Britain Needs Fast Truckers; We go to a school where they teach


LONDON — The trainee docked towards an intersection for a seemingly impossible right-angle turn and the 52-foot truck suddenly rumbled, an accurate reflection of perhaps the driver’s nerves or possibly mine.

“It can be a little bumpy,” said driving instructor Andrew Hawes with a laugh.

Sitting in the driver’s seat (a throne of rubber and foam cushioned with at least a foot of suspension) in front of me, the 36-year-old intern was turning the wheel during rush hour one day this month. On the streets of South London.

The training of new truck drivers has taken on a new urgency in the UK. supply chain crisis A cloak of anxiety has hung over the country in recent weeks as it enters winter. Long queues have formed at gas stations, and some parts of the country lack basic food items such as milk and eggs on supermarket shelves. On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund underlined the urgency of the problem on a global scale, publish a report stating tSpare caps in supply chains can hinder economic recovery.

The problems focused attention on the country’s truck drivers, who are normally part of the under-appreciated workforce. It is not enough to carry fuel and goods to fully stock retailers.

reduced wages, poor working conditions, tax changes For European drivers making working in the UK less lucrative, and the backlog of driving tests caused by the coronavirus pandemic has contributed to the layoff. New restrictions on immigration due to Brexit have made it difficult to fill the ranks with drivers from the European Union.

The government is trying to attract drivers from the continent, offering 5,000 temporary visas, urging people to start or return to the profession, and offers to fund truck driver training and training camps. thousands.

Most efforts failed to attract drivers who said goodbye to the profession forever. But for others, getting on the road is a path to a steady paycheck and perhaps a step on the road to a better life – if they can make it through the corners.

The National Driving Centre, housed inside a military barracks in south London, has been training truck and bus drivers in south-east England to obtain their driver’s licenses for more than 40 years.

Surrounded by a tank, green-brown camo-painted vehicles and speeding students – the barracks are still active – the trucker enthusiasts here are not preparing for military service. They learn to drive trucks up to 52 feet long in a 5-day hands-on training course that costs between 1,515 and 1,700 pounds (about $2,000) depending on the size of the truck.

Equipped with a fleet of around 14 large and small trucks, the government-approved center trains around 20 truck drivers a week with the help of up to 10 instructors. Sessions take place in a parking lot where drivers perform reverse maneuvers and on surrounding streets and highways where they will eventually be tested.

Before taking a practical exam, truck drivers must first pass a medical exam, followed by a multiple choice exam and hazard perception test. Drivers must then pass an additional qualification, before it is allowed to drive on the road.

“It’s about making them aware and mindful throughout the week,” said Mr Hawes, 47, who has worked in the industry for 30 years after joining the British Army as a truck driver. Mr. Hawes, who has trained hundreds of trainees over the past seven years, believes it is necessary to familiarize them with road conditions from the very beginning.

“one. “From day one, we set them on the road, I draw attention to what’s ahead, and they react to it,” he said.

“Most of these trucks will carry maybe 20 to 30 tons of cargo,” Mr. Hawes added, pointing to the largest truck at 16 metres. “You can’t reach a ton in your small car.”

Mr. Hawes says the key is the timing of early response. “It’s about good observation, good awareness, good road feel, good forward planning,” he said, advising Mr. Karikari to brake early before reaching a car line. “It’s about educating yourself to anticipate what’s going to happen.”

The average age of a British truck driver is around 55. Road Transport Association. But Mr. Hawes said that due to the whims of the pandemic economy and new incentives aimed at attracting more drivers, the profession is slowly eroding in young candidates from a variety of professional backgrounds.

“We noticed a lot of career changers,” he said. “I’m talking about airline pilots. We even asked a few lawyers.”

According to the shipping association, drivers’ average salary ranges from £30,000-35,000 per year, or about £41,000 to £47,000, depending on truck size.

Moving to the UK from Ghana nearly 22 years ago, Mr Karikari had been driving a smaller truck professionally for almost a year when he decided to take on the challenges of the biggest truck.

“It’s a completely different way to reverse, that’s the hardest part,” said Mr. Karikari, comparing the larger car to the smaller trucks he’s used to.

“You need technique,” Mr. Karikari. “You take a certain way to go left, you take a certain way to go right, so you have to get that into your head.” Seeing the panoramic view of the road through the truck’s windshield, Mr. Karikari looked carefully left and right several times.

Mr Karikari said it wasn’t the pay gap – which he described as insignificant – that motivated him to try a bigger vehicle. It was the charm of the road and the lonely nature of long journeys. “I like being alone, going long distances and doing my own business,” she said.

However, during this session, Mr. Karikari’s technique was not good enough. He didn’t pass, but said he plans to retake the practical exam on Saturday.

“I was nervous about the comeback,” Mr. Karikari said. “Nothing will stop me from getting my license, I know where I went wrong.”



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