Category Archives: Guest Writers

Out & About with Leicester

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Leicester Heavy Haulage

If you go down to the woods today……actually if you had gone between Sutton Bridge, Lincolnshire and Corby, Northamptonshire last Sunday you would have been in for a VERY big surprise! In the form of a Leicester Heavy Haulage 8×4 680hp MAN TGX, carrying a 20ML x 6MW x 6.2MH and weighing in at 29,000 kg. For those of you outside the UK, our maximum dimensions for a vehicle are 5M wide and 5M high. So in order to move such a large piece of cargo we have to apply for a special route from the Government that should take you from start to finish missing as many low or narrow obstacles, but this isn’t always the case as you will find out reading this. There are also plenty of wires across our roads, low trees and of course the UK’s love of signposts and street furniture means that along with Police and private escorts they are a convoy of other vehicles on the job, including telephone company vans, electricity vans and council vans to name but a few and also plenty of folk on foot taking photos and hoping their house’s won’t get hit!

Leicester Heavy Haulage

Leicester Heavy Haulage

For the rest of the story I will hand you over to Paul Rodwell from Leicester Heavy Haulage;

There were a lot of issues with the route due to the sheer size of the piece. It took us 5 months to find a route as the 2 that we were supplied with by the Police (the ones going to be used and cancelled a couple of days before) were either going to hit a bridge or electrocute the driver. I had to drive the route with a tree surgeon as we needed a large amount of branches to be cut along the journey.

Leicester Heavy Haulage

Leicester Heavy Haulage

The journey started at 6.30am on Sunday with the piece loaded onto one of our wafer bed Nooteboom Low Loaders with the extra beam section slotted in to accommodate the length of the load (17m along the bottom / 20m including the cone). The main part of the route followed the A17, A52 and A15 until Bourne and then veered off cross country to a place called Carlby. In Carlby we had to pay a farm machinery dealer to use their courtyard on Sunday to lift the Silo from the Low Loader onto the back of a 5 Axle 850mm deck height, steerable, Nooteboom semi low loader for the second leg of the journey.

Leicester Heavy Haulage

This is due to the original Low Loader being too long to negotiate a very tight left turn in the village of Great Casterton, near Stamford. Once we had made this turn the load then had to cross over the A1 and travel towards Rutland Water. The route then ran through the countryside alongside Rutland Water via North Luffenham and Edith Weston through to the A47 where we turned East and then South onto the A43. Due to the load now being 7.03m high on the Semi Low Loader we then had to leave the A43 and travel through a very narrow village called Bulwick in Northamptonshire.

We had to arrange a leaflet drop in this village and speak to locals to ask them to keep the road clear of cars as at some points along the main street we were only inches away from the houses on either side.

Leicester Heavy Haulage

We then got back on the A43 and arrived at site at 8.30pm that night. The whole thing was escorted by ourselves, Lincolnshire Police, BT Openreach and Western Power. We had to have over 100 electrical lines either isolated (turned off) or lifted to allow us to get through. The Silo is now installed and is to be used to hold 250 tonnes of grain for the manufacture of animal feed.

Leicester Heavy Haulage

The whole thing was such a big deal for everyone and it involved so many people in one way or another that it even made the local BBC News. Click the link HERE to see the news clip.

Have you got a big / interesting / odd / unique load that you or your company have carried?? Send photos and details to me at; ben@truckblog.co.uk

Part 2: Manchester to Manchester Via Rhodes, Greece

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Minoan Lines

Here we go again, time for Part 2 of Ian Harper’s trip to Rhodes in Greece. In PART 1 we got to day 4, sitting on the Minoan Lines ferry in Italy waiting to set sail for Patras, Greece and onwards toward his final destination, the Greek Island of Rhodes. Hop into the little Renault and enjoy part 2 of 3;

