Truck stop / Lorry Park Etiquette

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
41

newmercman:
You want to try and sleep in an American truckstop, they idle constantly and not just a gentle tickover either, but 1200rpm of CAT or ■■■■■■■ blasting out of a set of 8" straight thru pipes. They even leave it on high idle when they go in for a meal or shower. It will drive you mad if you let it, there are only two ways to combat the noise, first is to avoid parking in truckstops, the second is to idle your own truck and drown out the noise with your own engine.

Now it’s a little different in Britain, but as drivers will all be starting and finishing at different times, there will always be somebody backing into or pulling out of a space, so the only way to avoid this is to keep out of truckstops.

Changeovers will make noise, you don’t need to make it any noisier than it is, but drivers do, they always will, so the best solution to this is to avoid truckstops.

Fridges now, like it or not, they’re here to stay, some companies insist on using the stop/start cycle function, so that’s a part of life too, want to avoid them? Stay out of truckstops.

Reversing beepers, I’m with you on this completely, turn them off, if you can’t then please learn to reverse so that you don’t need to shunt back and forth for ten minutes, but again, the best way to avoid them is to stay away from truckstops.

So what your saying is stay out of truckstop if you dont like the noise :stuck_out_tongue: :stuck_out_tongue:

42

Colin_scottish:

newmercman:
You want to try and sleep in an American truckstop, they idle constantly and not just a gentle tickover either, but 1200rpm of CAT or ■■■■■■■ blasting out of a set of 8" straight thru pipes. They even leave it on high idle when they go in for a meal or shower. It will drive you mad if you let it, there are only two ways to combat the noise, first is to avoid parking in truckstops, the second is to idle your own truck and drown out the noise with your own engine.

Now it’s a little different in Britain, but as drivers will all be starting and finishing at different times, there will always be somebody backing into or pulling out of a space, so the only way to avoid this is to keep out of truckstops.

Changeovers will make noise, you don’t need to make it any noisier than it is, but drivers do, they always will, so the best solution to this is to avoid truckstops.

Fridges now, like it or not, they’re here to stay, some companies insist on using the stop/start cycle function, so that’s a part of life too, want to avoid them? Stay out of truckstops.

Reversing beepers, I’m with you on this completely, turn them off, if you can’t then please learn to reverse so that you don’t need to shunt back and forth for ten minutes, but again, the best way to avoid them is to stay away from truckstops.

So what your saying is stay out of truckstop if you dont like the noise [emoji14] :stuck_out_tongue:

Now that’s an idea, why didn’t I think of that [emoji3] [emoji3] [emoji3]

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43

Earplugs, try sleeping in the day with strimmer man and various inept diy’ers in the neighbourhood, parcels roads being dug up and so on.

Great Britain is 24/7, parking in MSA’s is asking for a broken nights sleep, plenty of good places nice and quiet, tell us where you’re stopping TNUK will sort you out.

44

So when I pull up at 07:00 and start my night out you’d expect EVERYONE to do the same??

Dream on :unamused:

45

goshow:
My 21:00 - 07:00 was a suggestion because that’s when “most” trampers will be asleep. But I stand corrected that it should be a 24hr policy.

Well done on standing corrected. I’m a night tramper and your post has highlighted the problems we face. Even someone such as yourself who has an issue with noise in MSAs only really sees it as a night time problem.

If you think MSAs are noisy at night you should try sleeping in one, or anywhere for that matter, in the middle of the day. Not only are day drivers working opposite you, everyone is working. Throw the sun into the mix and it can make for some uncomfortable conditions.

Still, if this thread has made at least 1 more person think about us night trampers then well done for starting it :smiley:

46

We should expect some noise, I used to shunt empty pallets about and rearrange remaining pallets of flour if I’d changed my mind on the order for next days’ deliveries. Nobody complained about the noise but one driver did play Mr Vosa one evening at Stibbington, saying “you’re not meant to work whilst on rest.” Now that was unnecessary noise. :unamused:

47

goshow:
Yes, let it idle for a minute before setting off but is it really necessary to let it idle for longer than a minute at 4am?

Maybe they’re waiting for the air to build , we’ve got some of our old manky trailers put back on the road for the busiest period and they’ll drop enough air over a night that when you turn the ignition on you’re getting the red stop light for low air. The alternative to idling for a few minutes is revving the ■■■■ off it for a few minutes.

