newmercman:
Orys, Transit vans in Boulogne could’ve been driven by any idiot with a licence so not a very good argument, I mean it could even have been a Pole
Yeah. I agree. That can be any idiot - even a polish idiot. But most idiots in vehicles on british plates are still british
But, if we can be serious: please do not make idiot a sinonim for Pole, if we do not want to have this thread locked as well.
PS what’s with the flags in the windscreen personally I want to see where I’m going, not where I’ve been
They annoing me as well. In my previous job that was first thing removed by me after I took over my lorry. But in last job I used to drive nightsifts, and that was various lorries of dayshift drivers. Milions of scottish flags, “scottish trucker” “celtic” “rangers” scarfs, yellow square signs with “Yes I do owe the road” or “whatever!” written on that, naked womans made from thick metal plates, some colour lights and “funny” stickers.
I can’t understand that - is that some kind of scottish folklor? Or britosh, as I can see lot of football fans from England in Scotland as well with huge scarver covering half of the wind screen. I never had seen so much of that in Poland (except plates with names or nicks, which are useful for CB users).
And yes, I was driving on the “wrong side of the road” as well. I can’t see any problem with that - you changing lanes in both directions in every country, so paying attention when changing lanes to this one of the other side of lorry then you should be your normal behavior.
Lankytim:
eastern european is more likely to damage equpment/have an accident or run bent compared to a Brit driver? Ive heard loads of stories about eastern european drivers driving double shifts. and reversing into stuff.
Yeah. Some of these stories may be true. Poland is still a wild market, and it’s nothing unusual when employer is trying to force drivers to do illegal things. I remember when I was driving a van in Poland I was told once “You must be in Szczecin in 5 hours” when normal driving time is expected about 7-8 hours. When I refused, I was told “if you don’t do it we will find another driver, who will drive for us for less”.
Fortunably now every driver forced to doing such things is able to tell them to ■■■■ off and go to find work anywhere - for exapmle in britain.
But please think what you are writing. If they are driving double shifts, they are driving twice as much as other drivers. But they have not twice as much accidents… But i think that question is marginal.
In fact everyone who was driving in Poland during last 15 years would propably agree with me, that polish roads are madness, so you must be really good or lucky to drive there without any accidents. Check this movie: http://youtube.com/watch?v=D4fDovz0-OM&feature=related
Overtaking like that is nothing unusual. And you know what? Most or foreign drivers are learning to that quite fast and trying to do the same (as you can see on this movie).
orys that is no longer valid as many
of those who come to the UK to take up
WORK have invested in a method of
transport so that they can go back and
forth when haveing time off from working
and belive me the driver of that vehicle
could have been any one at all not just polish
british or french,etc etc even german ■■
and crys every country has it share
of drivers who have decorated
their lorry, and that goes for every
country from A --to-- Z
over here it is a NO no BUT
PEOPLE STILL DO and end up
donating to the local town fund
when stopped and asked for
a contribution
Seems a lot of the poles driving for agencies here at the start arent that experienced and running into trouble.
No wonder when some other drivers won’t give them the time of day, or offer them help or advice.
We tend to forget about inexperienced UK drivers just passed their test, having accidents, reversing into walls, damaging vehicles.
Infact reading some posts you would think every UK driver passes his test, and is suddenly an amazing driver who never runs into any problems.
Ive worked with agency guys passed their UK licence, watched guys drive off to do a Manchester run from Glasgow with the diesel tank 1/4 full (ok last driver should have fueled it) then drove it till it runs outta a diesel. Watched another guy do a job moving trailers from one yard to another one across town being told look mate just go home we will pay your 8 hours after working for 1 hour because company couldnt afford the damage, wasnt even any reversing involved. Done a double man shift with a guy were i ended up doing nearly all driving because this guy couldnt keep the truck within the white lines on a clear windless day.
Best one was the guy who started his shift, jammed the truck underneath the cannopy in the yard. Then once truck was out, was told when leaving the depot turn right go down the bottom of the yard turn round, don’t try to turn left out the yard won’t make it. 30 seconds later he is trying to turn left and takes out the security barrier and the gate. The later when he reaches his destination he manages to take out their gates as well. All in the one shift.
