I have just read Brett Frasers article about HGV overtaking, you know the kind, 3 miles of a wagon inching past on a dual carriageway. There is an uphill section of the A74 heading south from Glasgow where it is still only two lanes that this regularly happens. It has to be done as a wind-up because the damn things invariably slow to 40 mph and below as it's quite steep and when they evntually give up or get past the effect resembles a dose of Exlax as the traffic is released!
Rant over.
Rob S
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The things are either overloaded or underpowered.
My local lifeboat creeps along with just the two Caterpillar 27 litre turbodiesels producing a trivial 2500 bhp.
one of these positively marine units would make quite a difference.
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The fact that they have speed limiters fitted so can't exceed 56 mph before commencing overtaking does not help.
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Personally I wouldn't like to see the HGV limiters to be lifted. It solves some problems but would make many more.
Imagine them being able to travel at the same speed as cars with a gross weight of 38 tons and being able to weave in and out of traffic in the same way.
The carnage as a result of a 38 tonner being involved in an accident at perhaps 70mph would be horrendous.
The answer lies not in raising speed limits for them but to make the road system more amenable such as crawler lanes etc.
Alvin
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Alvin,
Road Tranort chaps say limiters lead to a 26% rise in accidents when first installed .
Drivers complain of being passengers in their vehicles, droning along at a fixed speed and falling asleep.
This article from Police Review gives more.
members.tripod.com/~Cybertrucker/menace.htm
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When I drove an aircooled VW van in the 70s leased from Hertz, I'd taken out the usual slack in the accelerator cable when I opened the distributor to discover a cunning extra centrifugal weight which earthed the spark at "high" revs.
Since this wasn't a legal issue, just a ploy to prevent adherance to the myth put about by VW that "max speed is also a suitable cruising speed", it just took a flick of a screwdriver.
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More on speed limiters here.
members.tripod.com/~Cybertrucker/main.htm
Roll down to "Car drivers take note" where it is suggested that cars will soon be limited to 62 mph.
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Alwyn,
Are you perhaps doing what many of us do on this site.
That is to refer and endorse reports either on the web or other media which supports our point of view but give scathing condemnation when it dosn't.
I read your referred to sites but can no doubt find the other side of the coin with the same conviction and facts from other reports.
Using a now famous (or infamous) quote: "he would say that wouldn't he"
Personally I would prefer to make my own judgement based on experience and common sense which is often lacking from reports and statistics beacause they have their own agenda to pursue.
I used to assist in producing statistics for the Government at one time and they had little relation to facts but simply another form to fill in and have a guess where to put the ticks.
26% rise in accidents due to limiters. Very precise and authoritive. I would no more believe this than listening to President in waiting Blair and his sidekicks.
I peronally believe that limiters on HGVs are sensible and should remain.
regards
Alvin
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And do you believe they should also be fitted to cars, limited to 100 kph?
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I was tailgated (within a few inches at 30-40 mph), flashed and abused by a "Clarke's" lorry between Southport and Ormskirk on Friday 8th February, about 3pm.
Not much I could do in the middle of a stream of slow moving traffic, headed by one of those crane thingys.
Driver came within 2 inches of the side of my car at an Ormskirk traffic light junction (I was going right, he straight on) and gave lots of verbal abuse. F*** this and that, you know their limited intellect and vocabulary - they are only lorry drivers after all. No need to be a rocket scientist to do that. Holding the traffic up behind him in typical courteous lorry driver fashion.
Matched in kind by my fiancee and her sister I might add.
@!#$.
Wish I could trace that company to complain.
Pity there weren't any police around. Never are when you want them.
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Harold, you obviously had a run-in with a nutter there but I don't agree with your views on truckers in general. I reckon that the majority are among the most skilled and courteous drivers on our roads.
The nearest I've been to driving an HGV was just a 7½ tonner, though that did give an insight into the extra braking distances required and the difficulty in maintaining momentum. Truckers don't all deserve to be tarred with the same brush!
Phil
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I agree with Phil here.
I've always found HGV drivers in the UK to be very professional.
Anyone who spends 8 hours a day behind the wheel of a vehicle that has all the acceleration of a slug on valium and a turning circle like that of the QE2's gets my sympathy.
When you add in the fact that they also have to deal with the boy-racers, Bracknell Cortinas (BMW/Audis) and Hilda picking up her pension, they definitely appear to have more patience than I do.
I don't have to worry about the 30-odd tons of cargo behind me when I hit the brake pedal because I got cut up.
I don't have to worry about the car in my blind-spot getting crushed by the trailer wheels when I try to negotiate a roundabout.
Harold, you were unfortunate enough to meet an idiot but was this a true HGV or just the more common 'White Van man' on his day off ?
On the other hand, if you have room to move over and let the guy past then do so. It saves a lot of frustration on both parts.
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I didn't actually mean to have a go at the trucking profession, as a youngster I was always going to be a wagon driver, and I agree that most of them are very good at what they do. I suppose it's just another example of the few coming to the attention of other drivers by setting poor standards, better road design with a crawler lane would help in this particular example so I should really have a go a road designers! On second thoughts I'd better not since I have to work with them and other highway professionals!
Rob S
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We've got 'em here, big Internationals and Macks with 40 footers travelling at 140 kph. No rear lights at night either.
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Who needs truck racers when you've got a******s in red E reg Astra estates heading northwards on the A1 today. There I was, being a good boy on a three lane stretch, keeping to the left at my normal sort of velocity, and about to signal and pull out to overtake a truck, when prattman shows up just over my right shoulder, then slows down to exactly the same speed. I lift slightly to let him get ahead. He lifts slightly to keep station beside me and completely box me in. Could it be that I was driving a £36,000 vehicle and he was in the sort of car you find dumped in laybys with the windows smashed out? I hope not. I often drive an even older car. What gets into these people?
HJ
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