Carryfast:
You’ve obviously missed my point.
Firstly I’m not talking about ‘ex’ International drivers.The fact is many of them chose to burn themselves out and/or compromise their home lives rather than share/rotate the job with those like myself on UK work.
As I said there’s something wrong with a situation in which drivers at the peak of their careers are deliberately denied the opportunity to progress and get a decent share of that more interesting work.
The result being that many of us all ended up as losers one way or another.
Having said that I’m not sure that plodding around most of Europe at 50 mph would have been a lot different after a while to UK trunking after limiters were introduced.
On that note ironically I guess that my ideal job would have been continental based, day work, driving a drawbar outfit, never really needing to run any further than the alpine regions of Germany, Austria, France, Italy and Swiss.
A few nights out here and there and every weekend off.Probably more common there than driving a builders wagon or retail multi drop is in Surrey.
You’ve obviously missed my point.
Firstly I’m not talking about ‘ex’ International drivers.The fact is many of them chose to burn themselves out and/or compromise their home lives rather than share/rotate the job with those like myself on UK work.
As I said, drivers within their career are turned down for the opportunity to progress and get a decent share of that more interesting work because they display an appalling attitude and work ethic, then blame every excuse going for their failure to get such work
The result being that I alone ended up as loser one way or another.
Having said that I’m not sure that plodding around most of Europe at 50 mph would have been a lot different after a while to UK trunking after limiters were introduced.
On that note ironically I guess that my ideal job would have been continental based, day work, driving a drawbar outfit, never really needing to run any further than the alpine regions of Germany, Austria, France, Italy and Swiss.
A few nights out here and there and every weekend off.Probably more common there than driving a builders wagon or retail multi drop is in Surrey.
Just corrected a couple of bits above there for you.
the maoster:
So one interview and one job offer has shaped your perception of exactly how continental trucking is?
Perhaps mainland Europe actually had a lucky escape?
I would counter argue that the UK employers for UK work had a lucky escape too by not employing Carryfast! 
Macski:
SeaOcean:
I’m going to be a truck driver soon (currently training for class 2) and as a side hobby, I want to learn a new language. My ultimate dream is to become a class 1 driver and drive across Europe. So I figured why not learn a language that will serve me best as a truck driver; French, German or Spanish?
I suppose it will depend on which country I’ll be delivering to most. I don’t know the answer to that, so I’m just asking based on your experience which of those three languages is more likely to serve me best as a truck driver.
I would say English first then French and then German.
Only in Sweden,Norway,Denmark,Netherland ,Belgium speak in English.French language only in France,Germany in Germany.But very hard learn language in EU.It is in UK more easy .Here people speak slowly if see who somebody don’t understand,make picture,show by hand.In EU people speak one time and fluent.
I think French language can learn only Spanish,Romanian people.It is very hard to learn.And second problem who lorry driver don’t hsve change to speak to someone long time.It is in UK some people speak non stop about everything
In moost EU country people speak very short,nobody want listen foreign people bs ir question
Only basic world when collection,delivery.
Harry Monk:
Carryfast:
Firstly I’m not talking about ‘ex’ International drivers.The fact is many of them chose to burn themselves out and/or compromise their home lives rather than share/rotate the job with those like myself on UK work.
“Hello, is that the Council?”
“Yes, speaking”.
“I run an international transport company, and I was thinking we might do a job swap. We’ll send half-a-dozen of our drivers to drive your dustcarts for a couple of months, and you send us half-a-dozen dustcart drivers to do our Italy trips for a couple of months. Whaddya reckon?”
“Click. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr”.
As opposed to is that the agency.Im an international driver and would like to do some local multi drop and building deliveries etc to get some more time at home.
Is that the international transport company.We’re an agency your driver/s tell us that you might be interested in rotating drivers on UK work with international work. Because they are getting burnt out with too many turn arounds and their wives don’t recognise them when they get home.While we’ve got drivers here bored out of their skulls doing too much local UK looking for a change on international.
While as a COUNTY COUNCIL driver I obviously never drove ‘dustcarts’ they are operated/contracted by the Borough councils.
