do any of the people here make night time deliveries in towns? If so have you had any training in “quiet deliveries” and are your vehicles modified in any way to reduce noise? You may be aware that many councils now enact noise limits for night time deliveries. This websites parent company is hosting the first international conference on “Quiet Cities” and we want your input as drivers. Are you being given the training and tools to do the job as quietly as possible?
Do night deliveries to towns centers. No training at all and no mods at all so far.
Loading empty cages is a noisy job, can’t see how that could be made any quieter.
It’s quieter though than the people leaving pubs and clubs at kicking out time.
Used to do load outs from the Hilton hotel Park Lane at 0300. There was a guy who used to kick off due to the noise of the tail lift. He lived in a mews right next to a loading bay. I too don’t see how you could have made it quieter.
We do night deliveries, specific instructions are given to the driver for certain stores some stores have curfews for delivery times when these are in residential areas or to meet local authority planning restrictions, instructions are usually common sense IE: switch off engine radio fridge etc. Also the routes are planned to be sympathetic to residents.
For about the last 4 years our rigid fleet and the smaller trailers used for urban deliveries have been fitted with noise reduced tail lifts with hydraulic flaps and a non slip coating to reduce noise, our new cages and dolly’s also have rubber wheels.
wear hush puppies 
Great Response LMAO
trux:
wear hush puppies
Used to do regular retail deliveries into that there Lunnon, with one of the delivery points being directly under some flats etc. Was often there half an hour or more before the delivery point opened. We were given specific instructions (e.g. turn down/off radio, not leaving the engine idling, turn off reverse beeper). No modifications to the vehicles, although we did have rubber-tyred pump trucks which are much less noisy than plastic/nylon wheels.
ricky61:
Great Response LMAOtrux:
wear hush puppies
Or sneekers 
The main supermarkets at least do seem to make an effort to control noise, but this is mainly due to strict curfew restrictions, which on the whole are moaned about a lot by the shop staff. However once they have had a few formal complaints and know about vigilant residents there does seem a certain atmosphere of fear and hurry-up involved. Which means it’s time to insist on a toilet break before leaving! There is quite a difference between them in just how much noise their equipment makes. The lime-green one’s cages are probably the worst - I have to wear ear defenders to stop them setting off my tinnitus ringing really loudly for the next 12 hours, because the lower internal height of their trailers seems to make the noise of the wheels on the floor reverberate more.
bigvern1:
Used to do load outs from the Hilton hotel Park Lane at 0300. There was a guy who used to kick off due to the noise of the tail lift. He lived in a mews right next to a loading bay. I too don’t see how you could have made it quieter.
People who buy megabucks mayfair properties thinking they are getting what they pay for - deserve all they DO get… 
yep 1, turn stacks on 
2, im up everyone else is up
if you dont like living next to a loading bay or industrial estate because of the noise, move (simple)
leo.saphira:
Do night deliveries to towns centers. No training at all and no mods at all so far.
Ditto. Same trucks that do the same job whether its 1am or 1pm
burnley-si:
yep 1, turn stacks onif you dont like living next to a loading bay or industrial estate because of the noise, move (simple)
The thing is a lot of the supermarket chains buy property for their convenience stores that either wasn’t a shop previously, or was a shop that didn’t have HGV deliveries (cash & carry job) before. All of a sudden local residents have wagons turning up at 6/7/8am in the morning, often parked badly in the case of the bread men, crashing cages & dollies about. I do sympathise with people.
I’ve never been trained to do ‘quiet deliveries’ though. It shouldn’t really be necessary… if your delivering in a residential area at an early hour any decent person would try their best to keep noise down.
I once stumbled across some university research on this subject…I think it was in preparation for 2012 Olympics (not my preparation for Olympics BTW!!) - and the projected increase of night deliveries especially to Tesco express and the like…and highlighted some recommendations such as ‘hush kits’ on rollcages, rubber tyres on rollcage wheels and bump stops fitted, air brake silencers■■? etc. as well as the already mentioned shutting off engines/radios.
One of the reports conclusions - I think after a trial of some kind…Drivers and delivery point staff need training to eliminate unnecessary shouting/whistling to each other across the yard!!! You couldn’t make it up!!!
I’ll try to find the link!!!
I found similar in a TfL Code of Practice…a few excerts & a link!!!
Do not whistle or shout to get the attention of store employees
When moving gates, locks and load restraint bars ensure they are placed gently in their resting position/stowage point — do not drop or drag them on the ground
Minimise excessive air brake noise
When working in the vehicle load space avoid banging cages into the vehicle walls
When finished unloading/loading, close up the vehicle quietly
I’ve recently been offered some curlew bird rather than the bleeper or the standard white noise one.
Dan Punchard:
I’ve recently been offered some curlew bird rather than the bleeper or the standard white noise one.
That’s all well and good, right up to the moment that Elmer Fudd opens up on you with his 12 bore!
in a similar vein Super Supermarket PLC
builds(ed) an out of town mega store
then some numpty council allow the
development of houses right next door
The biggest problem is very basic. No way of turning off the reverse warning. I hate having to reverse in a truck park at night when I have a merc