Hi everyone Im after some advice. Im based at barton upon humber and work nights just doing trunk work. But this week my company which will re main nameless at the min has given us a new route. I have to go from barton to northfleet. Now this is 204 miles and on a good ru down the a15 then a46 a1 etc this takes 4 hours 20 mins. And that is with no hold ups if there was a road shut or a diversion in place then you would have to have a 45 before you get there meaning you.d need one on your way back. I have told them that this run is too far for and if i was too stick to 40 on the a roads and 50 on the a1 like the law states i wouldn’t got there. Would any of you tell them to shove it and have a got any rights to say i ain’t going
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.
MysonVinnie:
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.
I kind of agree, don’t tell them to poke it just give it a go drive sensibly and see how it goes. As you know you can extend to 10 hrs. Can they give you a shorter run in and out to counteract the long run to make life easier for you. We have a night run to Haverhill which takes 4.10 if all goes well so it’s spread out amongst the night boys.
MysonVinnie:
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.
me too
Just do it legally and then it’s not your problem 
Ok fair enough. But say for instance i run out of hours due to traffic etc. Where would i stand if they said to me you best park up for a 9 hour break then. Obviously Im usually home every day and Im employed as a night driver so carry no gear with me like duvet as there is a day driver on it in the day
if you run out of time and they want their lorry back they will have to send someone to collect it and you. i take it the lorry is double shifted.
i doubt they would hire in a truck AND trailer just because you are stuck at the most a couple of hours away. much cheaper to send a day driver out to fetch you.
MysonVinnie:
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.
+1.
Ken.
Quinny:
MysonVinnie:
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.+1.
Ken.
And two.
There is nothing worse than someone saying they cannot do a job if they havent tried it.
Another thing I would always have a bag with some night gear in, it is almost winter and you could easily get stuck 3 hours from home if it snows.
Just remember if you run out of duty time, you cannot be recovered
gallows_man:
Hi everyone Im after some advice. Im based at barton upon humber and work nights just doing trunk work. But this week my company which will re main nameless at the min has given us a new route. I have to go from barton to northfleet. Now this is 204 miles and on a good ru down the a15 then a46 a1 etc this takes 4 hours 20 mins. And that is with no hold ups if there was a road shut or a diversion in place then you would have to have a 45 before you get there meaning you.d need one on your way back. I have told them that this run is too far for and if i was too stick to 40 on the a roads and 50 on the a1 like the law states i wouldn’t got there. Would any of you tell them to shove it and have a got any rights to say i ain’t going
my advice would be make your own decision,the amount of time ive heard drivers say do A,B,C then when the ■■■■ hits the fan there nowhere to be seen 
ady1:
gallows_man:
Hi everyone Im after some advice. Im based at barton upon humber and work nights just doing trunk work. But this week my company which will re main nameless at the min has given us a new route. I have to go from barton to northfleet. Now this is 204 miles and on a good ru down the a15 then a46 a1 etc this takes 4 hours 20 mins. And that is with no hold ups if there was a road shut or a diversion in place then you would have to have a 45 before you get there meaning you.d need one on your way back. I have told them that this run is too far for and if i was too stick to 40 on the a roads and 50 on the a1 like the law states i wouldn’t got there. Would any of you tell them to shove it and have a got any rights to say i ain’t goingmy advice would be make your own decision,the amount of time ive heard drivers say do A,B,C then when the [zb] hits the fan there nowhere to be seen
Kind of ■■■■■ the purpose of asking for advice doesn’t it. 
If you stick to the legal limits and it goes ■■■■ up its not his problem in the unlikely event you get left out just carry a sleeping bag.
Make sure you stay legal on speeds, you can do it twice a week on a ten, day 3 you run out of time prob your side of lincoln, it’s a night trunk, the’ll want the stuff back, not much chance of them leaving you on a night out. And if some hero goes down the sc’s on the limiter and gets it done in 9 every night, they’ll soon stop giving you the job anyway 
MysonVinnie:
I would do it, but make sure you stay legal, with speed breaks weekly rest etc etc, then if you run out of time tell them to collect you and the truck, a couple of times with this and they will see the errors of their ways. The only reason they would have changed the route is money, and if it is going to cost more getting you ‘recovered’ then it is counterproductive.
