Interesting sequel to Hume Highway accident

[graham7773]

I think it has been established that a lot of truckies have little or no respect for other road users and speed at will, limiters or not. Limiters do not stop the truck going well over 100kph esp downhill. From comments from ff members and other car forums, a number of car drivers have the same lack of consideration for other road users as well as themselves. Speed, fatigue and simple lack of care are costing lives on our roads. And, sadly, that lack of care seems to be seeping into the general population. Just IMO but what else can you take away from the carnage on our roads. Which is what this thread started out talking about.

[Pinkbits]

Let's keep it civil & on topic please.

[aussiblue]

I just read most of the posts in this thread and nowhere did I notice that anybody had seen the most recent news that the driver of the truck had Methadone in his blood and has now been charged with 3 counts of aggravated manslaughter.

You didn't read very thoroughly then did you? It was in my last post.

[Jim Goose]

Originally Posted by b0son

When did I say I drove a truck?

You were replying to a comment about :

So you are going to claim that a trucky can set off from a major collection point in melb and get to a depot in sydney in less than 12 hours and not exceed a speed limit, take rest breaks when they ought to

with a reply :

When was the last time you drove that stretch? Its dual carriageway for almost the entirety now. Other than rest stops, you are doing 110 almost the entire time.

My comment was in reply to the fact you failed to recognise a truck is limited to 100kmh and replied to a comment from Sudzy that a truckie could on said road do it in such a short time....

Limiters do not stop the truck going well over 100kph esp downhill.

It has to be really steep for the truck to go past 100kmh.... and while i dont drive a truck regularly, I drove a Mack fleetliner yesterday on a downhill section (small slope) and it held its 100kmh perfectly....

[b0son]

Originally Posted by Jim Goose

My comment was in reply to the fact you failed to recognise a truck is limited to 100kmh and replied to a comment from Sudzy that a truckie could on said road do it in such a short time....

10kmh does not account for the difference between the 12hrs sudzy claimed and the 9hrs others have... I didnt bother to make a distinction between cars and trucks because it wasnt necessary for the point I was making.

[Seduce XR6]

Originally Posted by graham7773

850km from Coburg Vic to Alexandria NSW. 20 or so towns/cities to drive thru at 50 or 60ks,. Various higher and lower speed limits 70 to 110, average speed of 70 kmph. 850/70=12.14 hours not accounting for legal rest stops. meals, and unforseen delays. Physical immpossibility to do the trip in 12 hours or less without speeding at some points. but I thought this thread was about a family being killed by a truck driver passing out on methadone?
Re doing the melbourne to Sydney trip in a truck, the rules state that the driver must take a minimum 1/2 hour break in 15 minute blocks so that adds another 1/2 hour to the trip. 12 hours in a truck can't be done legally and 9.5 hours would require excess speed as well considering rest stops and meal breaks.

I do agree with you in regards to delays & rest breaks (if the truck drivers take them) however if you look on google maps it does show the trip can be done in a touch over 9 hours though I am not sure how they calculate that.




850 km, 9 hours 12 mins

National Highway M31 and Hume Hwy/National Highway 31

[Seduce XR6]

Originally Posted by prydey

the police? or media spin??

i believe mr lennon all day every day.

if trucks were abandoned, it would be rather simple to track down who was driving. no charges have been made apart from the driver in question. all trucks were found speed compliant by RMS. there is no story. its just a headline grabber and for all the truck haters, it worked a treat.

Like I said show me somewhere it gives the same info that Mr Lennon is claiming apart from Mr Lennon himself.

Yes the media blow things up but they dont make the stories & if what Mr Lennon has stated was true the media would have released a story saying the same thing.

I remember seeing the reports at the time & they even showed these wheel/ cog things that were used to allow the trucks to go faster than 100.

I could be wrong & am willing to accept that if you show me the proof & not from the guy that owns the company lol

[gtxb67]

Originally Posted by Seduce XR6

Yes the media blow things up but they dont make the stories & if what Mr Lennon has stated was true the media would have released a story saying the same thing

have you never watched aca??
they blow things out of proportion, they make up the stories and they also claim that facts are forgeries

i have no idea in this actual case, but the media can be total scum

[prydey]

Originally Posted by Seduce XR6

Yes the media blow things up but they dont make the stories & if what Mr Lennon has stated was true the media would have released a story saying the same thing.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by gtxb67

have you never watched aca??
they blow things out of proportion, they make up the stories and they also claim that facts are forgeries

not to mention being caught out numerous times on media watch.

