Started a night trunking job a couple of weeks ago. A nice run up the M1 to Nottinghamshire and then back to London. Makes a change from the usual grind of driving in London though it’s taken longer to get used to than I expected.
Noticed a few things on my travels the 1st being those 7.5 tonners towing drags doing 70mph; Can they legally do this speed or are they subject to the 60mph limit?
There also seems to be a (thankfully) small minority of drivers (both car and HGV) who enjoy a spot tv while they’re driving, couldn’t believe it when I saw the 1st one. What is wrong with these people
Finally, do the motorway police work nights? Seen 1 patrol in 2 weeks, not that I want them hanging around at every junction and MSA but some presence would be nice
AFAIK the maximum speed for any towing vehicle on the motorway is 60mph. There may be restrictions under that for certain large loads etc., but nothing may exceed 60.
I haven’t seen many tv addicts on the road, but maybe it’s an M1 thing
Police don’t appear to work nights any more, or if they do they spend it drinking tea. Never see them unless there is a specific incident.
I always thought these 7.5’s required HGV’s when they towed a trailer, in the same way a 3.5 requires a tacho when it tows, but talking to someone the other day who works for a local builder & drives a 7.5 that spends most of its time towing he said no as long as you have C1 it’s fine.
Surely 7.5 tons maximum permissible weight is 7.5 tons regardless ?.
Are you sure the ‘TV’ isn’t one of those satellite - navigation screens, - as you pass by it does look like a small colour TV on the dashboard.
I also think the maximum speed limit for a 7.5 tonner with a trailer is 60 mph, not 70. Also, using the third lane is illegal with a trailer, but because of there being far fewer motorway police patrols about now in the daytime (but more so at night) you tend to see more and more people ignoring these types of laws, knowing that their chances of being seen, followed and pulled over are fairly remote.
i used to watch tv whilst my uncle drove …but tv blew up lol on my knee …too much power going into it dont think your supposed to watch it whilst driving …
are they 7.5t ,u can get some c2 that look like 7.5t ive been working agency lately doing wagon &drag and they dont look much bigger than 7.5t except for the length
Not strictly true, Alli…the 56mph limiter law is a European one and only applies to trucks with a gross weight over 10t…between 7.5 and 10t they come under UK Domestic limiter laws, and only have to be set at 60mph.
LucyR:
Not strictly true, Alli…the 56mph limiter law is a European one and only applies to trucks with a gross weight over 10t…between 7.5 and 10t they come under UK Domestic limiter laws, and only have to be set at 60mph.
Since we’re nitpicking…
The 60 mph limiter requirement applies to vehicles between 7.5 and 12 tonnes MAM. EU law requires limiters at 56 mph over 12 tonnes.
(according to my copy of the DSA Official Goods Vehicle Driving Manual)
Are you sure the ‘TV’ isn’t one of those satellite - navigation screens, - as you pass by it does look like a small colour TV on the dashboard. 
It was a left ■■■■■■ so I could see it clearly, in fact if he had got any closer I could have asked him to change channels.
