signed up with driver hire last week. was given a van job to start with in sheffield city centre delivering to offices. absolutely shocking sacked it off after the day. then last friday i was supposed to do some 7.5tonne work. psyched myself up for it but got there and it ended up being a LWB sprinter van!! tuesday this week i worked at a truck auction so got to drive every single kind of vehicle you could think of and every single type of gearbox, this was good but still not got out of the road 
got a call this morning and im going to be doing some class 2 work for a building supplies company ( loft insulation etc… ) and i belive most of it is going to be residential so i am absolutely ■■■■■■■■ myself about my first day getting an 18T truck down tiny housing estate and lanes etc. any advice ■■ cheers 
Yeah, keep calm as it’s probably going to be another van job
You will be fine mate…
Take your time and scope out how you’re going to get out of situations and side roads. You don’t really want to be driving forward into side streets if you can’t turn around, as this will result in you having to reverse back out on to a main road normally blind, which isn’t a good idea if you don’t have a banksman.
Best of luck! 
agree, reversing into a high street should be a no-no. reversing from a high street is not always fun but much better than the other way round
speed is your enemy - take it slow and lots of mirrors
if unsure - get out and look
be aware of what’s around you - let the cars drive off first if you feel you don’t have enough room
What I wished I did when I first started driving was taking notes on a bit of paper more for things like laybys and trailer numbers due to me forgetting half of stuff in local areas and things that could help me in the future like good laybys or industrial estates to sleep in.
i would add that plan your route before you set off. get the address, google it, make sure it is the right one, then use street view to see how the road looks like and where you can park. check for low bridges, know your height
If delivering to residential customers, beware of the “Oh yes, we have had much bigger trucks than yours reversing down our drive” syndrome 
as this has caused many a domestic “incident”. I normally drive a 15t Daf and there are very few roads (even on new estates) that I cannot get down (carefully). Of course, if you can block the road whilst delivering, then extra points. I once had to tell a BMW driver who was getting arsy with me as I blocked a narrow road that I would be 5 mins max but I was due for a break & would stop for my full 45 minutes if he gave me any more grief - happy days
I also have to deliver a lot of stuff to building sites where I will guarantee that a) they all b*gger off dead on 5pm (earlier on a Friday) and b) whatever you are delivering, they will curse you, their bosses etc as whatever you are delivering will not be needed until next week, month, year etc. The advantage of building sites is that they will have the means to get it off your truck (fork-lift, Manitoba etc) - something that 99.9% of domestic customers will not (although I did once deliver a cast-iron stove to a domestic customer who announced after 10 minutes of wrestling said stove that he had a fork-lift in an outbuilding - NOW he remembers?) 
really am nervous for it but excited too. honestly cant wait to get it out of the way as iv psyched myself up twice. got there n it was an effin van !! lol i just feel totally clueless even what to do when i first get there. do i just start doing a vehicle check ? do i keep the vehicle checklist with me or hand it in first ? just everything running through my head. iv never even used my digi card yet or even pressed a button on a tacho lol
everyones advice so far is if your not sure get out and look. but on my first day if im on a high street and blocking off traffic and i get out to look im gonna feel even more nervous. my class 2 instructor told me everytime i definitely have the driving ability but my nerves and confidence is terrible
BigRob25:
everyones advice so far is if your not sure get out and look. but on my first day if im on a high street and blocking off traffic and i get out to look im gonna feel even more nervous. my class 2 instructor told me everytime i definitely have the driving ability but my nerves and confidence is terrible
First rule of trucking driving mate is that the general pubic can sod off and wait!
Yes it can be a bit stressful to start with, as you can get concerned that you’re inconveniencing the public, normally resulting in you fluffing up your maneuver. You have to put them out of your mind and learning that, will make your job a lot easier.
As for blocking traffic, try to avoid this if you can, as you should be able to find a spot that’s safe to pull over somewhere. It may mean that you have to take a passes of the target and survey how you’re going to tackle the drop, but that’s part of the job mate. Just chill, accept that at times drops are going to be a challenge and view them as a puzzle you have to solve.
Best of luck!
When doing residential deliveries:
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Slow and steady wins the race. Every time.
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Know the full address of where you are going. If your wheels are turning, you should not be lost.
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Know where all the products are on the back of your truck. Draw a load map after you’ve strapped up.
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Don’t drag your wheels along the kerbs. If a corner is tight, or street is narrowed due to having cars on one side, mount the kerb to save the tyres.
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Don’t drive over any manhole covers on the pavement, or a customers driveway.
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Set your mirrors so they are right for you, and CLEAN them, nothing worse than trying a tight reverse and getting blinded by the sun in dirty mirrors.
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Your phone is your friend. Phone call to each customer saying, “I’m on the way, see you in 30-45mins, any special instructions on where we are heading for?”
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Make sure your paperwork matches your load before you leave the yard.
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If you’ve got a difficult manoeuvre to perform, get out, assess what you need to do and imagine the whole thing play out in your head.
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Try not to throw up with worry
if I can do it for 7 years, anyone can
If you are unsure of a turn or you have ’ overcooked ’ it, there is nothing stopping you carrying on straight and simply going round a roundabout or turning round in the next easy space, and coming back to your turn from the opposite direction.
It’s amazing how your confidence comes after a few days, so don’t rush anything. As already said, nice and easy-take your time.
YOU have paid for your licence, DO NOT allow yourself to be put under pressure. The aim of the game is to ENJOY the day, and start the first part of your experience. You will do fine mate.
I’ve done residential stuff in the City of London, nothing is impossible. Be careful when driving down side streets because they can and do sometimes narrow. If you don’t think you can make it, stop before you even try and walk down. 99% of the time it will save your bacon.
All sounds good advice chaps, hope it went well? I’ve got my first day tomorrow for Coop I believe half scared but half excited. Intend to be steady, as I was when dropped in a 7.5t curtainsider 20 yrs ago and told off ya go 