Day 5
Quite an uneventful crossing. The food is not the best and some of you may be asking why I didn’t get the Superfast ferry instead, well it doesn’t sail on a Monday that’s why. We dock in the new port at Patras just up the road from the old one. I had time to kill as there wasn’t a ferry that day so there was no rush to drive to Pireaus, so I went in the terminal used the free wifi and then got on my way.The immigrants were out in force looking at new ways to get in and on to vehicles for their free taxi to pastures new and benefits a plenty! They are still building the motorway from Patras to connect with Athens and if anyone has driven in Greece they know that even a single carriageway has 2 lanes on it as you drive on the hard shoulder. I pull into gate E1 at Pireaus docks as it is the gate I need and is the easiest to get in too. My ferry is in but it’s not sailing for another 20 hrs so round to gate E3 weigh off and park up where I can. A quick walk to the cafe, kebab n chips, a couple of bottles of beer to take away and into the cab as its blowing a gale and starting to snow. From where I’m parked I watch the unorganised mayhem of the Crete boats loading then slipping away into the darkness of the night.

Day 6
Why is it when you don’t have to get up that you can’t lie in or in my case wake up early and can’t get back to sleep? I have a wander about take some pics of old Volvos, Scania’s and anything else that was worth taking.

My phone rings it’s our other driver Paul he’s in a sprinter van and catching me up as we are both heading for the same Island. Paul had another 6 removals on, all small deliveries for the regulars we deal with. As you do, first thing is a brew then book in as we were both booked in on the same number. Tickets acquired we joined the mayhem of loading. If this was the UK health and safety would have a field day, how no one gets run over is amazing.

Cabins on our own, showered, then some food. Blue Star Ferries are part of the same company that own Superfast but the food on these ferries are run by Goodies which is a fast food outlet in Greece. Saying that the food is cooked warm and plenty of it. We arrive late but considering that the boat had 3 other stops and struggled getting on the docks with the wind they had done well.

Ok we better do some work so the truck was being emptied first then parked up until Sunday when we leave, as the collections were in tight spots etc not very accessible even for a 7.5 ton truck. A phone call and an hour later we are outside the new home, which wasn’t (as usual) finished. The Greeks don’t seem to comprehend time and completion dates.

Any way we could still unload and with extra hands we were done in 2 hrs then a brew and some sarni’s we said our good buys and onto the next job. Luckily all the drops were pretty local to where we were based at Lindos 3. We’re in Lindos itself and if anyone has holidayed there, knows how narrow the streets are so up to the amphitheatre, and take it from there. One drop was in the florists opposite the amphitheatre and another was picked up in a car the last was to a bar on the top road things were going great. 2 more drops in Lardos up the road and the last was where we park the truck at blue line villas. 9pm and we were both empty, shower and bed.

Day 7
It snowed throughout the night and the was still a smattering of flakes on the floor the sun warmed up and it had gone. First job a collection for the truck some people moving back to Whitehaven, it was even tight for the van to get in. 2 hrs and 1 very full 4.3 metre sprinter van later and it’s back to the truck to tranship. Thats the big one out of the way back to Rhodes town, 8 small boxes. Then Falaraki 18 boxes and Krematsi for another 24 boxes we got back to the truck it was cold dark and blowing a gale so shower Chinese couple of beers and bed.

Day 8
As we had done so well with all the collections and deliveries all we had to do was tranship 2 of the collections on to the truck and that was that done. So nipped round to one of our regulars for a couple of hrs for a brew. Graham the manager of the villas came down and said how do you fancy a night out with us, we said yes please so we all went to Lardos meal and a few jars.

Day 9
No rush today so up give the truck and van a wash check them both over then say our goodbyes and a hour drive back to Rhodes town to catch the ferry that night. Nowhere is open at the moment so we had a wander around and Paul has an interest in the last wars so a visit to the war memorial and he takes pictures of the headstones. You may think this a little morbid but Paul is helping the Commonwealth War Graves Comission in a program of logging who is buried where. It helps relatives see and find out where they are laid to rest in peace. It took us an hour or so to do the job and if this helps 1 person out then whats a couple of hours in our lives? Back to the port, kettle on, tickets collected, wait to get on the ferry. Paul was only going as far as Kos as his main collection was on the Island.

