# Trucking in your country



## davidmkelly (Nov 30, 2007)

*Weighstations for checking trucks*

I have tried searching for weighstations and can't find any relevant threads on the topic. I am interested in weighstations around the world and wondered if anyone has any photos of them in their country. Weighstations are used to check trucks to see if they are overloaded. Weighstations can be static using a platform for measurement or dynamic using weigh in motion sensors or sometimes a combination of the two with dynamic sensors on the main carriageway to pre-select overloaded trucks to be pulled off for more accurate weighing and enforcement using a static weighing system.

Cheers

Dave


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^In the Netherlands, there are some weighstations on highways, especially in the areas around harbours (Rotterdam). As you already said, this is done automaticly. Sometimes there are policecars waiting app. 1 km further to stop an overloaded truck. I don't have any pics, but I don't live near harbours, there aren't a lot in my area.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

The United States has a lot of weigh stations.


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## PLH (Mar 9, 2007)

In Poland, where the problem of overweighted trucks(esp. RUS/UA) is very common, many weight stations by main roads appeared in last few years. To weight trucks we have Inspekcja Transportu Drogowego (Road Transport Inspection service):



















I know that in Wrocław there are auomatic weighting sistem when entering the city using main roads. I have now idea if there is sth like that in other cities


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

Chriszwolle said:


> The United States has a lot of weigh stations.


A lot of USA states also use portable scales and weigh-in-motion scales are also in use in some places.

Mike


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## davidmkelly (Nov 30, 2007)

*Thanks for replies*

Thanks for the replies so far.

PLH - thanks for the Polish photos - do you know what type of sensors are used for weighing the trucks ? Do the inspectors carry round portable scales in their van ? The location where you took the photos looks like it is on the main carriageway which seems dangerous - or is it a lay by or pull off area somewhere ?

If anyone has any photos of the US weighing stations that would be great - I understand some of them are quite significant installations - maybe at border crossings between states ?

Edit - actually this site http://www.coopsareopen.com/ has lots of photos of weighstations in each US state.

Cheers, Dave


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## PLH (Mar 9, 2007)

^^ Actually the 2nd pics was taken during truck accident, so the controls are not on the road shoulders. We have special station for that, but I don't have pics of them 
The scales are either portable or fixed in the road


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## PLH (Mar 9, 2007)

davidmkelly said:


> The location where you took the photos looks like it is on the main carriageway which seems dangerous - or is it a lay by or pull off area somewhere ?


I've found one picture:









It was taken by *smar* on former road 2 near Poznań, now minor road 92


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

in Croatia the first should be buit soon near Karlovac at A1


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

*This thread is not meant to show off the biggest or nicest trucks driving in your country*

Trucking. A vital part of our modern society, but trucks are very unpopular among automobile drivers, they're slow, big and especially like to bully you by overtaking with 2 mph difference. Or not? 

Show how the trucking is in your country.

Let's start with the Netherlands.

I said in another topic:



> The Netherlands is like the least truck-friendly country in Europe. You hardly can park them anywhere except on rest areas along motorways and on the company terrain. But if you're a single truck business (like most US truck businesses are), you cannot park your truck near your home for instance, it's nearly everywhere forbidden within city limits. They don't make separate parking areas near city limits for that purpose either.
> 
> Besides that, the number of steep speed bumps, extremely tight roundabouts and tight curves are uncountable. Not to mention the current renewing of road layout, where the lanes are only 2,75m wide, while a truck is 2,55m wide and barely fits within the road markings, not to mention the mirrors that make a truck even wider. If trucks pass eachother on provincial roads, they usually only have one or two decimaters to spare.


My dad drives on a truck for hobby on saturdays, distributing food for the biggest supermarket chain in the Netherlands.

As pictured below, getting to supermarkets is usually a nightmare for those who are not used to drive like this. Only with centimeters or inches to spare, they manage to drive through narrow streets, with cyclists circling around them, poles everywhere close to the roadway and no room to maneuver.


















