Switched to Nights

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
21

Coffeeholic:
I switched to permanent nights last July, best move I ever made. Easier driving, less traffic, different type of nutters and plenty of time during the day to do things. No problem sleeping during the day, house and mobile phones off, and as I live in an apartment with an entry phone to gain access that goes off as well so no one knocking on my front door either. Spent years sleeping in truck stops, service areas and lay-bys so any noise isn’t an issue.

See the light, drive at night. :wink:

Yes! Different type of nutters, exactly. :laughing:

22

Xamtex:
tonight im not at work…fri and sat off…but i think im nocturnal now?

And I’m sure most of your mates know what time is best to ring you overnight too :wink: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :sunglasses:

23

I also love working nights for all the above positive reasons :slight_smile:

Much less stress and much more time with the little’un.

Family first for me.

24

I did permanent night for about 7 years, I started off ok sleeping. Then the problems with sleep started, it got to the point where I was going to bed at 6am and getting up earlier and earlier, then it was getting to the point where I was getting up at 11.00am :cry: :cry: Not starting work until 5pm, was hallucinating the job lot. I worked out of a place near markham moor, one evening I got as far as sleaford and had to pull up for a nap(40 mins driving), couldn’t keep my eyes open. There were countless times I should have stopped due to fatigue but carried on. I count myself lucky I didn’t do anyone any harm.

25

You need to have a screw loose to like nights, bloody bunch of weirdos :laughing:

26

merc0447:
You need to have a screw loose to like nights, bloody bunch of weirdos :laughing:

See? You’re obviously a “normal” and not one of us oddballs. :laughing: :laughing:

27

Been doing it a year, permanent nights, best job i’ve had so far. It may not last, but while it does, i’ll take it.

I am happiest in my own company, generally speaking, so from that perspective it’s great. I’m not a grumpy anti social type, I just don’t particularly need or want people around me.

I could sleep in a cardboard box on a concrete floor if necessary, so daytime sleeping isn’t a problem for me thankfully.

Traffic diversions keep things interesting, especially if you do identical trips every night, though i’m still not bored of my identical trip after all this time, and I don’t know why that is. People get too concerned with taking double decker trailers ‘off route’ (as goes the buzz word), but if you just keep your eyes open and check a map occasionally it’s fine.

If you can sleep during your shift, then so much the better. Leaves me only needing about 5 or 6 hours during the day, so that gives plenty of time during the day to do things. You can go to the shops, bank, tip, dentist, go for a walk/run in the daylight. All the things you can forget about when working days or tramping.

Didn’t do much good for the relationship, nor is it very easy to ‘start’ a relationship with anyone, because most people want more contact than just weekends, so i’ve given up on that idea for the moment, but i’m single now, so i’m quite happy doing my own thing. If you live in a decent place, noise during the day can be controlled. Weekends can be a bit tiring, but you can easily do 2 days on adrenaline if necessary, and i’d much rather do that and enjoy the weekend, then spend it sleeping. Got all the following week to catch up.

If you find it fatigues you, you may just not be a night person, or need to take more exercise. Being physically fit makes all the difference in the world. Two years ago, I couldn’t get through a shift driving lorries without doing the nodding dog at some point, completely different story now after getting myself sorted out.

Not all nights are good, i’ve worked for TNT night trunking and they have perfected the art of making a night shift feel as pressured as a day shift. So screw that sort of carry on. Depends very much on the type of work.

Overnight pallets wins out so far.

28

Much better at night, you can pull into a layby and have a ■■■ without having to find somewhere to hide, also its easier to drive on the right and pretend you are in france.

29

merc0447:
You need to have a screw loose to like nights, bloody bunch of weirdos :laughing:

As opposed to weirdos who want to work during the day when that is an ideal time for doing stuff other than working. :stuck_out_tongue: :wink:

30

Been nights for years and no plans to change it.
I don’t know how folk get on driving days with the traffic.If I end up late and get caught up in early morning rush hour on the M42 it does my head in and cars vans etc cutting every bugger up diving on and off the slips.
I don’t think I would drive days ever again tbh.If I had to I would probably quit or change jobs.

31

I’m in my 22nd year of working nights.

I tried doing some early starts in the bank holidays, but I’m yawning my head off by mid-morning, so earlies just doesn’t work for me.
With regards to nights though;

Parcel trunking is easy but boring it’s true, but palletwork in high tops has me out beyond breakfast. I don’t like zombieing it around the m25 heathrow section at 8am on the way back from some place like fradley park in an almost comotose state.
As agency, I’ve always found that the other full timer picks up his mate on leave’s plummy job that gives you the “head down opportunity” at the depot, compared to yours truly who’ll spend 3-4 hours in the tip queue, and then get about 50 mins in to get a legal break done, and that’s about it before setting back on the 4hour trip home!

