howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
the perennial issue raised its head on meridian earlier,with the usual shots of litter strewn lay bys.
i hadn't realised that ashford has whole roads blocked by foriegn trucks whose drivers cannot afford to pay lorry park fees.
one farmer even had people stopping to use her land as a toilet.
this chap from kent county council is fighting our corner on this one and working hard to find a solution and seems genuinely concerned about the current problems.
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
Yes they do Howard a big problem in Ashford, the council do all they can to chase fines but they do struggle with business all over europe
Been nice knowing you :)
Guest 658- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 660
The solution is simple, but costs money provide parking areas with toilets for lorries. You don't need huge lorry parks lots of small 20 or 30 vehicle sized ones are adequate. Remember folks everything you buy comes in lorries.
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beer the food of the gods
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
How much is a reasonable price for a nights lorry parking on the continent? I notice that local ones are about £25 for 24 hours ?
Been nice knowing you :)
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
some driver interviewed on meridian said 30 squids for the night,but he did go on to say that the food was terrable,shower and toilets where dirty and smelled allfall.
Guest 658- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 660
On the continent its free, clean showers cost 2euros except in Italy when they are free.
beer the food of the gods
Guest 658- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 660
Also many East European drivers are only paid£40 a day and cannot claim parking money back from the guvnors. In UK for motorway services its around £28 a night the showers are normally broke if they even exist.
beer the food of the gods
Guest 697- Registered: 13 Apr 2010
- Posts: 622
I am surprised that the police do not do more to move lorries on from laybys. My understanding is that these are essentially for refuge, i.e. in the event of breakdown or brief stops. They are not for use as overnight rest areas. As with most things, more effective enforcement would help.
Guest 667- Registered: 6 Apr 2008
- Posts: 919
They have to stop and rest somewhere Kevin so where do they go if you just move them on and it could be they are out of driving hours, in which case it is illegal for them to move on. As for charging well I expect you can charge any reasonable amount, for at the end of the day it is like the fuel costs the consumer will end up paying.
If you have got it then a Truck brought it, the truck is a necessary evil and we should in some way find a better way to provide facilities for the drivers, I fail to see how sleeping on a bunk in your truck with no facilities provides a refreshed and safe driver in the morning.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
as east european hauliers are not paying out for their drivers overnight stops then they are in a better position to undercut british and others that do.
there has to be a level playing field, plus the issue of laybys not being available for emergencies is a serious one.
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
I have just 'driven' along the A2 from Dover to Canterbury and back (on Google Maps). Lots of farm land tight against the road, but to the right of Jubilee Way (going inland) there is a strip of road in front of Coastguard Cottages. Is this used for lorry parking?
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
Guest 715- Registered: 9 Jun 2011
- Posts: 2,438
Guzzler has hit the nail on the head, the continent provide many stops with cheap showers, we provide some truck stops at a exorbitant price, and the fact that the Eastern Europeans , most of the trucks now probably, just do not have the money to afford the prices. It is not a problem that will go away.
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Audere est facere.
Guest 667- Registered: 6 Apr 2008
- Posts: 919
I agree with you Howard there has to be a fair playing field for our Hauliers and there has to be better places and conditions for all truck drivers to stop for long periods. I also think there should be a charge on foreign lorries entering the ports they contribute nothing to our road system where as the British lories have to pay heavy road tax etc. However whatever charge go on trucks foreign or not it will be passed on to the consumer.
Fuel duty is another cost that needs to be sorted out for the British Truck companies both the last Government and this one is pricing the British Hauliers off of the road and out of business.
Guest 658- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 660
As many of the above posts state many UK based hauliers cannot compete within the home market. Thus we spend most of our time on the continent.
beer the food of the gods
Guest 698- Registered: 28 May 2010
- Posts: 8,664
Tom that strip is the emergency run-off into the gravel trap for runaway trucks! Unwise to park there.
I'm an optimist. But I'm an optimist who takes my raincoat - Harold Wilson
Guest 658- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 660
Peter you are correct and i have seen lorries and cars parked in them many times, They should be towed away and impounded.
beer the food of the gods
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
Thank you Peter and quite right guzzler. It could get very messy.
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
Karlos- Location: Dover
- Registered: 1 Oct 2012
- Posts: 2,546
There's a large lorry park at the Western Docks alongside the railway that is never full, I'm sure that could be better used.
Button
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 22 Jul 2016
- Posts: 3,060
It's available now for those who wish to use it (or whose insurers stipulate that the lorry must stop in secure parks) and are willing to pay the parking fee. It's not actually that large though - round about a ferry's-worth of lorries.
(Not my real name.)