It's not better on the highways. Typical non-motorway lane width is 2,75 meters in the Netherlands. A truck is 2,55 meters wide, over 2,85m including mirrors. They don't have much more than a few inches to spare. 









This is the N278 in the southern Netherlands, a major road! Look how much space they have left between the edges of the road and the truck itself.









Parking areas along motorway sometimes have insufficient space:









Also, the Germans like to close their borders on holidays for trucks, creating miles and miles of parked trucks on the shoulder waiting to enter Germany.


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## PLH (Mar 9, 2007)

I can't belive your major roads are so narrow.

Here in Poland it's like that:


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

i work in trucking firm with large fleet. i agree that nobody likes trucks: car drivers because of slowing the traffic, railfans because of concurence, ecologists (no need to explain)... however, if most of those people would try to drive a truck, they would see how difficult it actually is. loading ramps are often at the most impossible places (Chriss has shown it allready), dead angles or reverse driving are the worst nightmares (not because of complexity, but because of danger not to hit somebody)


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Especially back in 2006, there was a major issue of Polexploitation. 

Dutch trucking companies set up "offices" (usually just a post box) in Poland to "borrow" Polish drivers for trucking companies. This way, they've fired Dutch truckers, and put a Polish driver in the truck, saving a lot on wage costs. Quite some Dutch truckers lost their jobs this way. Ofcourse, it's a maze within the law, and illegaly, because they should pay Polish truckers according to Dutch wages, but they didn't. Hence, Polish truckers earned more, but had to drive very long shifts, like driving 4 weeks straight and then have a week off in Poland. This is why Dutch truckers where not very keen on Polish truckers (understatement) back then, though this attitude seems to change somewhat, and they accept Polish drivers. Ofcourse, wages increased a lot in Poland since their accession to the European Union, so it became less attractive to Dutch truck employers to hire Polish drivers. 

Besides that, there are many rumours about how Polish drivers got their commercial license, it's said they didn't had a proper education, which exacerbates the public opinion, everytime a truck accident involved a Polish truck.


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

Our major roads aren't _that_ narrow, but there's a big problem with parking spaces. Idk what more to say.


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## RawLee (Jul 9, 2007)

Trucks are banned from central Budapest,and can traverse only a few roads actually in the city,1 or 2 cross routes,and the Hungária ring. Outside,roads are usually "wide". Trucks are required to have vignettes not only for motorways and expressways,but for some main roads too! I guess this was implemented to deter truckers from using ordinary roads instead of motorways.









(http://index.hu)

Roundabouts are still rare,but mostly only the old ones are narrow.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Apparantly, some Renault Magnums can reach 140 km/h in the Netherlands


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## wonwiin (Jan 12, 2008)

In Germany there were to interesting developements for truckers in recent history:

Toll for the Autobahn:
Every truck has to pay toll to use the Autobahn for some years now. A lot of trucks avoid this by using normal roads instead of the Autobahn and therefore worsen the traffic situation on these roads.

More breaks for truckers:
The law for taking breaks has been changed this or last year. Truckers have to take more breaks and therefore parking space on rest places is not sufficient anymore.


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## WalkTheWorld (Aug 1, 2007)

Where do we start? Trucks rule here. I can see the problems in the Netherlands but they are not the only extremely crowded country with limited living space in Europe of course. And if you add mountains and hills to the picture it's a real bngo.

On some holly areas there's not even neough sace for bg rest areas so a few trucks will clutter the whole place.

Have no pictures available, maybe some fellow forumers can help. All I can say is that in the least metro crowded areas of the northern plain we have real large parking lots in the industrial areas (while trucks are banned from the inner city. Nt tow hosts a large interchange hub (road+rail+canal) which involves the presence of some large logistics hub. if you want to supply inner city businesses you MUST have light trucks.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

wonwiin said:


> In Germany there were to interesting developements for truckers in recent history:
> 
> Toll for the Autobahn:
> Every truck has to pay toll to use the Autobahn for some years now. A lot of trucks avoid this by using normal roads instead of the Autobahn and therefore worsen the traffic situation on these roads.


