Just a thought but truck drivers are supposed to be the elite of our roads,yes or no?, I have been driving trucks for 17 years so why was it then that when I was on the M62 westbound on Friday in very bad conditions that trucks were tailgating each other. Kenyon driver, unbelievable you should be sacked and your license revoked, you are dangerous, litteraly 6` from the rear of another artic in flooded conditions, you should be ashamed or are you just that thick? I have never seen driving so bad or the M62 so bad, it was like rivers flowing across the lanes, if a vehicle had aquaplaned and came to grief god knows what would have happened, never mind the “well I weigh more than him so I wont aquaplane crap” we are supposed to be professional drivers. The standard of HGV drivers now is shameful, to the point that some of you are on a par with the very people you slag off, car drivers, wake up boys and drive professionally. Rant over and no doubt open to all sorts of crap off others. 
Quite frankly mate the reason the standard has slipped so low is because every man and his dog has a HGV licence now, where before it was blokes/ladies that had a passion for the job, and that brought pride and professionalism with it, ie dole’ies with free licences given to them, a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundant, foreign nationals, and general slipping of driving standards over the years has all brought the job into disrepute, my comment is a very broad generalisation of course but some valid reasons mentioned.
I find myself cursing just as many HGV drivers these days as cars to be honest, just ignore the knobs and stay clear of them and crack on with it mate 
Phantom Mark:
a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundant
Yep that’s me. I agree with most of the OP’s criticisms but what makes me a bad driver just because i come from, in my case an engineering background? 
Some the people who have been forced (if you like) into the industry are just as courteous on the road as those of us who have chosen it, however I do see where you are coming from in this. I was heading up the M5 the other night and had the legs on slightly slower wagon only time he could gain time on me was on the downhill stretches but do you think he would let me pull in? No!!! he was content with using the downhills to keep side by side with me in the end i gave up slowed down and slotted in behind him till the next uphill and flew past him. Attitude likes this is why car drivers not so keen on drivers now as was more or less blocking off 2 lanes of traffic, same night around 22:00 a driver was flying along no lights on what so ever took 2 of us flashing like mad for him to switch on. Soon as the boarders went up we had a max influx of taliban working in the country where over there all you have to do is pass a tractor and trailer test and that allows you to drive class 1 that didnt help pur reputation on the road
Big Roy:
Phantom Mark:
a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundantYep that’s me. I agree with most of the OP’s criticisms but what makes me a bad driver just because i come from, in my case an engineering background?
Who said you were a bad driver ■■? 
Phantom Mark:
Quite frankly mate the reason the standard has slipped so low is because every man and his dog has a HGV licence now, where before it was blokes/ladies that had a passion for the job, and that brought pride and professionalism with it, ie dole’ies with free licences given to them, a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundant, foreign nationals, and general slipping of driving standards over the years has all brought the job into disrepute, my comment is a very broad generalisation of course but some valid reasons mentioned.
^ This probably explains a lot of the problem.
It’s all part of the the licence holders v the drivers issue.The guvnors and the government are just as much to blame for the situation ever since they decided to make the job more attractive to the licence holders with dumbed down trucks using synchro/auto boxes etc and dumbed down road traffic regs like speed limiters.
Big Roy:
Phantom Mark:
a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundantYep that’s me. I agree with most of the OP’s criticisms but what makes me a bad driver just because i come from, in my case an engineering background?
So did I but I knew that I was going to be a driver from day 1 and that engineering wasn’t for me.It just paid the bills until I could get out of it as soon as possible which in my case was around the age of 18 starting with the works Transit and 7.5 tonner.
I think there’s a big difference between that type of case compared to someone who spent a large part of their working life in a factory with the job of driving trucks being a late after thought. 
But this still makes no sense, I passed the same test as everyone else and have been driving for 7 accident free years, Phantom Mark is saying “the reason the standard has slipped so low” is due to re training, now surely every driver on the road has re trained to gain their licence, so because I have come into the game via a different route it makes me a “lower standard” unbelievable
I can’t tailgate, my truck will not let me, if I get within the safe stopping distance it puts the brakes on.
It’s not just truckers, you notice it more because that’s what you do every day. Its a general lowering of standards throughout society in general, we have turned into a me me me society where it’s a case of sod everyone else as long as I’m ok. You can see it in all walks of life now from queuing to driving to banking to a lack of respect for anything or anyone, including themselves when you see the state some people leave the house, it cannot all be glandular can it,or the state they leave their cab.
As for drivers v licence holders that’s such a load of bull. We are all capable of making mistakes and of occasionally being guilty of doing things we know we shouldn’t but I don’t buy into the " we’d all be better off if we had the old gearboxes, it’s sorts the men from the boys" rubbish.
I will now take a moment to put my soapbox away and go and watch the cycling on tv.
Truth is, driving lorries is a pretty easy, reasonably well paid job. Too many people on here get on their high horse about other drivers whether that be car lorry or bus (sorry coach 
).
For F sake just get on with it and stop whingeing, we all make mistakes (although theres a few on here would never admit to it). “Theres no REAL drivers any more when I was a lad we had to climb underneath the lorry to change gear with a spanner” etc.
Yes the job has changed and the working conditions are probably better these days and thats reflected in the pay so just get on with it.
schrodingers cat:
Truth is, driving lorries is a pretty easy, reasonably well paid job. Too many people on here get on their high horse about other drivers whether that be car lorry or bus (sorry coachFor F sake just get on with it and stop whingeing, we all make mistakes (although theres a few on here would never admit to it). “Theres no REAL drivers any more when I was a lad we had to climb underneath the lorry to change gear with a spanner” etc.