48

Harry Monk:

Franglais:

Harry Monk:
There’s a simple answer to all of these problems, don’t park in truckstops or MSAs.

Good answer Harry. He/we can always park in those big, empty HGV parking areas, with the security cameras, provided by the government in recompense for our taxes on fuel and road tax. . . . And then as a fridge started-up my dream was shattered.

There’s plenty of quiet little industrial estates, fully CCTV camera’d up, often with security patrols which are just a few minutes walk from a pub and chippy, drivers who fancy a quiet night normally use these.

Given that transport is a 24 hour operation, you can’t really expect to park with 250+ other trucks and have a peaceful night’s sleep.

Exactly, the bloke who woke you up at 4am with his engine starting had probably been asleep in his bunk when the OP parked next to him thus waking him from a deep slumber. I have seen drivers park next to a fridge or generator lorry then moan at the driver about the noise. What ■■■■■■ me off more is a lorry driver in a truckstop or overnight ferry wearing a hi viz :wink:

49

I’m going to go all it wasn’t like this in my day now… and it wasn’t as after doing a proper day’s work in a noisy underpowered lorry and dealing with ropes and sheets or stripping tilts, you never had a problem getting to and staying asleep, no matter how much noise there was around you!

I’m sure I speak for many of us when I say that I used to jump on the bunk for a kip when being unloaded and was able to sleep while a forklift went in and out of my trailer and lorries and forklifts whizzed around the yard, drivers would be stood around chatting etc etc etc and I could sleep soundly.

Lorry drivers today appear to be a bunch of fannies, they can’t sleep because of the noise other lorries make, can’t work out for themselves what to take to work with them for a few night’s away or even a day’s work and some can’t even figure out what type of bag to put it in without asking for help on here.

I’m sure it’s goid for the forum as it keeps on generating new topics, but it’s playing havoc with my neck, I sit here shaking my head so much that I’m sure it will wear out and my head will just fall clean off one day. Ffs grow a pair ya bunch of fannies!

There… I feel much better now [emoji13] [emoji13]

50

Wheel Nut:
Exactly, the bloke who woke you up at 4am with his engine starting had probably been asleep in his bunk when the OP parked next to him thus waking him from a deep slumber.

I may have woken him when I parked up but I used common sense and consideration when i did. I certainly didn’t sit there for 35 minutes Idling and making a racket. Some things cannot be helped but my original point was referring to excessive & inconsiderate noise.

I guess I’m just in the minority here to be considerate enough to think of others. Most folks seem to think my original thread was and “all about me” “I can’t sleep” “It’s too noisy” When in reality it was purely an brief explanation of the things I do to try and make other peoples lives a little bit more peaceful. How folks have managed to spin this back to referring I’m being selfish is laughable. You guys are in the wrong trade, you should all be politicians!!!

I find it bizarre that folks come out with: Back in my day we had to sleep in the freezer to get a good nights kip. A truck with and engine?? Never in my day. We had to pull the trailer to the destination on foot… and so on. Just because that’s how it used to be doesn’t mean that’s how it should be.

I’ll continue to show respect and consideration for my fellow man (and woman in some cases) I just won’t expect it in return.

51

I used to drive a Premium and when it was cold it used to go into high idle mode to get warm, this of course made an ungodly racket which sounder even louder at 4am when you’re trying to leave. I used to put my card in, start up and then roll to the fuel pumps to do my checks whilst the engine ran at 140db.

52

goshow:

Wheel Nut:
Exactly, the bloke who woke you up at 4am with his engine starting had probably been asleep in his bunk when the OP parked next to him thus waking him from a deep slumber.

I may have woken him when I parked up but I used common sense and consideration when i did. I certainly didn’t sit there for 35 minutes Idling and making a racket. Some things cannot be helped but my original point was referring to excessive & inconsiderate noise.

I guess I’m just in the minority here to be considerate enough to think of others. Most folks seem to think my original thread was and “all about me” “I can’t sleep” “It’s too noisy” When in reality it was purely an brief explanation of the things I do to try and make other peoples lives a little bit more peaceful. How folks have managed to spin this back to referring I’m being selfish is laughable. You guys are in the wrong trade, you should all be politicians!!!

