Is truck "elephant racing" against the law?

[Digby]

All that jazz said:

4keymonsta said:

As I said earlier the ones who elephant race are the agency idiots who have spent no time on the road, essentially they are novices, they should have a green P stuck to the back of them like you should have when you first got your car license.

Generalisation much? Take your anti-agency vitriol elsewhere please.

It does happen though.Not all, obviously, but some of the agency guys we have had in are happy to cover an immaculate dashboard in fag ash and leave spilled cola or coffee residue all over the place.There have been dozens that we have requested never to have back again.One of the last ones hit a bridge and suggested he did so because he used to drive a low loader.I can only imagine that some of their driving etiquette, leaves a lot to be desired.That said, some of them are absolute stars and of course, the same can easily be said of some company employed drivers.

[All that jazz]

4keymonsta said:

Ok, The ones who elephant race are the new drivers who can usually only find work through agencys because they lack experience?

Not at all. Another ridiculous generalisation! I think I can safely speak from experience here as I did 7 years on agency through choice (flexibility of being able to work when I wanted, plus the extra £10k over an employed driver helped too), and most of the work was double-manned. Out of around 40 employed drivers and 20 regular agency drivers (all very experienced) I think I could count perhaps 2 or 3 that would ease off when being overtaking on a twin track, so your "it's the agency idiots that don't ease off" is just complete rubbish! Most of their employed drivers typically had 20-30 years artic driving experience a-piece too so what's their excuse for "elephant racing" then?

You get good and bad employed drivers just like you get good and bad agency drivers. Let's not forget that most employed drivers have been agency drivers at some point in their career, and vice-versa.

[CommanderJameson]

Flawless Victory said:

And how many times per day should the overtakee slow down? Once, twice, ten times or perhaps fifty times per day??

And who exactly is going to pay for all that extra fuel, that this constant slowing down and speeding up uses?

And what exactly should I say to my boss, when he examines the telemetry from the tracker and asks me why I am constantly slowing down and speeding up?

And why should I constantly slow down and speed up, use more fuel and not achieve the fuel figure target and get the fuel bonus which my boss pays?

And why should I do myself and my family out of money, so that some commuter-type can get to their desk to shuffle paper and press keys on a keyboard, a few seconds earlier?

Tough tits, tbh.

Eta: ok, that's possibly a bit harsh. But if you can't drive in accordance with the highway code, then perhaps a different line of work is more appropriate. Because I simply do not care one whit about how many times you have to slow down and speed up in order to drive in accordance with the HC; you do not have some divine right to maintain a speed just because slowing down is a pain in the arse.

Edited by CommanderJameson on Saturday 25th February 17:16

[Flawless Victory]

CommanderJameson said:

Tough tits, tbh.

Exactly what I think when I see all the queuing commuter-types in my mirror.

[All that jazz]

Digby said:

It does happen though.Not all, obviously, but some of the agency guys we have had in are happy to cover an immaculate dashboard in fag ash and leave spilled cola or coffee residue all over the place.There have been dozens that we have requested never to have back again.One of the last ones hit a bridge and suggested he did so because he used to drive a low loader.I can only imagine that some of their driving etiquette, leaves a lot to be desired.That said, some of them are absolute stars and of course, the same can easily be said of some company employed drivers.

An equally I could list numerous occasions where I have refused to take a truck out due to the disgusting state of the interior that is only used by one of their own drivers. And don't even get me started on tangled up suzis that have more grease on them than the fifth wheel, again left in this state by a regular driver who cannot be arsed getting a couple of bungie chords to hook the lines up out of the way and keep them clean.

Anyway we're getting off topic now..

[R0G]

Flawless Victory said:

And how many times per day should the overtakee slow down? Once, twice, ten times or perhaps fifty times per day??

As many as necessary for safety

The chances are that if the one on the inside does not slow then the one on the outside will pull in too early when they do get passed and so the one on the inside will need to ease off to maintain the safety gap

So its an ease of either way !!

[4keymonsta]

Also you know, god forbid, but you could always help us out a bit. As I said I look into the distance a long way to plan my overtakes, sometimes a good couple of miles. Tescos lorries are a prime example as I know that they will be doing 50mph. If I plan it right I will 'fly' past with a minimum of 6mph, a lot more if I have managed to do it downhill, this will take a matter of seconds. Now even though I have one of the more powerful wagons I would take a guess that it takes me atleast half a mile to get from 50 to 56mph fully laden on a flat, so if I am stuck up Tescos arse doing 50 and then have to pull out and increase my speed it will probably take me three times aslong to overtake. If you are looking into the distance on your travels and see a wagon approaching a slower random supermarket vehicle you know that he is going to want to overtake, try not to plod past at 65mph at the exact point that he is going to want to move out. He is probably looking in his mirror at you thinking 'come on mate im sitting here leaving it until the last possible moment so that you can get past'. He could have just pulled out early you know so that he wouldnt have to break and make the overtake longer to complete. You know how you see all these big lorries with really a long stopping distance tailgating eachover to a space of a few meters? Thats because we want to spend as little time in lane 2 as possible because on our days off, we also drive cars

[R0G]

4keymonsta said:

You know how you see all these big lorries with really a long stopping distance tailgating eachover to a space of a few meters? Thats because we want to spend as little time in lane 2 as possible

I will never understand that ..... why compromise safety for convenience?

