Lorries

Madge O'Reene Having never even so much as sat in the cab of any vehicle rated over 7.5T, I was just wondering if any of the truckers on here could describe what differences a car driver would find most pronounced or unexpected should they experience a lorry.

There are too many differences to list between driving a large lorry and a car, but here are a few for starters:

(1) Unlike cars HGVs require a longer stopping distance, therefore you are enbreastled to claim the 200 yards in front of you as 'your' space and woe betide any f***wit car driver that encroaches upon it, as this would create a dangerous situation due to (2).

(1a) This rule does not apply to closely following HGVs.

(2) In motorway mode the accelerator pedal has only 2 positions, allowing either 0 or 56 mph, it is therefore impossible to drop back if a car appears in front of you.

(3) A car driver has a responsibility to not move into any areas that he doesn't know to be clear, eg. when changing lanes. This does not apply to HGVs since compared to cars, HGVs have much larger blind spots, therefore it would unnecessarily hinder their progress to first ensure the safety of other road users. Thus the default position is that HGVs are enbreastled to move as and when they want, the onus being on the car driver to ensure s-he is not wiped out by being pushed into the central reservation-hard shoulder.

-- Rob