The easiest night jobs are probably Langdons at the weekends, but you only get the minimum shifts, and Yodels for pound-for-pound value, as you get a decent length shift most places with a nice bit of “downtime” at the hub to boot. :wink:

Then there’s having half a mile between you and the artic in front going home at 2-3am instead of stupid o’clock like breakfast time! :grimacing:

32

Night work is ok for single guys who live on thier own.
After a while it will get you down.

33

There doesn’t seem to be many of my contemporaries that are still on their first wife…

Being home by breakfast and not leaving for work until after tea (dinner) means seeing my family every day, eating together, even doing the school run both ends. When you’ve done enough hours by friday night, you also know that when you get home in the small hours of saturday, the rest of the weekend is yours. Sunday night doesn’t even involve having to leave parties/goto bed early as I don’t work sunday & friday nights in the same week ever. :slight_smile:

34

Yes I do nights been doing it for 7 months now its ok I do 6 on 2 off 5 on 1 off only time I see home is my days off I do markets fruit. And veg just got new renault truck the hard thing ia sleep in the heat in day time the the bonus no traffic no vosa and no fuss all good no phone calla no pushing

35

doogiee:
Yes I do nights been doing it for 7 months now its ok I do 6 on 2 off 5 on 1 off only time I see home is my days off I do markets fruit. And veg just got new renault truck the hard thing ia sleep in the heat in day time the the bonus no traffic no vosa and no fuss all good no phone calla no pushing

dont know where you get the idea there are no VOSA about during the night , ive been pulled twice at gone midnight doing night trunks and both times it was the one just south of J14 M6 , cant remember the name of it now but you’ll know the one i mean :wink:

36

bowser:

doogiee:
Yes I do nights been doing it for 7 months now its ok I do 6 on 2 off 5 on 1 off only time I see home is my days off I do markets fruit. And veg just got new renault truck the hard thing ia sleep in the heat in day time the the bonus no traffic no vosa and no fuss all good no phone calla no pushing

dont know where you get the idea there are no VOSA about during the night

This^. I’ve seen more VOSA vehicles since I switched to nights than I ever did doing days. Hardly a night goes by on the M6 when you don’t see them, especially around the checkpoints at Stafford and the Perry Barr Motorway Maintenance Facility.

37

Spelling it right these days Nelson! :sunglasses:

38

Coffeeholic:

bowser:

doogiee:
Yes I do nights been doing it for 7 months now its ok I do 6 on 2 off 5 on 1 off only time I see home is my days off I do markets fruit. And veg just got new renault truck the hard thing ia sleep in the heat in day time the the bonus no traffic no vosa and no fuss all good no phone calla no pushing

dont know where you get the idea there are no VOSA about during the night

This^. I’ve seen more VOSA vehicles since I switched to nights than I ever did doing days. Hardly a night goes by on the M6 when you don’t see them, especially around the checkpoints at Stafford and the Perry Barr Motorway Maintenance Facility.

Maybe they’ve finally realised that if you’re going to run hard, night time is the right time.

They have to take the fun out of everything these days… :frowning:

39

paul@midway:
Been nights for years and no plans to change it.
I don’t know how folk get on driving days with the traffic.If I end up late and get caught up in early morning rush hour on the M42 it does my head in and cars vans etc cutting every bugger up diving on and off the slips.
I don’t think I would drive days ever again tbh.If I had to I would probably quit or change jobs.

Likewise, I’ve been doing nights for 2.5 years now in a 3.5T Transit, would have to be a serious pay rise for days, as even running late some nights the traffic does my head in!

40

rambo19:
Night work is ok for single guys who live on thier own.
After a while it will get you down.

horses for courses i guess, but i disagree.
i have a long term partner, done nights in the past, and start a new night job tomorrow. its containers, so could be shunting in and out of the docks 1 night, a local the next, or a long run maybe,(as in 9 and 1/2 driving) and 13-15 shift. i like the fact its going to be different every night, some i’ll win, some i’ll lose, but it will be 10 hours minimum pay, and time and half after that if i go over. so i get the variety of work, as opposed to a regular night trunk, and a decent wage.
only reason i’m doing it, is circumstance. family members not well, so need to be around, otherwise i’d still do my preferred job all over europe, which by the way, is running nights too. i’ve chose this job specifically for the night work, as i just don’t think i could go back to regular day tramping in the uk, and i know with this job, i’ll see more of the mrs and the family, than doing tramping on days, at 12-15 hours most days, and 4 nights out, for not to much more money.