Originally Posted by gtxb67

i have no idea in this actual case, but the media can be total scum

i have no idea either. all i'm saying is i'm much more prepared to accept the word of the owner of the company than some media report.

[graham7773]

Aussie blue, I did say I had read MOST of the posts in this thread. As Pinkbits said, keep it civil please.

[The G6ET Spot]

Originally Posted by GT-0733

the less trucks on the roads the better, i say, regardless of where we live

Yep get them all off the road, then you can go to the rail head to do your shopping and also get the petrol to put in your car.

Some people amaze me with stupid remarks like this. Have you ever thought as to why the freight is on trucks and not rail? It is because rail cannot compete with road transport for timeline as road will always be there quicker, even on speed limited trucks. Then there are people that just have to have everything overnight, good luck doing that on rail.

Originally Posted by Charliewool

Absolutely! (unless he's driving a bloody commer knocker)

I've done Laverton North to Yennora Wool centre (Guildford) in 8 and 1/2 hrs heaps of times.. and that was before Albury bypass.

Instead of taking my word, let's hear from Full Noise or GasOLane who do it for a job?

It has been 14 years since I ran the Hume. But even then with my truck speed limited (although it did do 103kph ) Campbellfied to Eastern Creek was done in a very comfortable 9.5hrs with a stop at Holbrook. I love the way people just assume things when they have no idea what is actual involved.

[burnz]

Originally Posted by sudszy

So we keep hearing truckies tell us "its the companies made us do it", "if we got better salaries we wouldnt put your lives at risk by taking drugs, driving while fatigued, speeding"

correct, it a mugs game.

no offence to trivers.

If the drivers know the only way to meet the schedules is to break the laws then basically they are the sharp end of the problem.

govco used to fine you $10,000 per hour for being late,
keep in mind this is hanging meat from beaudesert qld to kigsfordsmith syd.
4:30~5:30 arvo to 5:00 AM the next morning.

But Melbourne to Sydney is 12hours+ at 100km/h,

nine + hours in my book.

take a 2nd driver, whatever....but the customer will pay.

illegal in my day, possable still today doing 2 up driver.
maybe a QLD driver can answer that.

Refuse to drive the things if it means having to break the laws. Eventually they'll have to come to the party and offer realistic pay and schedules if they cant move their produce.

what happen when the rta/police are to lazy to look at the rego sticker and fined you for being unregistered?

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by sudszy

So we keep hearing truckies tell us "its the companies made us do it", "if we got better salaries we wouldnt put your lives at risk by taking drugs, driving while fatigued, speeding

NO, what you hear is the unions saying that.

Originally Posted by Charliewool

It was 12 hrs back in Razor-back days... Easily done (legally) in 9 now.

Erm... back then I used to do it in 9 1/2 hrs

These days our Trucks do Syd-Melb in 11 hrs with their 1/2 hour break.
And yes ours are speed limited with satellite tracking and if we go over 110 we get a 'please explain' letter from management.

[aussiblue]

As Pinkbits said, keep it civil please.

Sorry; I really wasn't intending to be uncivil; just pointing out that it was mentioned.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by GasOLane

And yes ours are speed limited with satellite tracking and if we go over 110 we get a 'please explain' letter from management.

that can't be right. i read on the internet that all truck drivers are these rogues that do as they please and drive around at 150+ high as a kite!!

[gtxb67]

Originally Posted by prydey

that can't be right. i read on the internet that all truck drivers are these rogues that do as they please and drive around at 150+ high as a kite!!

probably saw it on aca and other media outlets too - and they cannot be wrong

[Chopped]

Cars kill more people than trucks do. Get rid of evil cars...

Whilst this is a tragic story and RIP to the family involved, let's not blame the entire trucking industry for it.

"Without Trucks Australia Stops" could not be any more true.

[Seduce XR6]

Originally Posted by prydey

i have no idea either. all i'm saying is i'm much more prepared to accept the word of the owner of the company than some media report.

So you choose to ridicule my previous comments rather than show me some proof of what your saying thats a mature way of proving your right

Ok so in the Lennons case the media hired actors to pretend they were police & rms employees, told them what to say, provided props in the form of the speed altering wheels/ cogs, hired more actors to pretend they were drugged truck drivers, planted drugs in the trucks & then told those drivers to abandon their trucks & run away, hired another actor & told him not to stop for the police even if he notices a helicopter chasing him etc etc....

The Media did not make any of these things happen but simply reported it.

Yes they blow stories up & make them sound often much more than they are as in adding some drama but they dont make them from nowhere.

