Mysterious Sue
Strata Poster
My Dad is a lorry driver and so I often get to hear the other side of this argument.
Every lorry has a tacometer which logs the journey and speed very precisely. Companies often penalise drivers for breaking too heavily and using up fuel or for having too many/not enough breaks etc. Drivers also have to drive within very tight boundaries of speed and often have to make drops within tight time constraints. Most lorries have a built in speed restriction to 56mph (which is sometimes intentionally de-restricted by rookie drivers).
The problem then, comes on inclines. If a lorry is overlaiden or restricted too low (which apparently happens a lot on purpose, I suppose for economy) then he will be too slow and any lorry coming up behind will get in trouble if they don't overtake and try to keep exactly to their schedule/expected tacograph. Once over the crest of the hill, the overlaiden lorry often speeds up and the lorry in the second lane can't pull back because car drivers have taken up that space.
Basically, any decent lorry driver is just as annoyed with the situation as the rest of us and it just comes down to a few badly operated companies spoiling things for everyone.
Every lorry has a tacometer which logs the journey and speed very precisely. Companies often penalise drivers for breaking too heavily and using up fuel or for having too many/not enough breaks etc. Drivers also have to drive within very tight boundaries of speed and often have to make drops within tight time constraints. Most lorries have a built in speed restriction to 56mph (which is sometimes intentionally de-restricted by rookie drivers).
The problem then, comes on inclines. If a lorry is overlaiden or restricted too low (which apparently happens a lot on purpose, I suppose for economy) then he will be too slow and any lorry coming up behind will get in trouble if they don't overtake and try to keep exactly to their schedule/expected tacograph. Once over the crest of the hill, the overlaiden lorry often speeds up and the lorry in the second lane can't pull back because car drivers have taken up that space.
Basically, any decent lorry driver is just as annoyed with the situation as the rest of us and it just comes down to a few badly operated companies spoiling things for everyone.