I had a day off work today, and decided to spend it with my husband, who is an owner operator. I was absolutely horrified to see many Eastern European truck drivers using the hard shoulder as a rest area. Where are VOSA or the police■■? Or is it still that there are different laws for UK hauliers to that of our Eastern European drivers??
The standard of driving demonstrated today by these ‘so called’ professional drivers, beggars belief. I can totally understand after just one day of travelling on our UK roads how angry you British ‘PROFESSIONAL’ drivers must feel. It is about time our Government, Police and VOSA looked at the professional conduct of our own hauliers, and realised it is way above anything that the Eastern Europeans can offer. Just another one to add to my rant for the day - a driver from Czech Republic overtook us on the M25 and he was enjoying himself watching a film on his laptop…says it all doesn’t it.
Marina
at least you took note that they were not british drivers. most people would see a truck and tar us all with the same brush. they are shifted by the traffic cops on the M25 but the rest are either somewhere else or not bothered. if a brit tried that the armed police would probably be called out 
Couldn’t help but notice that the trucks were Eastern European - at least one in three trucks on the motorway were from that part of the world. It took a lot of hard graft, hard earned money and the protocol with VOSA etc., to get our business up and running, and it really angers me to watch our poor British haulage industry suffer the way it is. My rant today is just one of many, but to see our law being flouted in our faces like this, makes me ask the question - is it really worth carrying on or do we just throw the towel in■■?
If I see an illegally parked vehicle on the hard shoulder, I always give them the opportunity to leave freely of their own will. If they refuse to move, I ask my control to inform the police.
as much as i completely agree with your rant over the state of the haulage industry because of these “professional” drivers i have to ask as a british driver who drives a foreign truck the following question;
if you enter a MSA in the uk and your time is up why should you pay at least 20quid to park when the law says you must take your break and their is nowhere to park? the price is extortionate and usually the facilities are dreadful.
if you were to drive in any other country in europe this would not happen so isn’t it about time the uk drivers said “no more” to overpriced and substandard parking?
Good morning Welsh Boy In Spain - I totally agree with your comments pertaining to the horrendous charges on our MSA’s for overnight parking. I am curently in dispute with Roadchef UK over this. i.e., Charge of £21 per night - which basically gave you ‘NOTHING’ other than the right to park on an area of concrete (which was not the best anyway). Our driver took photo’s of the apalling state of the gent’s toilet/shower areas, also no hot food available after 9pm, and totally insecure (no overnight secuurity provided).
We cover most of Europe, and are impressed by the way HGV drivers are catered for, there are numerous rest areas available.
But to go back to the issue of parking on the motorway hard shoulder -there were so many parked there yesterday, they obviously do it on a regular basis. i.e., three trucks from the same company■■? This just goes to show the blatant disregard of our laws they have…
j.gooch:
Good morning Welsh Boy In Spain - I totally agree with your comments pertaining to the horrendous charges on our MSA’s for overnight parking. I am curently in dispute with Roadchef UK over this. i.e., Charge of £21 per night - which basically gave you ‘NOTHING’ other than the right to park on an area of concrete (which was not the best anyway). Our driver took photo’s of the apalling state of the gent’s toilet/shower areas, also no hot food available after 9pm, and totally insecure (no overnight secuurity provided).
We cover most of Europe, and are impressed by the way HGV drivers are catered for, there are numerous rest areas available.
But to go back to the issue of parking on the motorway hard shoulder -there were so many parked there yesterday, they obviously do it on a regular basis. i.e., three trucks from the same company■■? This just goes to show the blatant disregard of our laws they have…
yes i completely agree but as you say you do a lot of europe you will also note that the police in most of europe let you park on the sliproad after a parking area or services if they are full because they understand driving laws and concentrate on catching real criminals and not persecuting drivers 
Hiya - yes I’ll agree with that, maybe we need a few lessons in this country how the haulage industry needs to be looked at. However, it was only 3pm yesterday - the service areas hardly full■■?
the service area could be empty but it still costs 20 quid or more 
A 45 minute break can easily be taken on UK MSA’s as they allow 2 hours free parking■■? You were talking about overnight parking charge…
i think you’ll find that by 3pm GMT 4pm CET most drivers have done a days work. after all start at 5 or 6 am drive 9 hours and take a break is quite an early finish. i very rarely drive after 7pm CET by then all the good routiers are open and the wine is starting to flow 
I’ll agree with you that most drivers in EU park up far earlier than that of our colleagues in UK. We are talking about UK. The motorway service area at Clackett Lane was virtually empty at 3 pm yesterday. If they need a 45 minute break - take it there…if they need to park up and their time is up - to be in line with EU laws park up - whether it is 3pm or 9pm the law is the law. I am sure if an emergency vehicle needed to attend a serious accident - there is absolutely no way on earth that one would have got through…I leave for your consideration…
j.gooch:
It is about time our Government, Police and VOSA looked at the professional conduct of our own hauliers, and realised it is way above anything that the Eastern Europeans can offer.
Sadly it often isn’t way above, or even just above, that of the Eastern European drivers and it’s getting steadily worse. 
On a trip up the M1 from 8 - 19 followed by the full length of the M6 on Wednesday, and the return journey on Thursday, every single piece of bad, dangerous, selfish or just plain stupid truck driving was by a UK registered vehicle bar one, and that was a Dutch registered vehicle driven by a Dutch driver.
I suppose it’s because the hard shoulder doesn’t stink of [zb] !
( language edit ) jd
Are you telling me that it wasn’t water, in the hole I stepped in getting out of the truck at Reading Services yesterday■■?
Hi Coffeeholic - the standard of driving was not my issue - but I agree with you - watched a ‘TNT’ = Totally Naff Transport - come off the M23 onto the slip road for M23 and proceeded until point of no return - then held a queue of approx. 20 vehicles on the slip road whilst he pushed back onto the M25 - gained him approx. 30 vehicles…
re £20 for parking at msa! they can take it out of the money there saving by not paying to damage our roads and side swipe cars!!
truckermarcus:
re £20 for parking at msa! they can take it out of the money there saving by not paying to damage our roads and side swipe cars!!
oh yes i forgot all uk trucks that enter europe never have accidents because the steering wheel is on the wrong side 
none of us europeans pay road tax do we 
we pay it in all the other member states we travel in! but none off them pay to use our roads!
go and read your guardian!