Yes the job has changed and the working conditions are probably better these days and thats reflected in the pay so just get on with it.
You forgot about lighting the fire under the diesel tank to warm the fuel so the truck would start in the morning.
What bright spark thought glow plugs and fuel heaters would improve the industry
well its not just truck driving is it
look how the standars of car drivers has dropped
no one has patience nowadays
every car is in a rush and most have no idea about courtesy
some cant even spell it
as for tailgateing truckers
these are the ones yet to have an accident
so they take more risks and become over confident
but its only a matter of time
thier day will come
schrodingers cat:
Truth is, driving lorries is a pretty easy, reasonably well paid job. Too many people on here get on their high horse about other drivers whether that be car lorry or bus (sorry coachFor F sake just get on with it and stop whingeing, we all make mistakes (although theres a few on here would never admit to it). “Theres no REAL drivers any more when I was a lad we had to climb underneath the lorry to change gear with a spanner” etc.
Yes the job has changed and the working conditions are probably better these days and thats reflected in the pay so just get on with it.
+1
Big Roy:
But this still makes no sense, I passed the same test as everyone else and have been driving for 7 accident free years, Phantom Mark is saying “the reason the standard has slipped so low” is due to re training, now surely every driver on the road has re trained to gain their licence, so because I have come into the game via a different route it makes me a “lower standard” unbelievable
As he said it was a stereotypical view,which won’t always be fair in all cases,but the fact is the issue needs to be viewed in that way.The job is being progressively undervalued and seen as an increasingly unskilled one when it should actually be viewed as one of the most skilled occupations out there certainly on the same level as train driving.You don’t see opportunities for ‘retraining etc’ at the job centre,which would put someone who’s spent 10-20 years working as a building labourer or in a factory or a warehose etc etc,behind the wheel of a Eurostar,let alone an aircraft,even though driving a loaded 44 tonne truck properly probably needs more judgement and human input.Dumbing the job down with synchro boxes,speed limiters,and automatic tailgating devices,to allow employers to put a trained gorilla behind the wheel of a 44 tonner,won’t make the slightest difference in stopping the idiot eventually finding a way of crashing the thing. 
schrodingers cat:
Truth is, driving lorries is a pretty easy, reasonably well paid job. Too many people on here get on their high horse about other drivers whether that be car lorry or bus (sorry coachFor F sake just get on with it and stop whingeing, we all make mistakes (although theres a few on here would never admit to it). “Theres no REAL drivers any more when I was a lad we had to climb underneath the lorry to change gear with a spanner” etc.
Yes the job has changed and the working conditions are probably better these days and thats reflected in the pay so just get on with it.
That view is the reason behind a lot of the problem.There’s never been a time when the driver had to get underneath to change gear with a spanner but there was a time not so long ago when it took a bit of understanding,skill,and hand,eye,foot co ordination,just like the situation of knowing how to maintain seperation distances when running in traffic and how to approach hazards before the days when guvnors and instructors dumbed down the job to suit the licence holders with synchro boxes and the mantra gears to go brakes to slow etc etc.
Driving standards have definitely slipped across the board. As for the reasons they are many. One that I think has made a huge difference is the lack of police on the road , stopping badly driven vehicles and “educating” the drivers. Nowadays it’s simply a ticket if you get caught ( unlikely ) and carry on.
Pat Hasler:
I can’t tailgate, my truck will not let me, if I get within the safe stopping distance it puts the brakes on.
Is that standard with the cascadia pat■■?
Phantom Mark:
Quite frankly mate the reason the standard has slipped so low is because every man and his dog has a HGV licence now, where before it was blokes/ladies that had a passion for the job, and that brought pride and professionalism with it, ie dole’ies with free licences given to them, a mass of people from other parts of the work force retrained when they got made redundant, foreign nationals, and general slipping of driving standards over the years has all brought the job into disrepute, my comment is a very broad generalisation of course but some valid reasons mentioned.I find myself cursing just as many HGV drivers these days as cars to be honest, just ignore the knobs and stay clear of them and crack on with it mate
What a load of crap that statement is, even back in years gone by i hear tales of how drivers would bend the rules time & time again just to get the job done. You talk a load of ■■■■ mate lets face it!!
Carryfast:
schrodingers cat:
Truth is, driving lorries is a pretty easy, reasonably well paid job. Too many people on here get on their high horse about other drivers whether that be car lorry or bus (sorry coachFor F sake just get on with it and stop whingeing, we all make mistakes (although theres a few on here would never admit to it). “Theres no REAL drivers any more when I was a lad we had to climb underneath the lorry to change gear with a spanner” etc.
Yes the job has changed and the working conditions are probably better these days and thats reflected in the pay so just get on with it.
That view is the reason behind a lot of the problem.There’s never been a time when the driver had to get underneath to change gear with a spanner but there was a time not so long ago when it took a bit of understanding,skill,and hand,eye,foot co ordination,just like the situation of knowing how to maintain seperation distances when running in traffic and how to approach hazards before the days when guvnors and instructors dumbed down the job to suit the licence holders with synchro boxes and the mantra gears to go brakes to slow etc etc.
Nowadays your up in front of the suits for harsh braking, overspeeds, fuel consumption route planning etc so the concentration levels have to be kept up and theres an eye in the cab watching evey move you make. Crunching the gearbox in the old days was only an embarrasment to yourself.
Its a different game nowadays and all it means is the concentration SHOULD be focused on the road rather than trying to make an undriveable piece of machinery move. Just as well considering the overcrowded road conditions we have to get through now.
Still the easiest job I’ve ever had and the moneys not bad. 