I drove a multi lift flat and bulker and tipper among other types on the COUNTY fleet.
Ironically driving a waste bulker for AJ Bull or Drinkwater or even our own was as much a coveted dead man’s shoes job as driving a drawbar outfit on international trunking for IPEC.You obviously never found either on agencies.Which is why I was used to cover holiday and sickness among the internal bulk waste fleet drivers.While even though I worked with AJ Bull drivers at the tips and land fills on it I could never get a break driving for them. doing our own bleedin work.
Hi ANDREJS I do not know where you are from ,EVEN IF ITS A WIND UP However after all the pages written on here YOURS IS THE MOST REALISTIC ,HONEST,TRUE TO FORM" as if you know" i tried to say exactly what you have,in good old not so grammatical correct ENGLISH as some of our fellow [light blue and dark blue] contributors or think they are.
YOU have hit the nail on the head lets face it you are there to deliver or load ,you only come across whare house people and they are no interested in entering in conversation that was in my day I DOUBT THAT HAS CHANGED AT ALL that was the way it was however[for me] by some accounts i must have been the most unsociable driver driving EUROPEAN ,probably that is why companies kept we employedas their ambassador ,that is what you are.
In 2023 some drivers think there are on a cultural expedition not just delivering goods ,they will wake up ,
Excellent. Yet another persona. Well done
I was…
About to say sock puppets.
Carryfast:
[Bearing in mind that for the want of a few extra quid in the bank I would have met the O licence cash reserve requirement, with everything else in place, including operating base/parking at an extremely favourable rate and numerous offers of owner driver work, with none of the bs obstacles for a start which you’ve laughably described……
On that note owner driving is just about the best, if not often the only, sure way into the sector without having to jump your type of laughable face fits hurdles.
Why didn’t you do it then?
Carryfast:
[
Rather than UK - Italy full load traction work which I would have been happy with.Obviously RHD and using the passes wherever possible because, unlike Switch, I don’t like tunnels if I can avoid them and I generally know where the road ends and thin air starts and know enough French, German and Italian to get me by on route.
As I said elitist face fits bs.
Probably best you never succeeded as you seem to think it’s a holiday
How is Dozy getting on in hospital?
peggydeckboy:
Hi ANDREJS I do not know where you are from ,EVEN IF ITS A WIND UP However after all the pages written on here YOURS IS THE MOST REALISTIC ,HONEST,TRUE TO FORM" as if you know" i tried to say exactly what you have,in good old not so grammatical correct ENGLISH as some of our fellow [light blue and dark blue] contributors or think they are.
YOU have hit the nail on the head lets face it you are there to deliver or load ,you only come across whare house people and they are no interested in entering in conversation that was in my day I DOUBT THAT HAS CHANGED AT ALL that was the way it was however[for me] by some accounts i must have been the most unsociable driver driving EUROPEAN ,probably that is why companies kept we employedas their ambassador ,that is what you are.
In 2023 some drivers think there are on a cultural expedition not just delivering goods ,they will wake up ,
Thank you for survey.I gave mistakes,sorry gor this.But if people speak direct that he will never get plenty friend.Now most drivers like only if another driver speak what he want.If another drivers start discussion about our drivers mistakes that he have no friend to anyone.Most drivers think who he know everything,he know all better that someone.But in real life know nothing ,just want big money.Not all drivers know what is single and dual csrisgway.
peggydeckboy:
lets face it you are there to deliver or load ,you only come across whare house people and they are no interested in entering in conversation that was in my day
Why are you trying to start conversations with forklift drivers?
Carryfast:
whisperingsmith:
As we are on the subject, I only ever had one driver as small as Carryfast, all the rest were at least 6’tall
Sid was around 5’6", Unfortunately for him I had a job to Jeddah in a day cab Ford D series - he was the only one small enough to kip across the seats so he got the job. If only CF had made an effort to get his name around and about he could have had that job, and it was perfect for him: a one-piece load no handball!!
I’d have took it but I’d have been using the ferry from Venice to Alex then Safaga to Duba.