So come on show me some proof of what your saying & not from an owner of a company who can say whatever he wants to make himself look better.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by Seduce XR6

Ok so in the Lennons case the media hired actors to pretend they were police & rms employees, told them what to say, provided props in the form of the speed altering wheels/ cogs, hired more actors to pretend they were drugged truck drivers, planted drugs in the trucks & then told those drivers to abandon their trucks & run away, hired another actor & told him not to stop for the police even if he notices a helicopter chasing him etc etc....

The Media did not make any of these things happen but simply reported it.

and yet mr lennon clearly says the RMS inspected all his trucks and all were found speed compliant. he also says none were abandoned. all were accounted for etc etc.

all i'm saying is i will always believe his word over what i read in the media.

do you know what they do when they tamper with speed limiting devices?? wheels/cogs??? please.

if trucks were found to have been tampered with, which is illegal, why have no charges been made?

i don't need proof, because as far as i'm concerned, there is no proof to the contrary of what mr lennons letter states.

police and RMS etc give certain facts to the media. they don't write the stories and they don't control how those 'facts' get presented. do you seriously give the media that much credit when they report on things?

[NAK302]

Originally Posted by The G6ET Spot

Yep get them all off the road, then you can go to the rail head to do your shopping and also get the petrol to put in your car.

Some people amaze me with stupid remarks like this. Have you ever thought as to why the freight is on trucks and not rail? It is because rail cannot compete with road transport for timeline as road will always be there quicker, even on speed limited trucks. Then there are people that just have to have everything overnight, good luck doing that on rail.

you missed my point by a long way, old mate, and calling my comment stupid is quite insulting as i have an opinion based on where i live and the rail network that exists here.
you're comment is quite naive and unconstructive to my comment.
overnight in this neck of the woods is airfreight

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by GT-0733

absolutely agree here. how often do you drive down from say Bowen to Rocky and see freight trains with empty wagons, yet you're seeing a 50 or so heavy B-doubles.

On the other side of the coin is the number of Trucks I've seen with new railway sleepers (steel & concrete) taking them out to places where the old timber ones are being replaced.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by The G6ET Spot

Some people amaze me with stupid remarks like this. Have you ever thought as to why the freight is on trucks and not rail?

Some types of goods, aboslutely, could not be sent as effectively by rail (eg. perishables).

But we're comparing apples and oranges here. The trucking industry is heavily subsidised, and doesnt come close to paying its way (eg. truck rego costs should be far higher compared to cars on basis of kms travelled and damage done).

I'd rather see a system where the taxpayer isnt silently footing the bill. At least this way, rail might have a fair chance of establishing itself as a viable alternative to long range freight.

[prydey]

higher rego for trucks? yeah ok.

who do you think would end up footing the bill for extra costs?? the consumer!

[b0son]

Originally Posted by prydey

higher rego for trucks? yeah ok.

who do you think would end up footing the bill for extra costs?? the consumer!

I'm fine with that. Its coming out of my taxes at the moment.

Taxes no longer being spent on trucks could then go toward more rail infratsructure. Win!

[gtxb67]

Originally Posted by b0son

I'm fine with that. Its coming out of my taxes at the moment.

Taxes no longer being spent on trucks could then go toward more rail infratsructure. Win!

but then we get stung twice. once for the taxes, and once for the higher transport fees, so we actually lose

[b0son]

Originally Posted by gtxb67

but then we get stung twice. once for the taxes, and once for the higher transport fees, so we actually lose

you have a problem paying taxes towards infrastructure we need?

i dont have any issues paying more when I see a benefit. that said, i wouldnt trust the current idiots to spend the money properly ... it would probably once again end up in the hands of all the deadbeats we're currently supporting.

[prydey]

what makes you think trucks don't pay enough in rego?

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by b0son

The trucking industry is heavily subsidised, and doesnt come close to paying its way (eg. truck rego costs should be far higher compared to cars on basis of kms travelled and damage done).

A typical B-double registration cost in NSW is about $16,000 per year.

Then you have taxes on fuel (at about 50l/100km) Tyres etc.

Which is the part that is subsidised? I'm sure Toll and others would love to know

We all know that Rego, fuel, and tyre tax's for ALL vehicles go into general revenue, and not to into the road system.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by prydey

what makes you think trucks don't pay enough in rego?

in terms of road damage, one fully loaded 18-wheeler is equivalent to around 9600 cars (http://archive.gao.gov/f0302/109884.pdf).

truck rego is nowhere near 9600x higher than car rego.