This company seem to have adopted a different practice delivering to the local Spar shop. The Shop is on the corner of a fairly busy traffic light controlled road junction with a car park behind it. Recently Blakemores have started delivering with a full height and length double deck artic. This is too unwieldy to use the car park because of recent building work the shop has done on the corner to extend its pharmacy department into the car park. So instead of the previous urban or occasional 13.6 metre trailer, which used the car park successfully this thing now turns up. The driver has to park in the road about 40 metres from the junction facing uphill and with the trailer leaning into the camber of the road to un/load some of the cages from the top deck with his tail lift. Then he has the problem of how to turn the thing around which will need a blindside reverse … all this carried out at school chucking out time.
Which shop is it?
They have the same policy in the small market towns in this area. Park anywhere, and as you say with bigger artics. Also they are wild drivers and don’t give a toss for anyone. I know they are on a multidrop with some of the smaller Spar shops, but they should show some consideration to other road users.
Loose, Maidstone. I don’t have any complaint about the drivers, I just think that this is a totally unsuitable vehicle to use for this particular delivery, its use is being motivated by management greed. A smaller vehicle should be used. This is putting an unfair burden on the driver, we all know that things including drivers can fall off tail lifts so I would certainly be refusing to do this delivery. From one direction this junction is only about a 30 degree corner so traffic, which could be travelling faster than at a right angle junction and in addition not as well sighted as before due to the new extension, suddenly comes across the back of the vehicle and Fred trying to bump cages up or down the kerb or even across the road.
It amazes me how many drivers/firms just park anywhere, rather than make a little more effort and get into a loading bay or single yellow line*. Do most companes pay parking fines or something? We have to pay our own thus I will make sure I’m parked just right.
I saw an Arla lorry parked in a bus stop last week and a Bidvest wagon (surprise surprise) with 2/3 of his lorry parked on the white zig zags of a pedestrian crossing.
*I know you can park on double yellows most of the time.
Here’s a question; What if your vehicle is too long for the loading bay? I fold my taillift back up on red route bays if it means fitting in but it is a PITA.
Vehicle parks with the tail lift roughly level with left turn arrow before the keep clear line and on either side of the road. The Physio has been demolished and the Spar now extends out roughly from the furthermost flat roof almost as far as the white posts at the traffic lights and in a line curved roughly towards the left hand window beside the parked silver car. Deliveries used to be done with the vehicle positioned in the mouth of the car park facing out and with the cab about level with the salt bin. The goods in is level with the nearest of the group of 1st floor windows. The other side of the roadsign warns of a 7.5 ton weight limit ahead due to a weak culvert.
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??
If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
+1
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
Would it be up to the driver to decide if safe, they are the ones doing it and should turn it down if not.
mac12:
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
Would it be up to the driver to decide if safe, they are the ones doing it and should turn it down if not.
Of course H&S starts with the driver and if he/she felt it unsafe then they should feel they have the right to refuse to do the job, but if the risk assessor has done their job and is any good then the driver should never have to feel the need to refuse to do the job because a decent risk assessor won’t give the ok to a double decker doing store deliveries which are being unloaded on the road.
So long as drivers are coming back with signed delivery papers, the double decker will continue to be sent to that store.
It’s ridiculous, double deckers should not be being used to deliver to convenience stores such as that. The fact it’s possible is not the point, it shows complete lack of consideration for the driver & local traffic, not to mention the neighbours. Then you’ve got the safety risk of a DD blindside reversing on a busy street. It wouldn’t be too bad if they were doing it at 6am, but to be there at school kick out time just makes it worse. Pathetic really.
Cotswoldcrunch:
Do most companes pay parking fines or something? We have to pay our own thus I will make sure I’m parked just right.
When I used to do retail deliveries for a certain haulier years ago they used to say bring back any tickets/fines & they will pay, I only ever fetched one back & that was issued in London:)
mac12:
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
Would it be up to the driver to decide if safe, they are the ones doing it and should turn it down if not.
The problem there is if a driver refuses to do a store because he says it’s unsafe they then give it to a “hero” driver who don’t care where he parks or who he obstructs…
Cotswoldcrunch:
It amazes me how many drivers/firms just park anywhere, rather than make a little more effort and get into a loading bay or single yellow line*. Do most companes pay parking fines or something? We have to pay our own thus I will make sure I’m parked just right.
.
The company I work for pays parking fines. I don’t think they’d get any drivers to do drops in London of they didn’t. It’s hard enough finding somewhere to park outside stores in London let alone somewhere legal.
yorkshire terrier:
mac12:
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
Would it be up to the driver to decide if safe, they are the ones doing it and should turn it down if not.
The problem there is if a driver refuses to do a store because he says it’s unsafe they then give it to a “hero” driver who don’t care where he parks or who he obstructs…
We have such a driver. Up rotten loft ladders, up several flights of stairs, happily rotates customers stock and puts back all the junk afterwards, will handball a load instead of using a sack truck “because I’m not lazy.” 
I’m a hero to myself, the easiest and most convenient method for me, and no tickets.
yorkshire terrier:
mac12:
selby newcomer:
Is each delivery not risk assessed for Spar??If it is then the risk assessor needs sacking for allowing the use of a double decker to be used for store deliveries when it has to be tipped onto a road. H&S would have a field day if anything happened to the driver or a member of the public.
Would it be up to the driver to decide if safe, they are the ones doing it and should turn it down if not.
The problem there is if a driver refuses to do a store because he says it’s unsafe they then give it to a “hero” driver who don’t care where he parks or who he obstructs…
We have such a driver. Up rotten loft ladders, up several flights of stairs, happily rotates customers stock and puts back all the junk afterwards, will handball a load instead of using a sack truck “because I’m not lazy.”
I’m a hero to myself, the easiest and most convenient method for me, and no tickets.
They do risk assess drops ,but the person who does it is brain dead ,he,s not qualified in h&s and has no hgv licence (case of jobs for the boys).
And if you don’t want to do a double run ,tm will throw toys out of pram! Dong
No body stands up for themselves there!sad really
cav551:
This company seem to have adopted a different practice delivering to the local Spar shop. The Shop is on the corner of a fairly busy traffic light controlled road junction with a car park behind it. Recently Blakemores have started delivering with a full height and length double deck artic. This is too unwieldy to use the car park because of recent building work the shop has done on the corner to extend its pharmacy department into the car park. So instead of the previous urban or occasional 13.6 metre trailer, which used the car park successfully this thing now turns up. The driver has to park in the road about 40 metres from the junction facing uphill and with the trailer leaning into the camber of the road to un/load some of the cages from the top deck with his tail lift. Then he has the problem of how to turn the thing around which will need a blindside reverse … all this carried out at school chucking out time.
next drop prob Staplehurst so no need to turn . the car park behind that shop usually full especially when the pub open and the doctors .cant be ideal pulling cages on loose road bit busy for that .Are there now lights on ■■■■■■■ st now (used to live in Linton)
Its a wonder folk don’t get crushed by dd taillifts, ive just started using them on occasion and when you’re coming down from the top deck with a full taillift of cages or palletised totes you cant see anything below coming from the n/s.
Is the risk assessor from Blakemores or Spar??
If Blakemores then a call to Spar head office from an irate “resident” 
about the chaos the double decker causes, blind side reversing etc etc might get them to put a stop to it 