I always drive by three simple rules and always in this order -
SAFE
LEGAL
CONVENIENT(as poss)

[GC8]

Flawless Victory said:

CommanderJameson said:

Tough tits, tbh.

Exactly what I think when I see all the queuing commuter-types in my mirror.

Q.E.D.

[Flawless Victory]

CommanderJameson said:

Tough tits, tbh.

Eta: ok, that's possibly a bit harsh. But if you can't drive in accordance with the highway code, then perhaps a different line of work is more appropriate. Because I simply do not care one whit about how many times you have to slow down and speed up in order to drive in accordance with the HC; you do not have some divine right to maintain a speed just because slowing down is a pain in the arse.

Edited by CommanderJameson on Saturday 25th February 17:16

I love these car-driving commuter types who bleat about the highway code and yet conveniently ignore other parts of the HC, which applies to them.

CJ, if you'd send me the £10 per week that my boss pays me for hitting the 9.24mpg fuel target, (and do that every week for life), I'd happily slow down for you and all the other car-driving commuter-types like you.

[4keymonsta]

R0G said:

4keymonsta said:

You know how you see all these big lorries with really a long stopping distance tailgating eachover to a space of a few meters? Thats because we want to spend as little time in lane 2 as possible

I will never understand that ..... why compromise safety for convenience?

I always drive by three simple rules and always in this order -
SAFE
LEGAL
CONVENIENT(as poss)

So you would like me to begin my overtaking procedure and move out before i encroach into my safe stopping distance? I would google what that distance is but it isnt worth the laugh. If I moved out before my vision ahead was sufficently reduced by the lorry infront of me, let alone to do it keeping a safe stopping distance...... I would be undertaken by cars, a lot.

[heebeegeetee]

Flawless Victory said:

CommanderJameson said:

heebeegeetee said:

How does a speed limited vehicle 'move quickly past'?

As per the HC, the overtakee slows down to let it past.

That's how.

Simples.

And how many times per day should the overtakee slow down? Once, twice, ten times or perhaps fifty times per day??

And who exactly is going to pay for all that extra fuel, that this constant slowing down and speeding up uses?

And what exactly should I say to my boss, when he examines the telemetry from the tracker and asks me why I am constantly slowing down and speeding up?

And why should I constantly slow down and speed up, use more fuel and not achieve the fuel figure target and get the fuel bonus which my boss pays?

And why should I do myself and my family out of money, so that some commuter-type can get to their desk to shuffle paper and press keys on a keyboard, a few seconds earlier?

Because you'll be inconsiderate if you don't.

Apparently you're supposed to put the well-being of others before your job, your boss and your wife and kids - just like everybody else out there does!

[GC8]

The only answer to this problem would be for all car drivers to learn to drive a lorry, and then try to make a living for a week doing it.

Of course this isnt practical and most here would consider it beneath them anyway, so their self-centred ignorance will prevail.

[Flawless Victory]

[redacted]

[F i F]

[redacted]

[GC8]

Flawless Victory said:

And I'd bet a year's fuel bonus that the car-driver with the space-saver limited to 50mph, would never slow down and let me pass quicker in my 52mph limited truck.

Youd lose your money then, because thats exactly what I did last week when I had to limp my car home on the A1M. Im not sure that youd call me a 'car-driver' though.

[4keymonsta]

GC8 said:

The only answer to this problem would be for all car drivers to learn to drive a lorry, and then try to make a living for a week doing it.

Of course this isnt practical and most here would consider it beneath them anyway so their self-centred ignorance will prevail.

This is probably half of the problem, they are all better than us. I however spend most of my working day (which when you take into account the travelling time these city office boys do ontop of their working day, is not a very long one) chatting to friends at different plants, drinking tea, genrally having a laugh and then going for a nice cruise around the south east for a bit whilst listening to the radio. Plus I get paid well over the national average, so I think that they should look down at another group of people as I think that I chose the right job. Any monkey can press a button on a keyboard or use a photocopier, try driving one of these or being a sparky/ gas engineer ect. We all look down on you, you cant all be powerfully built directors you know

[R0G]

4keymonsta said:

So you would like me to begin my overtaking procedure and move out before i encroach into my safe stopping distance? I would google what that distance is but it isnt worth the laugh. If I moved out before my vision ahead was sufficently reduced by the lorry infront of me, let alone to do it keeping a safe stopping distance...... I would be undertaken by cars, a lot.

I never was when I was doing over 80,000 miles LGV driving a year all over the UK so if some numpty like me can do it then why can't everyone else?

[GC8]

Im a public schoolboy with an HGV licence, so foolish 'superior' attitudes are wasted on me - like water off a ducks back.

[4keymonsta]

R0G said:

4keymonsta said:

So you would like me to begin my overtaking procedure and move out before i encroach into my safe stopping distance? I would google what that distance is but it isnt worth the laugh. If I moved out before my vision ahead was sufficently reduced by the lorry infront of me, let alone to do it keeping a safe stopping distance...... I would be undertaken by cars, a lot.

I never was when I was doing over 80,000 miles LGV driving a year all over the UK so if some numpty like me can do it then why can't everyone else?

So you are driving along a 2 lane stretch of road approaching a vehicle that you want to overtake at say +2mph. At what distance from that vehicle would you move out into lane 2?