And that is where you go wrong CF - you don’t get to choose the route. You follow the route that is set in your TIR carnet and the route the firm chooses.
whisperingsmith:
Carryfast:
whisperingsmith:
As we are on the subject, I only ever had one driver as small as Carryfast, all the rest were at least 6’tall
Sid was around 5’6", Unfortunately for him I had a job to Jeddah in a day cab Ford D series - he was the only one small enough to kip across the seats so he got the job. If only CF had made an effort to get his name around and about he could have had that job, and it was perfect for him: a one-piece load no handball!!
I’d have took it but I’d have been using the ferry from Venice to Alex then Safaga to Duba.
And that is where you go wrong CF - you don’t get to choose the route. You follow the route that is set in your TIR carnet and the route the firm chooses.
This thread is making me laugh at how much all these international company’s dodged a bullet with CF
switchlogic:
Carryfast:
[Bearing in mind that for the want of a few extra quid in the bank I would have met the O licence cash reserve requirement, with everything else in place, including operating base/parking at an extremely favourable rate and numerous offers of owner driver work, with none of the bs obstacles for a start which you’ve laughably described……
On that note owner driving is just about the best, if not often the only, sure way into the sector without having to jump your type of laughable face fits hurdles.
Why didn’t you do it then?
Did you miss the bit about cash reserve required to meet the O licence requirement, after funding the purchase of the unit and it’s running costs and operating base.
Even Harry obviously didn’t want to argue on that issue.
As I said if you can raise the required start up cash it is ( was before the east euro invasion ) the best way into the job whether UK or International.
switchlogic:
Carryfast:
[
Rather than UK - Italy full load traction work which I would have been happy with.Obviously RHD and using the passes wherever possible because, unlike Switch, I don’t like tunnels if I can avoid them and I generally know where the road ends and thin air starts and know enough French, German and Italian to get me by on route.
As I said elitist face fits bs.
Probably best you never succeeded as you seem to think it’s a holiday
Ironically there was probably more of that work available than rubbish UK work …if you were an owner driver not sure about now.
peggydeckboy:
In 2023 some drivers think there are on a cultural expedition not just delivering goods ,they will wake up ,
I always saw the former as a perk of doing the latter. Entirely through doing the job, I’ve been to the top of the Eiffel Tower at twilight, visited the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Lenin’s tomb and St Basil’s Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow, climbed the Potemkin Steps in Odessa, been to the Reichstag in Berlin, the Celtic Festival in Lorient and explored countless other places that tourists pay a fortune to see.
I do speak French, German and Russian to a reasonably high standard and have found all three languages useful, not just on my wanderings but for the work aspect too. Many potential problems with the Police or Douane in France instantly ameliorate if you can talk to them in French, for example.
Carryfast:
… I’d have took it but I’d have been using the ferry from Venice to Alex then Safaga to Duba.
As Luke mentioned above, you seem to think that international transport is some kind of a holiday. 
The reality was (very often) that the final decision depended upon whose ferry account was being used, so you could easily have to be taking ferries that the customer organised/booked.
The same also applied to border crossings and import customs places… you’d have to take the customer’s instructions in that regard too because of the location of the various customs agents needed for that customer’s (or the importing customer’s) transit or customs clearances.
Speaking generally, I’d say that international transport might not be the kind of job that the average council (or agency) driver would wish to do. Due to the natural variations in humans, I’d add capability to that because some people may lack some capability or willingness and so are quite happy to drive a dustcart. I even drove one myself once (on agency for Biffa) just so that I could say I’ve driven one, which came after 12yrs and 16 countries as an international driver.
Anyway, back to the original question…
For various reasons, and from my own experience (the starting point being that your first language is English,) I’d say that German is a great second language for international transport because it is the first language of so many Europeans and is widely used in international documentation.
Carryfast:
Rather than UK - Italy full load traction work which I would have been happy with.Obviously RHD and using the passes wherever possible because, unlike Switch, I don’t like tunnels if I can avoid them and I generally know where the road ends and thin air starts
Would you care to take a wild guess as to why the French and Italians spent decades and billions of quid building the tunnels? 