a lot on days , say you live 45 mins from yard , tea , sit down I guess you’ll be down to 5/6 hrs sleep , not in my opinion enough , but by the look of the driving you can only do it x2 p.w so it’s how you feel about it really , I know my mates on days are kicking off over long hours , start 7 am - 10 pm , it’s to much on days I think , but it’s up to them to tell whoever sorts the work
It’s a legal day of work but definitely sailing close to the wind on duty and driving hours. Any company planning a day like that isn’t really operating within the spirit of the regs. As is often quoted but paraphrased on this occasion, " Hours regs are a limit, not a target!"
I don’t think Skem to ■■■■■■■■■■■■ reload at Alloa and back is a particularly obscene run so long as they aren’t notoriously long turnarounds, but obviously one to want to be cracking on with at the start of the day & not hit too many obstacles. It went ■■■■ up for the OP on this particular day & that’s trucking unfortunately, doesn’t help he seemed to go the long way!
I think it is if you are the employer. Thats 470 miles! tip and load! Legal of course, but it would be too much for me. Id be ok for a one off but how do you fellas do this day in day out? B.T.W. how is it allowed in this day and age? Can anyone remember the 80s when there was a 450km maximum? 281 miles I think.
This was when the old log books were being fazed out and the dreaded tacho was came in. I cant remember how long it was in force. Even then it was an 11hr day max with 3x 30 min breaks making a 12.5HR day max. Surely thats enough!
Im not sure 19th century peasants worked more than that. Certainly if you were to work a seaside donkey for more than 8 hrs youd end up in jail for cruelty!
On the flip side of course is that it gives people with limited education a chance to earn a good sum by the end of the year by in effect doing two years work, but nevertheless not many industries can offer this.
For the record, I would winge about that & change jobs if it was anything like a regular thing 5 days a week. Once every so often though in between the mostly local stuff I usually do, I’d probably get on with it.
I suppose the answer to whether it’s a fair run would really depend on the circumstances.
I think he means the Clackmannanshire bridge, being the new Kincardine crossing, he certainly wouldn’t have got back in his hours if he used either the Queensferry or Erskine crossings.
sapper:
I think he means the Clackmannanshire bridge, being the new Kincardine crossing, he certainly wouldn’t have got back in his hours if he used either the Queensferry or Erskine crossings.
Sapper
I suspect this gent fed the wrong information into his sat nav resulting in him become lost some what , a good basic map would have keep him on track ■■?
sapper:
I think he means the Clackmannanshire bridge, being the new Kincardine crossing, he certainly wouldn’t have got back in his hours if he used either the Queensferry or Erskine crossings.
Sapper
Indeed Sapper. Apologies for the typing error and confusion.
