Muckaway:
Probleem is, a lot of parking suitable for lorries near town centres has gone or is now out of bounds. Drivers used to park in Witney in the Welch Way car park. Now that’s a multi storey and I’ve not seen lorries use the long stay car park since that opened.
When Welch Way was used, lorry drivers would drink at the Cross Keys pub on the High Street for food. A friends’ family used to run it and they remember many mid week meals were bought by lorry drivers.
If anyone parks near Witney now, find directions for the towns’ newest pub, The Company of Weavers. It’s a Wetherspoon and very good food at good prices. About 5-10 mins walk from Station Lane Ind Estate, although Sainsburys nearby has a restaurant, it’s too slow getting served.
I’ll pop to the pub most nights as I’m usually out all week & I like to unwind & have a chinwag with the locals.
I carry a fridge & grub for the week but will eat out in the pub at least twice a week if I can.
I admit you can’t always get parked where there’s somewhere within a short 20 min or so walk, but usually if I make my mind up I’m going for a pint (never have more than 3 though these days) I can find somewhere.
You just have to get off the main drag & make a short detour in most cases & voila!
London area isn’t too good these days as most of the lorry parks have closed & many ind. areas are yellow lined but other than that a little effort & creativity on the driver’s behalf can pay off with a pleasant night out.
Just remember to leave your parking place litter free & be as quiet as you can,especially if leaving in the early hours. I have a regular parking place behind some very large,posh houses but in the mornings when I leave,often 4am ish I flick it into manual & stay below 800 rev’s before changing up & the locals tell me when I see them in the pub I use there that they never hear me leave
FLIP:
I’ll pop to the pub most nights as I’m usually out all week & I like to unwind & have a chinwag with the locals.
I carry a fridge & grub for the week but will eat out in the pub at least twice a week if I can.
I admit you can’t always get parked where there’s somewhere within a short 20 min or so walk, but usually if I make my mind up I’m going for a pint (never have more than 3 though these days) I can find somewhere.
You just have to get off the main drag & make a short detour in most cases & voila!
London area isn’t too good these days as most of the lorry parks have closed & many ind. areas are yellow lined but other than that a little effort & creativity on the driver’s behalf can pay off with a pleasant night out.
Just remember to leave your parking place litter free & be as quiet as you can,especially if leaving in the early hours. I have a regular parking place behind some very large,posh houses but in the mornings when I leave,often 4am ish I flick it into manual & stay below 800 rev’s before changing up & the locals tell me when I see them in the pub I use there that they never hear me leave
Nice to see a “proper” driver… initiative, prepared, considerate, laid back, sociable …instead of brainwashed stressed out co. robot, up his own harris, f.everybody else attitude , there aint many of US left
yorkshire terrier:
very rare i go for a beer now but a few years ago i was out every night and did go over the top with it as did most of the lads at the firm which isnt trading anymore…
im not pround of it i deserved to be done some mornings and i shudder to think what could of happend…now a bit older and a lot wiser but some guys i knew who are a lot older than me are still the same and get blathered every night.
Yeah, this was me too. Get up with a banging head! I never want go through all that again. And my bladder is not as elastic as it used to be
The drinking thing still goes on though. Apparently, the plod sit down the road from the Stockyard some mornings.
yorkshire terrier:
very rare i go for a beer now but a few years ago i was out every night and did go over the top with it as did most of the lads at the firm which isnt trading anymore…
im not pround of it i deserved to be done some mornings and i shudder to think what could of happend…now a bit older and a lot wiser but some guys i knew who are a lot older than me are still the same and get blathered every night.
Yeah, this was me too. Get up with a banging head! I never want go through all that again. And my bladder is not as elastic as it used to be
The drinking thing still goes on though. Apparently, the plod sit down the road from the Stockyard some mornings.
Thats me these days…just about tea total for yrs now…have a couple on holidays …xmas time…do miss those times with good mates , oh the joys of getting older.
dafdave:
When i was driving i liked a meal and a good few pints at the end of the day,that was over 10yrs ago.Dont think its wise to do it these days as the police are keener with the breathalizer in the mornings compared to then+as was earlier posted its more expensive now
regards dave.
Thats my thinking on it really, back in those days unless you did something really stupid you could pretty much drive with the beer and get away with it. Now with every cop car carrying breath test kits its a lot harder to do.
I only drink at weekends when I’m not driving within the next 18 hours or so.
My mate does he stays at crawford hotel and sleeps in his truck he always has a pint or two with his tea he drives for yeah like i will tell anyone that bit but he always has a pint with his meal he does not go mad only 2 at the most sometimes none but he is like me an old git and old habits die hard
In the 80s and 90s it was normal to be drunk getting on and off a ferry,at the restaurants in Europe you would have a 5 litre jug of table wine,that was quite weak and tasted of vinegar.It was the Pastis and Ricardo,a liquorice or aniseed drink that would knock you out for the night.
The foreign traffic police used to have drink on their breath,i could smell the Cognac and Hennesy.Looking back,the drivers that were getting bladdered every night did not have any accidents.
Forgot to add,if you have a pint while wearing a transport firms uniform,you get looked down on,as they say are you parked up for the night,and ask if you have far to go,do not wear the uniform in the pub.
Not a bad place to have a pint where they have a happy hour is the hotel in the old part of Avonmouth village,you can park a few trucks by a closed entrance to the port,you cross the train tracks,there is an Indian restaurant and Chinese takeaway,or a short walk to the high street,there are more places for food.
If you park on the road where Davies Turner are,it is a short walk,i wont pay to park in the truck stop.
bigmiler:
My mate does he stays at crawford hotel and sleeps in his truck he always has a pint or two with his tea he drives for yeah like i will tell anyone that bit but he always has a pint with his meal he does not go mad only 2 at the most sometimes none
It doesn’t matter a zb who he drives for mate if he is only having literally a pint or two, don’t be wary or afraid of the self righteous among us who think " it’s totally abbohrent and evil to dare to have alchohol pass your lips on a night out" , a pint or two with a meal = OK,… A skinful or ■■■■■■ = bloody stupid…Now bring on the " A survey said etc/proven half pint etc/ impeded judgement etc etc" ■■■■■■■■ brigade,
…instead of brainwashed stressed out co. robot, up his own harris, f.everybody else attitude 
, there aint many of US left 
, a pint or two with a meal = OK,… A skinful or ■■■■■■ = bloody stupid…Now bring on the " A survey said etc/proven half pint etc/ impeded judgement etc etc" ■■■■■■■■ brigade,