Truck driving is getting to be a joke here in the UK. At the start of my shift I have to fill in a tachometer disc with the vehicles current mileage, my full name, date and place where I start my duty. This then records the distance I travel, the speed I travel, when I take a break, when I work and when I rest. During this shift I am only allowed to drive for no more then four and a half hours before I must take a 45min rest. I am only alowed to drive for 9 hours a day and at most can only work a total of 15. My truck has a limiter fitted to it by law that will only let me do 56mph. On our freeways (motorways) heavy trucks have a speed limit of 60mph so in affect all trucks can go flat out. In reality trucks just bunch up and clog the road as, at these speeds hauling 40 tons you have to keep them going to get up the next hill and it can sometimes take 5, 6, 7 miles to overtake another truck.
On normal two way roads trucks are only alowed to run at 40mph while other traffic is lmited to 60. You can imagine the black looks you get from car drivers that leave it until the last moment to leave for work and you're holding him up.
The speed limiter still doesn't kick in until 56mph on these roads which makes the things a farce as a 40 ton truck running head on into on coming traffic at 56mph will kill where as the same truck on the motorway running the same way as the traffic flow only may kill.
If a car and a truck have a wreck, the tacho card is pulled right away and the police can see if the driver has been speeding, driving over his hours, not had the propper rest and all kinds of stuff that they can twist to convict the truck driver. The car driver has none of this. If, however a truck driver produces a tacho card in court to prove his innocents he is told that it cannot be used as evidence as it doesn't log the possition of the vehicle at any given time.
At the end of my shift I have to fill the card in with the place where my duty ends, the date, mieage and distence traveled. I have to keep the card with me for 6 working days and my employer must keep them for a further 12 months so that the police and Dept of transport can access them.
We are told if we do something wrong that we should know better as we are pro drivers yet are treated no better than children. Don't let your country become a Nanny state.
Andy