Part 1: Manchester to Manchester Via Rhodes, Greece

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Tonight we have a new guest writer on the blog. Ian Harper has recently driven a 7.5 ton Renault Midlum from Manchester to Ipswich to Rhodes, Greece. Luckily for us he has sent me his diary for the trip. This will be a 3 part story so keep your eyes peeled over the week and try and keep up with Ian on his road trip. These words are all his own I haven’t edited it in anyway as I thought it best to leave it as was. I hope you enjoy the read, over to you Ian;

Day 1
03:45 Get up cold dark wet and miserable even the cat didn’t move, kettle on flask filled brew made and last night’s left over sausages and a tin of beans warmed up in food flask and out the door.
04:15 on my way down the M67 A57 over snake pass through Sheffield and onto the A57 then the A1 the roads are so quiet for a Friday morning even the A14 at Huntingdon isn’t slowing down, into Cambridge services for my sausage and beans brew and an hour’s kip I’m well in front of myself not loading till 12. I’ll be in Ipswich early, ring the customer they are waiting for me that a result into Hadleigh Rd Ind Est, Ipswich find the storage unit and 3 hrs later all their worldly possessions were loaded and ready to move to their new house in Pyloma on the Island of Rhodes. Can I get round to the Eurotunnel without hitting any traffic? Yes apart from the Dartford Bridge I didn’t slow down.
16:15 Not to bad a wait for the train 25 minutes and were loaded on the train waiting for the bus to take me up front why some drivers don’t move up the bus for others to get on baffles me there’s enough seats for all of us!
17:30 off the train and on our way got an hour left on a 9 need a “splash of juice” to get me to Luxembourg so head for Vuerne.

Day 2                                                                  
03:30 Alarm goes off brew made checks and on my way at a foggy dark 04:00 morning I should make Luxembourg in 4:30 on a Saturday morning, 4 hrs 12 minutes later I’m pulling into Berchem services fuel up and round to the car park for a break and a free brew. The fog lifted and I was on my way the roads were busy but no problems a lot of Dutch cars heading south, off the motorway and through the hills and forests by Pirmaseans and down to Pforzheim and an hrs break taken, how far will I make it? I’ve set the sat nav for the Shell garage on the Germany – Austria border at Vils. I’m 25 minutes short of making Vils so the services at Dietmansreid will do for tonight as I know I can make Ancona in a day’s drive.

Day 3
00:30 Its freezing snowing and the night heaters got the little cab like an oven don’t really feel like moving, away we go into Austria some little snow flurries but the Austrians are on top of it the gritters and ploughs are out ,through the fern pass which is a lovely drive some excellent scenery in the day time. An hour and a half later I pull into the shell garage just off junction 3 at Innsbruck to fuel up. A free brew and 15 minute break I’m away down the Brenner Pass some little flakes of snow on the windscreen turned into bloody big flakes and for 15 minutes it was an interesting drive, the snow stopped and I was on the Brennero on my own for most of the way not many headlights anywhere.

Brenner

An hrs break around Trento daylight was poking its head out over the Dolomites and on my way I go another break after Bologna and straight into Ancona get my tickets for tomorrow’s boat and a 26 hr break on the lorry park with free mix of Bulgarian and Greek folk music.
The Minoan ferry was loading as I walk pass and into Ancona town. There were a couple of Pulleyn trucks at the truck park so I had an idea where they would be having a pint, I recognised one of the lads and he clocked me so I went and said hi and was asked if I wanted to join them and grab a pizza later I accepted the invite we watched the 6 Nations Rugby and chewed the fat for a couple of hours.