From past experience my opinion on this is be careful… Remember the biggest back-stabbers in this industry are drivers themselves so if you refuse to do it or end up running out of time because of running at the speed limits they’ll put some ‘yes’ man on the job who will do the run flat out and have time to spare at the end of it, which will then backfire on you as they’ll expect you to do it as well. A few ‘wrong’ words said in your defence and you could well find yourself jobless depending on how long you’ve worked there.
Been through this kind of ■■■■ in the past although I was on agency at the time and so told them to ■■■■ off in the end. DHL had a night trunk run from Normanton to Glasgow every night. By the time you’ve run round the yard picking up your trailer and fuelling up at the end of your shift and parking up etc, you can’t do the run legally for 5 shifts on the trott as it breaks into a 10hr. Trouble is all DHLs own ‘yes’ men went flat out on the A1 and 66 and could do the run start to finish in 9hrs with time to spare. Caused all sorts of problems as the t/o used the “well our lads do it okay” excuse and didn’t care when you pointed out that they spent half the run breaking the law.
Drivers : own worst enemy.
The first time you get a Dartford crossing overnight closure or other incident you will be in trouble, there is no way you could do that run in 9, or even 10, hours if you had to go Blackwall Tunnel.
If you are delayed for any reason you will know your going to run out of hours well before you actually do so can call the boss and get another driver on his way to meet you if they want the truck back for the day shift, but I would still carry some basic night out gear!
Martin:
The first time you get a Dartford crossing overnight closure or other incident you will be in trouble, there is no way you could do that run in 9, or even 10, hours if you had to go Blackwall Tunnel.
If you are delayed for any reason you will know your going to run out of hours well before you actually do so can call the boss and get another driver on his way to meet you if they want the truck back for the day shift, but I would still carry some basic night out gear!
If he’s got a decker he won’t be using the blackwall full stop. And if the unit’s not regisered with lbts, he’ll be running out of time somewhere around the western side of the 25 
I didn’t know where Northfleet was til I just looked at a map. I’ll tell you this - that run is a recipe for disaster. You may as well forget it right now. With HA [zb]s regularity for closing every ■■■■■■■ motorway and trunk road every night of the week these days, you’ll end up running out of time on more occasions than actually managing to do the run, and that’s running flat out not at the speed limits. You either need to round all your lads up at work and get them to stick together on this and tell your gaffer to GTFO or start looking for a new job.
Some numpty has no dout been on google or aa route finder to see if it can be dome unfortunatley they dont take account of what your driving or allow for delays the word tossers comes to mind …
OVLOV JAY:
Martin:
The first time you get a Dartford crossing overnight closure or other incident you will be in trouble, there is no way you could do that run in 9, or even 10, hours if you had to go Blackwall Tunnel.
If you are delayed for any reason you will know your going to run out of hours well before you actually do so can call the boss and get another driver on his way to meet you if they want the truck back for the day shift, but I would still carry some basic night out gear!If he’s got a decker he won’t be using the blackwall full stop. And if the unit’s not regisered with lbts, he’ll be running out of time somewhere around the western side of the 25
Same problem with Dartford if the right-hand bore is closed, left-hand bore is 15’ 9". Company my son worked for had 2 deckers and only one of them would fit 
I had forgotten about the height!
gallows man, I know who you work for and if I’m correct all your trailers are 15" 6’ or over■■? So even if the blackwall tunnel s/b is open you won’t be able to get through. If I’m correct about who you work for, they are the biggest in their product range and I can not see them letting their drivers run bent. I think I’d tell them there was a good chance I wouldn’t be back from shift, would be parking up for kip, then bringing lorry back at start of next shift.I don’t agree with you Rob about gallows man having to watch his back e.t.c. If he does job to the letter of the law, and some ■■■■■■ rips the ■■■■ out it, and T/M mentions this, all he has to do is threaten them with ministry, and his company are not going to want to go down that road. never be afraid to threaten them if you are in the right. only an idiotic T/M would try and bollock you over it, and would deserve all that’s coming to him.
Take a good book to read while your waiting for them to come and get you.