Yes, and quite expensive. A trip of say, 500 - 600 kilometers through Germany costs about € 150,- Ofcourse, it's us at the counter who pay the price. Though I hope the funds will be used to widen certain Autobahnen which faces heavy truck traffic. 



> More breaks for truckers:
> The law for taking breaks has been changed this or last year. Truckers have to take more breaks and therefore parking space on rest places is not sufficient anymore.


I heard about that. Especially on weekends, a lot of Raststättes are overcrowded with trucks. The rest areas with full services are spaced quite some distance apart. I think the regular small rest areas without services are insufficient for trucks. You can't order meals or take a shower there, usually only go to the bathroom. Besides that, they have very little parking space, especially the older ones. 

But Germany, has one great feature many other countries don't have; the Autohof. Very extensive services, but can also be overcrowded. They're not situated right on the Autobahn, but usually near an exit, kind of the US style.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Trucks are a big problem in Abcoude. There are a few shops in the city centre that are provided with their goods in the morning. I gave some further explanation about this in the Weird and Wonderful road signs thread.


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## WalkTheWorld (Aug 1, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> ^^ you mean like this:


Insane!


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## msz2 (May 25, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> It's illegal to pay truckers less than Dutch minimum wage. The Dutch minimum wages were quite extraordinary for Poles back then.


But it's according to the law when you set up a company in Poland and you will pay drivers (let's say 1300euro gross per month) which is standard in Polish conditions.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

It was about € 400 month (2006 wages). It's quite a complex story, it is indeed allowed to "borrow" Polish drivers temporary, but they did it permanent by putting aside Dutch truckers. Hence, they have to be paid according to Dutch minimum wages, which they didn't.


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## Mackem (Aug 23, 2006)

x-type said:


> those are definitely not suitable for Europe, also those which Chris showed are not neither. they are not only too long (it is not that problem, although it is because european loading docks are often at impossible narrow places), but they are much too heavy. trucks shouldn't weight over 40 tons never.


Why limit to 40 tonnes, if you're trying to be efficient and therefore make the best use of resources why place an artificial limit ?? In the UK the main reason increases in vehicle carrying capacity are limited is because the rail freight industry objects. This creates artificial inefficiencies only to suit another industry competitor. If you do want to reduce the numbers of trucks on the road help them do the job better, not make artificial problems.


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Another problem is this style of poles in turns in low speed areas. Almost impossible to negotiate with trucks on narrow streets. These type of poles are extremely common in urbanized areas in the Netherlands


thats strange...
why dont the authorities weight-restrict these areas?

with smaller trucks it would be much more simple to deliver goods in city centers...


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

smaller trucks means more trucks, hence more pollution and truck movements. 

They have a huge amount of truck time limitations already in place, so trucks rush into the city centers in the timeframe they are allowed to enter.


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

Mackem said:


> Why limit to 40 tonnes, if you're trying to be efficient and therefore make the best use of resources why place an artificial limit ?? In the UK the main reason increases in vehicle carrying capacity are limited is because the rail freight industry objects. This creates artificial inefficiencies only to suit another industry competitor. If you do want to reduce the numbers of trucks on the road help them do the job better, not make artificial problems.


because everyhing over 40 tomes destroys roads incredibly. even normal lorries up to 40 t destroy it, and with 50% + it is disaster! for heavy freights there are railways.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

It depends on axle load. (except on bridges, where total tonnage is an issue)


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

of course. but i doubt that you can expect lower axle load at those monsters that you have shown comparing with normal lorries


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

^^ thats wrong.

not the overall weight but the axle-weight is what counts...

with many many axles a truck can haul very heavy loads without damaging the roads...


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## SeanT (Sep 14, 2008)

ChrisZwolle said:


> smaller trucks means more trucks, hence more pollution and truck movements.
> 
> They have a huge amount of truck time limitations already in place, so trucks rush into the city centers in the timeframe they are allowed to enter.


 Yes this is true, but what about bigger trucks maybe a bigger chance for acidence and traficjams. ....It´s only a thought.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

40 tonnes at 5 axles or 60 tonnes at 7 axles.