minoan

Day 4
I was awoken with the combination of folk music loud talking and someone very kindly emptying the contents of his nasal passages. I couldn’t be bothered moving as I was warm and snug so I put the night heater on for 15 minutes to warm the cab up then eventually got up. To my surprise it had snowed through the night not a lot but enough to cover the ground. I got dressed and wandered up to the terminal used the facilities and got myself a coffee and a cheese pannini for my breakfast, on my wandering back the 2 Pulleyn lads were going so a quick bye, take care and they were gone, they were loading oranges near Rome so a nice drive over the tops but I didn’t envy them the drive up the A1 to Bologna it’s not the best of roads. I had 4 hrs to kill so I started this blog and had a sit in the sun on the harbour it was warm in the sun and I watched the world and the fishing boats go by, from where I was sat I could see the ferry terminal the Superfast had just come in then 2 hrs later the Minoan came in an hour after that I was on the ferry ,got a cabin to myself and went to watch us leave from the top deck and as usual we were an 1 and a half hrs late.

Miss Lowra’s Law 4 Lorries

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And now for some thing a slightly different…I thought it was time that we had some thing a little more serious on the blog, to try and help you UK drivers and operators keep on top of our ever changing and increasingly complicated laws and regulations. The help comes in the form of transport law solicitor Laura Hadzik (twitter: @LittleMissLowra), from Manchester solicitors JMW. Laura specialises solely in road transport law and regulation, good news for you lot! The idea is that Laura will try to tell you some thing that may help or advise you, the only downfall being there won’t be any pretty pictures for you to look at, just pure fact! I’ll leave you in her capable hands……

Automatic Termination of Operator’s Licences

Decisions of the Traffic Commissioners and First-Tier Tribunal (Transport) (“the Tribunal”) continue  to confirm that non-payment or late payment of Operator’s Licence renewal fees will result in the automatic termination of your Operator’s Licence unless truly exceptional circumstances exist.

The relevant legislation (namely Section 45(4) of the Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 (“the Act”)) is clear – if payment of the renewal fee is not received by the prescribed date, the Operator’s Licence will automatically terminate at that time. Operators will normally receive a letter from the Office of the Traffic Commissioner at Leeds (“OTC”), reminding them that their Operator’s Licence renewal fees are due to be paid by a prescribed date; however, decisions of the Traffic Commissioners and the Tribunal consistently make it clear that there is no provision in the legislation for such reminders to be sent – they are simply sent as a matter of courtesy.

The obligation to ensure that the relevant fees are paid by the prescribed date is placed fairly and squarely on the operator and, if they are not paid, the Operator’s Licence will automatically terminate.  Operators seeking to argue that their late (or non) payment of the renewal fee is because they did not receive a reminder letter from the OTC should therefore expect no sympathy from either the Traffic Commissioners or the Tribunal; your Operator’s Licence will automatically terminate and you will have no authority to operate vehicles until such time as you have applied for, and obtained, at least an interim grant of a new Operator’s Licence.  As your Operator’s Licence will have terminated automatically, as opposed to having been revoked by the Traffic Commissioner, there is no reason to suppose that the new Operator’s Licence will not be granted; however, any period of in – operation could be long enough to put some operators out of business!

It is open to the Traffic Commissioners and the Tribunal to exercise their discretion to disregard the automatic termination of an Operator’s Licence if exceptional circumstances exist, which justify doing so.  In deciding what is exceptional in this context, the Traffic Commissioners’ and Tribunal’s approach has been to apply the main dictionary definition of the word exceptional, i.e. unusual – the question to be asked is therefore whether the circumstances put forward by the operator by way of explanation for the late (or non) payment merit the description exceptional in the sense of unusual.