All these guys UK drivers, which no doubt be laughed off later on and the guy will learn etc… But if it was a Polish driver or Eastern European driver we would be screaming about how crap all Polish drivers are and how they shouldnt be allowed to drive here.
As for left hookers side swiping cars on motorways thats no wonder really, driving on busy motorways the amount of cars which will cruise along right on your blind side. maybe just me but if i am driving a car, and see a truck espec foreign one i’ll treat it as an obsticle and get past it quickly as i can on the motorway no way on earth i’d sit cruise along side it on the trucks blind spot.
I do agree with you. I just trying to show, that not everyone moron must be from Poland (and that smart drivers can be from Poland as well).
Apart of that I am trying to get you some look into polish driver’s situation and revise your knowledge about such question.
I am reading it with big interest what are you writing here, and apart of that I do not want to get involved into main subject of this thread I think your discussion will bring better effects if you will be referencing to reality not to some legends and fairy tales.
But, if you want, I can tell you one: when british people are coming to live to Poland (and there is a lot of them, much more than you think) i always helping them if I can. And the same to russians and vietnam people.
newmercman:
if you look in your mirrors all the time then nothing can sneak into the blind spot without you noticing :!
if you look in the mirrors all the time you’ll be off the road in no time, you obviously haven’t had a lot of experience driving, according to your post.
According to my post How do you work that out I’ve been around & about since 1985 so I would say I’ve done a fair bit of driving, still learning though I spent roughly 10yrs in Europe/Scandinavia in RHD lorries & another 5 in LHD both abroad & in the UK without having an accident.
You take my words literally but you miss my point, if you continually look in your mirrors as well as the windscreen, as I’m sure most SAFE drivers do then you will not get an idiot in a car creep into your blind spot, that way when you have to overtake you will KNOW what is around your vehicle, as a professional driver you should be aware of the blind spots & drive accordingly. There is NO justification for having this type of accident whatever you say.
I will agree with that. I am always checking mirrors few times when I am changing the lane. One is not enough. And when I am changing I am still looking into top mirror in case, that something small is going next to my left (or right, when in LHD vehicle) wheel.
orys:
I will agree with that. I am always checking mirrors few times when I am changing the lane. One is not enough. And when I am changing I am still looking into top mirror in case, that something small is going next to my left (or right, when in LHD vehicle) wheel.
EXACTLY
Like I said, not all Poles or Eastern Europeans are bad, just like not all Englishmen are drunken football yobs, but try & do a lap of the M25 & you’ll see what I mean about the accidents, perhaps you could tell your fellow countrymen the Mirror, Signal, Manouvere routine
newmercman:
try & do a lap of the M25 & you’ll see what I mean about the accidents, perhaps you could tell your fellow countrymen the Mirror, Signal, Manouvere routine
And Can I invite you to M8 to give the same lessons for british drivers? You can tell them as well why It’s not good to overttake queue on the slip-lanes and then jumping back just in front of the lorry in the last moment…
oh that explains it, back in the day the density of traffic was lower than today
I once dented a car on a highway in sweden, about 6 or 7 cars were joining the highway, so I moved into the center lane to give them room, all but one of them sped up and undertook my truck, one of them decided it was a good idea to hang exactly in my blindspot, so when I decided to move back into lane one, after having my turn signal on for at least ten seconds, I hit his rear quarterpanel slightly. no flags or anything else restricting my view. considering the highway was the E4 through central stockholm during rush-hour, I doubt there was anything else I could have done to stop it from happening.
milodon:
oh that explains it, back in the day the density of traffic was lower than today
I once dented a car on a highway in sweden, about 6 or 7 cars were joining the highway, so I moved into the center lane to give them room, all but one of them sped up and undertook my truck, one of them decided it was a good idea to hang exactly in my blindspot, so when I decided to move back into lane one, after having my turn signal on for at least ten seconds, I hit his rear quarterpanel slightly. no flags or anything else restricting my view. considering the highway was the E4 through central stockholm during rush-hour, I doubt there was anything else I could have done to stop it from happening.
