Safe Speed Forums

Listening to the Oxfordshire news last night, it was reported that the number of accidents within the Oxfordshire area involving foreign truck drivers has nearly doubled (I think the numbers went from 11 – 29 last year) and are expected to double again by next year.

Just wondered what our HGV drivers thought about this and what they thought about the standard of driving by foreign truck drivers. I travel the motorways every week and to be honest I’ve noticed foreign truck drivers to be less courteous.

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Useless laws weaken necessary laws.

This figure may only be relevant if the NUMBER of foriegn truck drivers hasn't also increased?

A valid point, but one then has to consider the wider implications that might affect the routes that they travel. Drivers, all drivers, and particularly foreign drivers are extremely 'cost conscious' and if road improvements are causing delays, then they will adjust their route accordingly. For instance, with the current roadworks at the top end of the M25, traffic from Kent, heading for the Midlands or North-West, would be more likely to use the Southern route and then the M40 rather than the M1. The data relates to Oxfordshire! And I presume was compiled relating to the period of the improvements of the Western section of the M25? One route, which I sometimes used, was to go South on the M3, cut through Bracknell to the M4, and then onto the A34. Unbelievably, it only added about 20-30 minutes to the journey time.

As to them being less courteous. I don't think so. In a foreign country where there are invariably language problems, it is almost an incentive to take more care. It depends how one defines courtesy as opposed to culture. Flash headlights to a motorist waiting to turn in France, and they will sit there amazed. It's almost seen as an act of aggression. One thing that I have noticed is that when circling a roundabout, undecided as to the exit they want, they will stick to the outside, as opposed to the inside, which leaves room for cars to enter the blind spot.

As to whether there are more foreign trucks on our roads? There are certainly less U.K. trucks venturing 'over the water'. And then there is the matter of certain domestic household names outsourcing transport to foreign based undertakings even for internal movements. The most striking of which is our very own inventor of the 'Salmonella Bar'. Yes folks, even good old Cadbury's have outsourced their transport to a Dutch(?) company. A journalist from Commercial Motor tried to raise the issue with the company a year or so ago, but the last I heard, they had failed to respond.

Is it relevant? You might ask. It is when one considers that by rotating vehicles with (I presume) 2 x 1,000 litre fuel tanks to a Country where fuel prices are much lower, the U.K. based haulier is not competing on a level playing field, and is operating at a severe disadvantage.

There is also a cost to the public at large. that cost is 'Road Safety'.

Whilst I feel much more could be done to 'educate' drivers as to how to recognise when driving alongside a LHD vehicle, and an awareness of 'blind spots', in the intervening period people are being injured (and even killed) whilst the U.K. haulage industry is effectively on its knees due to unequal competition.

Additionally, if we look at the social-demographic changes for the period in question, then we will see that it follows the expansion of the EU into many former Eastern-Bloc Countries, which has resulted in the arrival of many vehicles from Countries whose vehicles would not normally venture onto our shores. These drivers time need to learn our roads, our manner of driving, and acquaint themselves with our traffic network (for what it is )

I could go on. I HAVE gone on.

I could say a lot more. I probably will say a lot more.

Grumps, well said mate.
Most of the LHD Trucks I see are driven well, some are atrocious, but there again the same can be said about RHD trucks.
I have seen in the past week, about one a day where there has been some kind of altercation with a LHD truck.
One interesting one I saw this week was a 7.5 tonner from Lithuania, it had a sleeper cab, but TWO people in it.
I realise where the driver slept, but where did the passenger sleep???????
And if the passenger was the second driver, what quality of sleep did he get????????
Another point, two people in a standard size, not mega size, sleeper cab, all the way from Lithuania, what sort of way is that to treat a fellow human being??????????

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Semper in excreta, nur quantitat variat.