The following explanations recently put forward by operators have not been found to constitute exceptional circumstances:

  • In T W Walton & C Walton t/a TW & C Walton Builders, the operator was on holiday when the OTC forwarded the reminder letter to them.  They responded immediately upon their return (albeit after the prescribed date) stating that they wished to continue operating, that non-payment of the renewal fee was due to a genuine oversight on their part and that they had operated vehicles for 30 years without any previous issues.  The Traffic Commissioner and the Tribunal found that there were no exceptional circumstances in this case, pointing out that, even in the absence of a reminder letter from the OTC (which, in any event, were simply a matter of courtesy), the Operator’s Licence discs displayed the expiry date and it was the responsibility of the operator to ensure that payment of the renewal fee was made by the prescribed time; it would therefore be sensible for operators to make a note of this date.  The Operator’s Licence therefore terminated automatically and the operator was required to apply for a new Operator’s Licence.
  • In Christopher James Bishop Green t/a Jamie Green Trucking, the operator was working abroad when the OTC forwarded the reminder letter to him.  He responded immediately upon his return (albeit after the prescribed date) stating that his failure to receive the reminder letter (as he was abroad) had caused the non-payment of the renewal fee. The Traffic Commissioner and the Tribunal found that there were no exceptional circumstances in this case, concluding that, as the primary obligation to make payment of the renewal fee by the prescribed date rests on the operator, he either knew or ought to have known (as the Operator’s Licence expiry date appears on the Operator’s Licence discs and should have therefore been seen during the daily walk round checks) that he would be abroad when the renewal fee fell due; it was therefore up to the operator to make arrangements for the renewal fee to be paid while he was abroad.  The Operator’s Licence therefore terminated automatically and the operator was required to apply for a new Operator’s Licence.
  •  In Michael Welsh Limited, the operator failed to notify the OTC of its change of correspondence address as a result of mismanagement and an oversight on its part.  The operator did not therefore receive the reminder letter from the OTC and did not make payment of the renewal fee.  The Traffic Commissioner and the Tribunal found that there were no exceptional circumstances in this case, pointing out that the onus is on the operator to ensure that the Traffic Commissioner is informed of the up to date position in relation to the correspondence address.  The Operator’s Licence therefore terminated automatically and the operator was required to apply for a new Operator’s Licence.

Once the Traffic Commissioner or Tribunal is satisfied that exceptional circumstances do exist, they must consider whether those exceptional circumstances have caused or contributed to the late (or non) payment of the renewal fee. The final decision for the Traffic Commissioner or Tribunal is whether or not to exercise their discretion to disregard the automatic termination of the Operator’s Licence. Factors which will be taken into account include the operator’s past payment history; and the extent to which the operator has failed to comply with the primary responsibility to pay the renewal fee on time. Factors which will not be taken into account include the fact that the operation of vehicles on a daily basis is essential to the operator’s business.

In light of the above, it is essential that you make a note of your Operator’s Licence expiry date and ensure that the OTC is informed of any changes to your correspondence address; the reality is that, whilst there is no requirement for the OTC to send reminder letters, in many cases payment is, in practice, triggered by receipt of the reminder letter!

For passionate and pragmatic advice in relation to any aspect of operator licensing, contact Laura Hadzik, a solicitor at JMW Solicitors LLP specialising solely in road transport law, on 0161 828 1849 or email her at laura.hadzik@jmw.co.uk

New Ozzie Mini Artic is Nearly Ready

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Remember a little while back I introduced you too a new mate of mine from Australia, Julian Baker. He runs a mini artic around Australia delivering cars under the wing of Ceva Logistics. He currently has a new UD tractor unit in the making. Once again I will leave you in his capable hands, so sit back open a stubbie, chuck another shrimp on the barbie and enjoy reading what Julian has to say;

New Ozzie Mini Artic

New Ozzie Mini Artic

The new one is a UD too but is quite interesting. In conjunction with the manufacture we have transplanted a 15 inch diff and housing to replace the 13 inch original. The hubs and drums are interchangeable. The project has been delayed and delayed due to sourcing appropriate ratios ex Japan, as the 15 inch was normally on 22.5 inch wheels in Australia, not 17.5. This truck has 4.111 ratio with 0.78 overdrive 6 speed. Also the local senior UD management and Japanese engineering staff had been stalling approval for a few years. I have a friend who heads up UD engineering for Australia/New Zealand. We share a passion for the small, high horsepower tow vehicle but he has struggled to get traction on this project until recently. This type of vehicle sits conveniently in a GVM range that doesn’t require a speed limiter and doesn’t require a log book/work diary (driving hours) when without a trailer. Combined with the low clearance, high manouverability, low loading height and relatively high payload with high GCM we reckon the variant can be a real money making proposition. This little fella is the first UD to be painted Ceva Burgundy on the line too.

