Rail is 'healthy' option
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By Karen Miles • Less freight on the roads would mean a healthier life for hauliers, says the biggest drivers' union. The Transport and General Workers Union says bad health among drivers, partly caused by the pressure of congestion, would be helped by more road/rail partnerships. And more jobs could be created, it says.
"If lorries are managed as part of a wider strategy to handle freight by all modes of transport then congestion problems could be reduced, time pressures eliminated and more jobs created", the TGWU concludes this week in its report, The Health of Professional Drivers.
The union's executive will use the report, which paints a picture of poor health among commercial vehicle drivers, to argue for a co-ordinated transport strategy and an improved rail freight sector with the new Transport Secretary Sir George Young. According to the research, lorry drivers are highly stressed and fatigued by traffic congestion, cab noise, cancercausing diesel fumes, long hours and anti-social shift work.
Because they are often away from home, drivers find it "impossible to lead healthy lives", eating highfat foods and little fresh fruit, salads and fibre, says the report.