The thing is, drivers aren't what they were. A few years back there weren't many Eastern European drivers based in the UK. Now there are thousands. With the enlargement of the EU there are now 10 more countries who can send their trucks here without the need for clearing Customs so moving goods has become that much easier and cheaper. Now they can hire anyone with a license and a pulse and send them to Britain, the only European country that drives on the left and where traffic is heavier than they can imagine. The trucks can travel throughout the UK doing internal work now, where they couldn't on Carnet.
I think drivers in general are less courteous than they used to be. I do, however, think that brits abroad are still far superior to Europeans in Britain.
I have a friend here from Holland. He drives for the same firm here as I do. He openly admits that he and the other dutch drivers, who would spend the entire week in the UK before heading home, would have a competition to see who could trip the highest number of speed and light cameras in the UK.
A lot of it is down to public perception. Is it so different, now, to when the Soviets held Russia so tightly and the Brits felt sympathy towards them?
I used to spend a lot of time in the former East Germany. You would see houses with sagging roofs, broken windows and a bloody great satellite dish bolted to the wall. They don't live the same way as Brits. They don't think the same way and they certainly don't drive the same way.
It's no surprise accidents have increased. The quality isn't there anymore.

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Once a Cornishman, always a Cornishman

Does this data include foreign agency drivers in UK trucks?

Having seen some of the driving standards from them I'm not surprised the accident rate has doubled in Oxfordshire.

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Smokebelching,CO2 making,child murdering planet raping,granny mugging,politically incorrect globally warming (or is it climate changing now it's getting colder?)thug.
That's what the government want you to believe of me. If they get back in I'm emigrating.

if it was up to me, i would get rid of them all. plain and simple.
my closest encounter involved myself pulling a 16'4 tall trailer overtaking a petrol tanker. looked in my O/S mirror to see an artic coming up in L3. the got about half way past me and moved over forcing me to brake and pull back in behind the tanker who was forced onto the hard shoulder by this moron. this was northbound on the M74 between j7 and j6 when the roadworks were there. incidentally, the plates had PL on them

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Richie

SSAFA supporter
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=126025031585

Another one this evening-m4 j14. French ( I think) artic on its side on the wrong side of the m4. 10 mile tailbacks.

It looked like he'd gone through the windscreen.

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Smokebelching,CO2 making,child murdering planet raping,granny mugging,politically incorrect globally warming (or is it climate changing now it's getting colder?)thug.
That's what the government want you to believe of me. If they get back in I'm emigrating.

less skilled, less professional, less prepared!
that is just the drivers. the trucks are LHD which creates obvious problems on our roads. the police are almost powerless against them and even when they do manage to convict them, the justice system is a joke. £2,000 is not much of a fine after they have killed someone.. personaly, i treat them with utter contempt. i dont like them here and i never will

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Richie

SSAFA supporter
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=126025031585

Having been a HGV driver before the introduction of LGV drivers,I can honestly say that the standard of driving all round from every class of driver on our roads has fallen dramatically.

I would hazard a guess that the increase in collisions and the break down of the data would suggest that most of the incidents would take place at roundabouts, this would be due to the fact that the positioning is wrong when stopped trying to get a view onto the hazard.

There is a very high number of foreign registered LGVs on the roads today bearing the initials PL,LT,F etc and a lot of the drivers are in fact taking a lot of jobs in this country via our agency's who give them jobs at a reduced hourly rate along with accomodation to offset the fall in pay.

The other thing I have come across more so recently is the sharp increase in drink driving offences being committed by these foreign drivers whilst driving there own private cars, and give an occupation of LGV driver, I am sure it wont be long before we see it transferring from car to there lorry and it might just be that they only get caught when they have a collision of the nature that has been mentioned.

So, what is the answer to the problem of solving a shortage in drivers within our country,a descent wage probably but that wont happen as long as you have got cheap labour as this is going into the building industry as well our people cant get a job as the people who emply are going for the cheaper labour as they get more profit, so in effect they are creating uneployment amongst the british and no doubt the government figures show that there is low unemplyment among the foreign immigrants, but they dont ask the question why.

So, perhaps the answer to this question would be to legislate ie make them have a driving assessment prior to being allowed to drive in our country then we can at least say that they have been checked before as opposed to waiting for the in evitable to happen when it is too late. End of rant.
Stephen