New Ozzie Mini Artic

The stronger diff will complement the already upgraded gearbox, tail shaft, universals, clutch and engine in the new model. The end result is the higher GCM with a higher torque engine. The new truck will also have far greater redundancy in the driveline. The old MK265 has done a wonderful job, but as it is approaching 1 million kms, all major components have been replaced at least once. I generally sit around 20 tonne but have gone to Melbourne-Perth, Brisbane-Melbourne and numerous Melbourne-Adelaide/Sydneys a tonne or two over. Like the rest of the world we have a love of the SUV and unnecessarily large cars in Australia. Although still far more modest than the Yanks.

New Ozzie Mini Artic

It is a little bit of a shame the modified truck isn’t the new, new model with a completely new cab and engine. As Volvo have owned UD for a few years the development of a new medium range took place. The new engine is 280 hp (vs 260) and 883nm (vs 794), still on 235/75 17.5 rubber. GVM is up to 11 tonne and GCM with the big diff will be 23 tonne. I know these numbers aren’t enormous compared to a TGL, LF45 or the 12 tonne Atego sold in Germany with the big rear axle, but Jap trucks are the norm down here. They have sufficient cooling capacity and Jap trucks always deliver what they promise. It’s sort of like ‘under promise, over deliver’.

New Ozzie Mini Artic

Anyway, I’m still thrilled my big axle idea has been implemented. The little buggar is going to cost me a fortune as I’ve got a bit carried away with the accessories, but it’s coming along nicely. Things left to do are the bull bar and driving lights (very similar to the old truck), Ceva livery (I’m thinking of putting a big UD logo on the back window too, and maybe my football teams logo:-)), rectangular alloy fuel tanks with matching separate third hydraulic tank, the Alcoas off the old truck with a polish, chrome axle end trims on the drive, nut covers, water tank, tool box, proper drive tyres and leather upholstery. The tanks are 560mm wide x 510mm high, they should really finish the little banger off. They will send me broke alone!! I am a huge fan of the mini prime-mover, this will be my third. Chassis height and tare weight with my trailer are unique. My total tare weight is comparable to the Ceva 6 car trailers my mates tow alone. Therefore my fuel consumption is 0.4-0.7 kms per litre better. It doesn’t sound much, but can be over $100/day if running highway kms. The other blokes are pulling their 6-9 tonne prime-movers for no extra income. Purchase price, and maintenance are slightly less, but these little trucks are a five year proposition towing trailers, not 8 like they old one is.

Mighty, mighty expensive, but look good

Of course comfort and cabin room are not comparable in any way to European trucks. I have flirted with buying a MAN for 10 years but LEs then TGLs are like rocking horse droppings here. DAF LF45s don’t cool and Ivecos are terribly unreliable in Aussie conditions. Benz don’t bring Ategos to Australia running on 17.5 inch rims, and the chassis height of the 19.5 inch trucks is pretty high. Avia have been introduced recently but a 4.5 litre engine is reason enough not to consider them. Probably the main reason I haven’t taken the MAN plunge though is the odd stud pattern on the wheels. My current setup runs the same Alcoa 17.5 x 6.75 rims throughout. Even the 8 stud used by DAF and AVIA could be replicated here, but the MAN pattern would be custom custom.