Last time i was in the UK in a left ■■■■■■ was 2 wks ago & it was rush hour on the M25, it was a SSC XF Daf & they have a HUGE blindspot unless you look in the mirrors, but I managed ok, like you say sometimes ■■■■ happens, I like to think that it was my driving skills that kept me out of trouble, although Friday evening around the GRA in Roma in a RHD must’ve been divine intervention but as the saying goes ‘there but for the grace of god go I’ The other thing is that with the amount of mirrors on a lorry these days there is no such thing as a blind spot
The whole point of Orys & myself’s conversation was that since the appearance of the Eastern Europeans in great numbers there are a lot more sideswiping incidents, I know that the Rumo’s & Bulgarians have always had a bad reputation but the PKS, Hungarocamion & Csad boys were all pretty decent drivers back in the day & would help you out if they could, nowadays it’s a different story
newmercman:
I know that the Rumo’s & Bulgarians have always had a bad reputation but the PKS, Hungarocamion & Csad boys were all pretty decent drivers back in the day & would help you out if they could, nowadays it’s a different story
But they were elite! Now everyone is doing class 2 or class one and coming here for work. I think it’s employer’s fault. If I would running transport company, i will prefere to pay more, then to employ morons, who can’t drive. No matters if they would be Polish, British or from Tobago Islands.
Just two things to say before vacating this UK Drivers site for good:-
Molodon please get your “Quotes” correct.
And Newmercman, please let me know when you learn to educate ‘pork’ ’
because at the moment you seem to be banging your head against a brick wall. I’d give up mate. You’re better apreciated on the other site.
There is a lot of eastern europeans drivers here, that’s true, but other think is that there is now much bigger need for transport ecerywhere in Europe, as you, old union countries, opened for Eastern European countries and we are now in one market. Lot of polish companies are trading here, and much of british products are now easy to buy in Poland. So someone must transport all that here and there. That’s I think why now is so much of newbie drivers working everywhere.
However where i in the past have allways been only too happy to help (and gently take the p***)
.
As most people need help at some time and most people are happy to give it
My boss is now starting to replace leaving drivers with eastern europeans.
So dont these new drivers also need the same amount of help as English drivers?
Cant see the difference really what nationality they are. A new driver is a new driver and needs the help of the old hands.
However where i in the past have allways been only too happy to help (and gently take the p***)
.
As most people need help at some time and most people are happy to give it
My boss is now starting to replace leaving drivers with eastern europeans.
So dont these new drivers also need the same amount of help as English drivers?
Cant see the difference really what nationality they are. A new driver is a new driver and needs the help of the old hands.
Surprised at you M.T. you are not looking at the long term picture,particularly in relation to yourself.
British drivers/workers are being squeezed out of the jobs market.
Due to the influx of our Eastern European friends,wages are dropping like a brick.
That means driving trucks is less appealing than it was to British newbies.
That means they won’t want to spend £2k+ on licences,medicals etc.
Think it through to its logical conclusion.
You and a great many other driving schools will be out of business.
I wish people would grow a brain before they start posting Pro Immigrant drivel on here.
However where i in the past have allways been only too happy to help (and gently take the p***)
.
As most people need help at some time and most people are happy to give it
My boss is now starting to replace leaving drivers with eastern europeans.
So dont these new drivers also need the same amount of help as English drivers?
Cant see the difference really what nationality they are. A new driver is a new driver and needs the help of the old hands.
First of all thanks for getting this thing back on thread.
My point is not that any nationality is better or worse than any other. whats the old phrase “good and bad in all”■■
My point was that i was asked to tell somebody else how to do the job by the BOSS. Not the driver who as i said is quite a nice guy. But the influx of migrant workers in my firms case has enabled the management to keep wages low. So (and this is the last time i say this) telling them how to do my job is like turkeys voting for xmas.
And do you think if a bulgarian haulage company rang my boss and said “by the way i have just undercut your rates on the paris job but we are not to sure of the route could you help”? what do you think he would say??
personally I want to see where I’m going, not where I’ve been
