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P LETTER OF THE WEEK
Page 17
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Tractor drivers one rule of the road for them and another for us?
THIS IS A 'knee-jerk' reaction to a potentially lethal accident with a large tractor and trailer combination that occurred recently.
I'm both PSV and HGV Class 1 (in old money)-trained. with a full ADR and have been a Member of the Institute of Advanced Motorists, and a previous assessor for them, for more than 20 years. All of the above has been funded from my own pocket. As a freelance driver, I'm now also having to find funding in order to undertake the Driver CPC.
I was driving my SUV on a winding country B-road at 7.50pm last month. As a precaution, I had my side-fights on, although it was by no means dark. I'd followed a large loaded tractor and trailer for about a mile and, knowing the road, prepared to overtake at the first straight, safe, section.
Upon arriving at this, which was clear of oncoming traffic, I checked my mirrors, changed down to third, indicated, and accelerated hard to pass the rig. As I came level with the large rear wheels of the tractor, the driver meandered right. I stood on the brakes and managed to avoid contact with his rear wheels by inches. The tractor driver then pulled left and maintained his course.
I passed the rig and looked into my rear minor to see two people in a single cab. The driver's head was turned to the left and he appeared to be chatting away to his passenger, oblivious to my presence.
Coming back from Lincoln, earlier that week, I also got caught-up in a huge tailback caused by a tractor and trailer shedding its load all over the Al (M).
The days of the 'grey fergie', with a tiny trailer, moving from field to field across minor country roads with few other motorists are long gone. Surely the drivers of these 30-tonneplus articulated units, now capable of 40mph on public roads and dual carriageways, are tested on their competence?
I would like to know what training the drivers of these articulated units need to do, and what licence they require to drive them on public roads? If the answer is, as I suspect, no training and that they can be driven on a car licence, isn't it time things changed? Adrian Beadnell
Via email
Editor's note: Our colleagues at sister title Farmers Weekly say drivers with a full driving licence can drive a tractor and trailer on the road, but there are separate licences for tracked machines and for machines over a certain size and weight (i.e. combines]. What do you think? Should drivers of all commercial vehicles be subject to the same licence? Write to us at the address on the top of this page with your views.