Mighty, mighty expensive, but look good

I have recently come back to Melbourne from almost two years fly-in/fly-out in Tasmania. The little truck didn’t come home once. It was my home during the week. In Australia we have an ADR (Australian Design Rule) which grants the bunk in a truck to be a ‘registered sleeping compartment’. The little bunk in the MK has had this accreditation since this cabin was introduced in the mid 90s and until recently was the only narrow Jap cab to be approved. The Isuzu narrow extended cab now complies. You do not have this cab in the UK I believe. Isuzu UK either sell the narrow cab with no bunk, or the wide cab with a bunk. Anyway, I have wrap around curtains and my passenger seat folds flat so I sleep well. An extra foot of bunk and a foot more head room would be very well received though. And more storage space!!! New truck will be two seater with proper consol vs three seater with shallow consol in the back of the middle seat.

Ozzie Mini Artic Specialist – Julian Baker

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My new Ozzie pal Julian left all this info in a comment on the blog, but I feel that it’s just to good and to much not to give it’s own post on the blog. I think Julian may be a regular from all the way over there in BBQ land. These are Julians own words and photo’s of his mini UD Artic. By the way don’t be fooled into thinking that big old Roadtrains are the only ones to transit the great dusty expanses of Australia;

Ozzie Mini Artic

Mini Artics, or semi-trailers as we say in Australia, as a general rule are limited by the GCM (GTW, GCW) of the prime-mover (tractor). Of course there are exceptions to every rule and there may be factors that prevent the GCM being achieved. Examples of limiting factors could be an inadequate hitch/tow bar/turntable capacity, insufficient trailer axle load capacity, insufficient trailer braking capacity or just that the trailer has an insufficient ATM (aggregate trailer mass).

I guess the first thing to consider when setting up a mini semi-trailer is whether the GVM of the prime-mover will be exceeded when the combination is loaded. That is, will the combined axle loads at the ground exceed the GVM of the prime mover. The second consideration is do the trailer axles have enough load carrying/braking capacity to cater for the remainder of the combinations weight. These principals are of course the same for any type of combination, from a motor bike towing a trailer to a road train, but the mini prime-mover generally runs much closer to max. GCM than some other combinations. For example most single steer tandem drive prime-movers have GCM ratings of 70 + tonnes in Australia, but if only operating with a single trailer can only have a combined allowable weight of around 45 tonnes. The limiting factor is the local road rules. Where as with a single trailer it is very easy to load a mini semitrailer to its GCM with a fairly light trailer.

Ozzie Mini Artic

I will set out a scenario based on my vehicle:

GVM: 10400 KGS
GCM: 20000 KGS

steer axle capacity: 3700 kgs
drive axle capacity: 7500 kgs
(but steer + drive can’t exceed 10400kgs)

ATM: 20000kgs

Prime-mover tare weight: 4000kgs
Trailer tare weight: 6200kgs

So, vertical load trailer exerted on the turntable can’t be greater than 6400kgs (10400 – 4000) so the prime-mover is not overloaded. My turntable, trailer axles and trailer ATM cannot be exceeded by loading the combination to its GCM, therefore my payload is 9800kgs (20000 – 4000 – 6200). The replacement of my prime-mover is imminent and the new vehicle will have a GCM of 22000kgs. The same trailer will be used, the new truck carries more fuel and has some additional equipment so tare weight will increase to approx. 4500kgs though its GVM remains at 10400kgs. Once again the turntable, trailer axles and ATM don’t hinder the load capacity in any way. So, this time the vertical load on the turntable can’t exceed 5900kgs (10400 – 4500) and overall payload is 11300kgs (22000 – 4500 – 6200).

As you can see from the two scenarios above, care must be taken when positioning the load on the trailer as to not throw too much weight forward onto the prime-mover.

Ozzie Mini Artic

So now you know!! Hopefully Julian will keep us updated with stories, info and any thing else the Australian trucking industry can chuck at us. We all love Roadtrains, but once again anything the biggun’s can do, the little Tonka toys will be following right behind. So not only are mini artics regularly crossing Europe in all directions, but also Australia. Brilliant. I have photos of Julians new truck, they will be coming soon. Also a another good write up on the troubles of speccing a mini tractor unit in Oz.