I find it bizarre that folks come out with: Back in my day we had to sleep in the freezer to get a good nights kip. A truck with and engine?? Never in my day. We had to pull the trailer to the destination on foot… and so on. Just because that’s how it used to be doesn’t mean that’s how it should be.

I’ll continue to show respect and consideration for my fellow man (and woman in some cases) I just won’t expect it in return.

You see that plane up there? It’s slightly lower than my back in my day post…

I was of course, being flippant, it’s something else that was popular back in the day, you could joke around a little and people wouldn’t get offended and wounded.

Now look back at your OP, most of the stuff that goes against your idea of etiquette is just drivers going about the business of being lorry drivers.

Yes there are parts of what you say that I agree with, until you put them into context. Take a changeover as an example, say you’re involved in that yourself, will you creep around on tip toes so as not to make any noise? Will you turn off your engine every time you get out of the cab or while you do paperwork or whatever? Will you use sign language to communicate with your colleague? Will you ■■■■!!!

There will be those that are excessively noisy, some because they have no idea and some because they’re a bit stupid and take pleasure from annoying people, but again, that’s lorry drivers for you.

So why let things that you cannot control get under your skin? If a problem exists you have to figure out if there’s a solution and of there isn’t then you just have to learn to live with it, if there is then you have to work out whether you want to solve the problem or not, if you do then fine, end of problem, if you don’t then you have to learn to live with it.

In your case there is a solution and it’s in my first response on this thread, but you may have missed the subtle references I made to it, so I’ll summarise for you, because I’m good like that.

Avoid truckstops.

53

MSAs are for free showers. The End!

Even flip flops know they’ll get more peace under a motorway bridge or slip road

54

PaulNowak:
MSAs are for free showers. The End!

This.

MSAs, truckstops, anywhere where trucks congregate en masse are going to be noisy, smelly places, regardless of the time of day or night. It’s pointless parking in one and expecting a quiet night’s sleep.

55

Our place have just opened accounts for SNAP, Roadchef, Moto and Welcome Break. I’ve not even read the letter telling us what we need to do when we rock up. Just took a pic of it and saved it to my phone just in case I get really desperate.

Thing is, these accounts have been opened because of stingy gits whining their arses off about having to wait a week to get the money back.

These same folk are now steaming, because they’ve lost their cheap tea.

For instance, if you went to a services that was £20 to park, or £22 with a £9 meal voucher, you paid the £22, but got refunded just the parking charge.

So now they don’t have to shell out to park, but by God they’re shelling out if they get peckish.

Amazing how for someone that’s been in the job for such a short time, the amount of old boys that are asking me for parking suggestions. They can kiss my bright shiny ring. Last bloke I told about one of my secret spots decided to put it on fb, and I’ve hardly been able to get near the place since!

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56

PaulNowak:
Amazing how for someone that’s been in the job for such a short time, the amount of old boys that are asking me for parking suggestions. They can kiss my bright shiny ring. Last bloke I told about one of my secret spots decided to put it on fb, and I’ve hardly been able to get near the place since!

Yeh, I have numerous ‘secret’ parking places I have used over the years, and I’m very selective who I tell about any of them.

57

I parked near Heathrow Airport once and I couldn’t believe how noisy and inconsiderate the aeroplane drivers were. :wink:

58

The ministry VOSA/DVSA or whatever you want to call them, ought to run about with sound meters. And issue anyone running a shagged fridge with a prohibition notice.

HSF would be shut down overnight

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59

robroy:

PaulNowak:
Amazing how for someone that’s been in the job for such a short time, the amount of old boys that are asking me for parking suggestions. They can kiss my bright shiny ring. Last bloke I told about one of my secret spots decided to put it on fb, and I’ve hardly been able to get near the place since!

Yeh, I have numerous ‘secret’ parking places I have used over the years, and I’m very selective who I tell about any of them.

I don’t tell anyone now, got a few that are real good ones I don’t want to see lost.

60

A fella that I used to work with, still helps me out when I’m stuck. If he can’t think of anywhere, he knows another fella, who is the encyclopedia of hgv parking spots. My mate isn’t arsed anymore, as he only does a few regular drops now. But from time to time he does get itchy feet. So he never rules out the option of going back on general at some point. He says I can’t have his parking book until his keys are well and truly hung up for good.

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