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Driver training after work
Page 40
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I fully realize that it must get a bit much, receiving letters as often as you do on the subject of hgv driver training. However, I could not just sit back any longer and swallow the remarks which some of my fellow training school operators choose to make in relation to this subject.
Hardly ever do we hear the plight of the drivers themselves voiced. As a very successful school, we at Safe-way never let the fact that we are in a very competitive field. shadow what we consider to be the most important factor of all, the driver after all, he is our bread and butter.
Mr J. Symonds, of Dunstable (CM April 20) quite rightly has had a go at haulage operators and the Training Boards, but not once has he mentioned what his training establishment is doing for the unfortunate individuals, both young and old hands, who wish to return to the industry or join it at the age of 21 or so. In my opinion, it's these kind of people we should encourage, and we do our best in this by offering all kinds of payment schemes and times of training: ie: weekends and evenings for those who are unable to get time off during the week. We realize that this method of training is not as laid down by any rules and regulations, but it can bring good results if enough patience an that bit of extra work is put into it.
We at present run the normal courses, 5/10P:5-day as laid down in the training maw..als, but we also run separate courses for the other students at weekends and evenings, and in this field we have truthfully only n ad c.ne failure. The enthusiasm and sheer hard work these lads put into the training has to be seen to be believed. I only wish more training schools would show a little more interest in the students themselves and a little less in the profit they make. I fully agree with Mr Symonds, it will be a great day when legislation is introduced whereby the haulage operators are made to take a better interest in the safe drivers rather than the fast cowboys, Mr Terence Aston, of Hull, on the subject of the importance of good driver training in the same edition of Commercial Motor, finishes his letter by saying that there is not one single establishment which caters for the
driver who goes to the Continent trainingwise, that is.
We do in fact supply fully trained staff to travel to any part of the Continent, even down as far as Greece, to familiarize the drivers and train them in customs and frontier procedures, but once again the average operator would sooner wait for the driver to telex him saying he is either lost or in some sort of trouble before he calls us in. I mustn't say too much about this at present as we have two instructors, one in Spain and one in Turkey at the present time, so not all operators are to blame on this score.
I must admit I feel a lot better now I have blown off a bit of steam, but please, let's all try that little bit harder to get our own house in order before we criticize others.
A. G. MITCHELL (TRAINING MANAGER) Safe-way School of Transport, Abingdon, Berks.