Hi guys, i was just wondering if anyone would drive a truck when their speedo doesn’t work?
The reason i ask is i drive a bus on local work, and for the last couple of days my speedo has not bin working. I’ve noted it on the defect card every night but it still not fixed. Would i be justified if i didn’t want to drive it or should i jus get on with the job?
All advice appreciated.
happyhebridean436:
Hi guys, i was just wondering if anyone would drive a truck when their speedo doesn’t work?The reason i ask is i drive a bus on local work, and for the last couple of days my speedo has not bin working. I’ve noted it on the defect card every night but it still not fixed. Would i be justified if i didn’t want to drive it or should i jus get on with the job?
All advice appreciated.
Don’t know much about driving a bus on local routes but given that you can’t tell what speed you’re doing I wouldn’t drive it.
If it was not working at the start of the shift - NO
If the speedo stopped working whilst out there and I knew what the speed is when at certain revs in each gear then YES - until I got back to base or could get it repaired, whichever was the sooner.
I had the same problem when I was on the buses. Stagecoach told me, and I quote, “By law you don’t need a working speedometer, because being a professional driver, you should be capable of judging your speed correctly”. At the time I was only 20 so knew nothing about any laws, but if it was now then I’d refuse to drive it!
Or drive it, but drive really really slow and continuously run late. You could just say you thought you were judging your speed correctly, but obviously not 
Surely unless this bus is so old it’s a Classic,then the speedo is linked with the tacho?If the speedo is not working,then the tacho may not be functioning correctly also!
Don’t drive it!
Slap a sat nav in it, and use that as a speedo, far more accurate anyway… 
bestbooties:
Surely unless this bus is so old it’s a Classic,then the speedo is integral with the tacho?If the speedo is not working,then the tacho cannot be functioning correctly also!
Don’t drive it!
Bus drivers don’t use tacho’s anyway so it doesnt matter, very few buses have tachos on them either.
happyhebridean436:
Hi guys, i was just wondering if anyone would drive a truck when their speedo doesn’t work?The reason i ask is i drive a bus on local work, and for the last couple of days my speedo has not bin working. I’ve noted it on the defect card every night but it still not fixed. Would i be justified if i didn’t want to drive it or should i jus get on with the job?
All advice appreciated.
my speedo failed on my truck one day, it was intermittent, hit a bump it would work then not, worst bit was i was i a city full of speed camera, so i pluged sat nav in and used that as rough guide to speed as they correct to within 2 mph normally.
It failed on the motorway on the way home for about 4 seconds, and wow it was nice to 60mph on the motorway but then it kicked in again and went back to doing 54 mph 
something todo with the crank shaft it had to be replaced
But in your case if your driving around town, like others said have sat nav plugged in and use it a guide as its your licence if you get flashed
Keep putting it on your defects sheet before you leave so if ministry or cops pull you, you can show you have identified the problem. and also ask why your bosses wont get it fixed.
There must be a condition in their o’licence that covers this sort of thing isnt their? didnt a certain TC shut down a bus company for not maintaning busses 
Someone will correct me if I am wrong but I thought it was a LEGAL requirement to have a correctly working speedo in any vehicle when being taken onto the public highway and the DRIVER is soley responsible for ensuring it works.
ROG:
Someone will correct me if I am wrong but I thought it was a LEGAL requirement to have a correctly working speedo in any vehicle when being taken onto the public highway and the DRIVER is soley responsible for ensuring it works.
Yet they dont get checked on an MOT, Vosa will look at the tacho menu to see what the speed setting is, but speedos are never checked, whether it be car, bike, bus or truck…
Maybe all vehicles ‘should’ be calibrated, I know my Toyota shows 5 mph over the speed limit at 70, so my dial can show 75, yet the sat nav shows 70, sat nav being the most accurate… Am quite convinced that people do get done for speeding, say 34 in a 30, yet thier speedos are showing say 30 or 31…
Coddy:
Vosa will look at the tacho menu to see what the speed setting is, but speedos are never checked, whether it be car, bike, bus or truck…
Wheel tappers have the tools though should they wish to check the speedo at the road side.
Adam_Mc:
Bus drivers don’t use tacho’s anyway so it doesnt matter, very few buses have tachos on them either.
34631 and when we had it 16319 have tachos fitted…
If its fitted with a tacho then the speedo HAS to work but if it hasnt got a tacho then the speedo isnt a legal requirement (on the buses anyway) 
I had an issue with a speedo on a bus (16282) as it was showing 10mph faster than you were doing so I used the satnav on my phone blutacked to the dash to compare the speeds, needless to say 20mph was showing as 30… 
Any speedometer that is fitted to a vehicle must be kept in good working order whilst the vehicle is being used on a road. The penalty for failing to have a speedometer in good working order is a fine.
However, if the speedometer develops a fault whilst being used or a defect has been discovered then all steps must be taken to rectify the fault with reasonable expedition. This exception only applies when the defect develops and must be repaired before the next journey.
Whilst looking for this. I read the court case about Sheena McDonald, so if you were a police driver a speedometer is not necessary 
> Any speedometer that is fitted to a vehicle must be kept in good working order whilst the vehicle is being used on a road. The penalty for failing to have a speedometer in good working order is a fine.
>
> However, if the speedometer develops a fault whilst being used or a defect has been discovered then all steps must be taken to rectify the fault with reasonable expedition. This exception only applies when the defect develops and must be repaired before the next journey.
askthe.police.uk/content/Q601.htm
looks like we use the same site