LGV\PCV test centre

Glass_Half_Empty??

Many years ago when folk did their HGV it was no where near as difficult to pass, less road users and less hurdles to jump. Now there is hazard perception, theory and practical, and the driver CPC which must be passed and re-passed every 5 yars to keep your license valid. The practical gets harder to pass every year and we now go class 2 before class 1 as opposed to straight in for class 1 after a few hours practise as the "many years ago" brigade like my dad had to do so it was much easier then and far less expensive even in relative money terms.
You clearly arent in touch any more with working time directive when it comes to HGV drivers, we are on the 48 hour average these days(BY LAW) so the days of working 90 hour weeks are long gone, and I have never been asked to do it anyway its mostly myth and greed of drivers who want the big money. If they want it and take the risk its up to them I dont need to and wont. A lot of "normal" jobs are now run on un-normal hours and work round the clock it isnt just lorry drivers even some office staff(for example) work up to 10pm these days. It is totally up to the person applying for whatever job THEY CHOOSE to apply for when it comes to what hours you will work or what shift patterns benefit you and your situation and because you didnt like it doesnt mean it wont suit others try to open your mind. I myself would hate a 9-5 off road job having to work with people all the time I enjoy being left to my own devices and cracking on with it and seeing something/somewhere different everyday. Just because it didnt work for you doesnt mean it is a crap job or that you are better then us because you left it and now have a better job for you.
What attitude do I have that has upset you enough to stop driving? I can see why you would leave for the reasons mentioned and to be honest I am glad people like you are leaving and will be phased out with the dcpc in 2014 too much living in the past and wishing for the better days of old instead of just accepting everything inlife moves on and changes and not always for the better, says a lot about your lack of flexibility and ability to move with the times. I hope your current job doesnt move with the times or else you may feel you need another job before you retire :rotfl:
And well done in reversing more then I have drove, you clearly never got the hang of reversing if this is the case :cool:

Hammyman

pop_gun wrote: »

? purfleet test centre has a LGV pass rate of 33.09% and a PCV pass rate of 20.22%. that's everyone, first timers\ retakers per annum. if these results were replicated in the education system there would be a national outcry and an overhaul of the system.

to give you some perspective, you've got a 48% chance of passing your first 3 ACCA exams. ACCA = certified accountant.
.

And a certified accountant isn't going to be in charge of 44 tonnes of vehicle travelling up to 56MPH on a road shared with 30,000,000 people who have just about the basic minimum of training required.

There would be more of a national outcry if the standards of HGV tests were dropped and the accident rate went up. Difference between that and an educational one though is that a drop in HGV test standards can cost lives.

pop_gun

Hammyman wrote: »

And a certified accountant isn't going to be in charge of 44 tonnes of vehicle travelling up to 56MPH on a road shared with 30,000,000 people who have just about the basic minimum of training required.

There would be more of a national outcry if the standards of HGV tests were dropped and the accident rate went up. Difference between that and an educational one though is that a drop in HGV test standards can cost lives.

although not 30m on the same stretch of road

new road users have to go through a theorty test, a hazard perception test and for those looking to achieve LGV and PCV status they'll have to sit a CPC theory and practical test. seperate test for each designated vehicle.

if this wasn't enough there's far more speed cameras on the road today, that in conjunction with visual CCTV makes it virtually impossible to speed along any stretch of road you might be using. all this before one gets the idea of tripping the delimiter.
the DVLA highways agency have powers to confiscate a vehicle if it's overloaded, has a defect or the driver is in contravention of his\her alloted hours.

i bet when you passed your C1 test you didn't have to do any of the new requirements, yet i supect you consider yourself a safe driver.

why is that?

Jo_F

Passing a test doesnt make you a safe driver, gaining experience on the road does, the more miles you do, the more experience you gain.

My other half is on his first week of driving, this after spending close to £5k getting both his licences, and even after 2 fails for his class 2, and one fail for his class 1, he actually said getting the licence was the easy bit.

Most companies won't take you on without at least 2 years driving experience, even companies that recruit through agencies are asking the same. He is just lucky in that the company he has just got on for gave him a trial run, liked his driving and took him on. 3 1/2 years moving trailers about as a shunt driver counted for nothing when he was looking for work.

Hammyman

pop_gun wrote: »

i bet when you passed your C1 test you didn't have to do any of the new requirements, yet i supect you consider yourself a safe driver.

why is that?

Because I have done 1.8 million miles as a HGV driver both points and accident free which is roughly equivalent to a car driver passing their test at age 17 and driving 12500 miles per year every year without any accidents or penalty points until they were 161 years old.

BTW, limiters had come in and VOSA had the same powers as they do now - which, FYI, isn't actually confiscation of an overloaded or dangerous vehicle but is the issue of a prohibition notice. Judging by your misinformed comment about confiscation, I can only assume you haven't driven a lorry yourself.

pop_gun

hammyman why ignore the point i was making. you didn't have to attain any of the safety test a new driver does.

my initial post was in regards to the difficulty when compared with specialist professions. a friend of mine has driven a car and a lorry (class 1 and 2) without a license. the thing is he's never had an accident despite never having the relevant training.

i'd trust him to drive those vehicles, but i would trust him to fill in a tax return form or conduct open heart surgery.

don't make driving a lorry out to be something it's not.

Jo_F

pop_gun wrote: »

hammyman why ignore the point i was making. you didn't have to attain any of the safety test a new driver does.

my initial post was in regards to the difficulty when compared with specialist professions. a friend of mine has driven a car and a lorry (class 1 and 2) without a license. the thing is he's never had an accident despite never having the relevant training.

i'd trust him to drive those vehicles, but i would trust him to fill in a tax return form or conduct open heart surgery.

don't make driving a lorry out to be something it's not.

Well let me know when he's out on the road, as I don't want to be near an unlicensed, uninsured driver in control of 44 tons

Judas

I think for all our sakes we best hope the OP never passes.

Firstly lets point out Elgin is an outlier, not the norm, there could be a number of reasons for a higher pass rate in Elgin. I doubt its anything to do with the actual examiners though.

You also compare to the long term qualifications; the difference is to become a doctor/accountant you must continually pass exams and show competence over a long period of time. To become a truck driver you pass one exam and that is it hence why the exam must be more difficult otherwise anyone could pass.


Tbh I am not surprised given the amount of people embarking on such qualifications willy nilly at the job centres expense and the amount of dodgy training companies that so many people are failing. These sort of people just expect to pass and dont put in the work.

To be trusted with an HGV then the standard must be extremely high hence if a high percentage of people passed I would question why!

I notice that there is a few well respected driving schools near Elgin and that couple with its location probably means it gets committed drivers and learners rather than job seekers spending their discretionary fund on their latest whim.

pop_gun

Jo_F wrote: »

Well let me know when he's out on the road, as I don't want to be near an unlicensed, uninsured driver in control of 44 tons

why the mightier than thou attitude. supposedly theres 5 million unlicensed\disqualified drivers in the uk.

having a license doesn't make an individual less prone to accidents.

Judas

pop_gun wrote: »

why the mightier than thou attitude. supposedly theres 5 million unlicensed\disqualified drivers in the uk.

having a license doesn't make an individual less prone to accidents.

Well I would suggest the statistics will suggest otherwise; the fact is a test exists; it is hard yes; but if you cant practice and get better then well that is your own tough problem and the rest of the country shouldnt be subjected to crap and dangerous drivers just because they dont like failing.

Even if you can pass the test I hope you are never trusted with a lorry; clearly you lost out on something at birth/school.