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

yeah, now i've been counting it and 60t tandem with 7 axles would have only 600 kg per axle more than classical tandem with 5 axles. i thought that difference was larger.


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## ElviS77 (Aug 3, 2007)

SeanT said:


> Yes this is true, but what about bigger trucks maybe a bigger chance for acidence and traficjams. ....It´s only a thought.


Well, as stated earlier, modern truck engines produce 600+ horsepower, so they won't be any slower than a regular lorry. And it's certainly no more difficult to overtake 2 25-metres than 3 18-metres. Accidents? Well, as long as their brakes are good enough (which they are, similar trucks have been hauling heavy loads, particularly lumber, for decades in Sweden), it shouldn't be too much of a problem. However, one might consider restricting their use to suitable roads - motorways, dual-lane carriageways, decent 2-laners. Just my two cents.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

They are restricted to major roads only in the Netherlands. For instance, they are not allowed to be used for supermarket distribution (we don't have hypermarkets on large lots like in France or Poland).


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## Dan (Jun 16, 2007)

The most common truck country I see in the Stockholm area is the Netherlands, I would say. Tons of those around all the time on the freeways.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Supplying our IKEA's?


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## valdano7007 (Aug 3, 2007)

Interesting thread.

Well here in Mexico, being a trucker is a huge subculture. Due to Mexico's ineffective and limited railway system (most lines were built in the late 1800's and early 1900's), more than 70% of all goods are transported by trucks.

Mexico is a big country too. We have more than 178,000 kilometers of paved roads, of which more than 6,000 are expressways. Plus there are an additional 200,000 kilometers of unpaved roads, which mostly lead to small villages and towns and trucks make their way there too, because of the absence of railway lines.

Being a trucker in Mexico is one of the better paid, yet most dangerous and consuming jobs any mexican, especially unschooled, can do. That is because the only thing needed here to drive a truck is knowing how to read, having a trucker license, and having the capacity of spending sometimes 3 or 4 consecutive days of continuous driving, in order to meet the goals required by the truck companies.

The road is a very dangerous place here, too, especially if you are a trucker. Criminal organizations must get paid a fee from companies for every truck on the road, unless of course they want to get assaulted and ripped off the merchandise. Federal Police also must get a piece of the pie to let old trucks circulate through expressways and main roads.

Apart from that, trucks are the kings of the road. Due to our proximity to the USA, Mexican roads are comparable to theirs in terms of size and tonnage. Trucks have no problem getting around everywhere within city limits, with the exception of old parts of downtown or residential zones.

Most major mexican cities have the necessary infrastructure to support any kind of truck, and that makes people scared of them, especially because they often drive with no regard for speed limits or lane restrictions.

One of the main concerns of the public regarding trucks and their drivers, is the famous "pericazo", common term known for the pills and other drugs most truckers take in order to stay awake for long periods of time (sometimes as long as a week) in order to make more money by driving more hours and make more deliveries. Since distances in Mexico are big, time is money, and truck drivers know it. This of course causes accidents once in a while, when the trucker's senses are not 100%. Authorities do nothing because they get paid by the truckers or companies to allow them to save costs by not hiring two drivers per trip.

If you want to have a glimpse of a mexican trucker's life, with some mexican road pictures and scenarios, please watch this vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYvBj8bfXgk

By the way, the song's name is "As a trucker that I am"... Typical mexican vernacular music. Talks about the hardships lived on the road, especially when leaving the loved woman at home... 

It says something like this: "... As a trucker that I am, I work on the road, diesel runs through my veins,.. because I am in love with her, I am always remembering her, I meet many preety woman, but because I need to come back to her love, I try not to go out of the road.."


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

Timon91 said:


> Supplying our IKEA's?


More like delivering flowers. I live near a florist's shop and I often see trucks with Dutch license plates there.  It totally occupies a bus station.


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

valdano7007 said:


> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYvBj8bfXgk


That's Germany at 2:22.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

That's often the problem, I guess. No other possibilities because of difficult terrain. We don't really have this kind of problems over here in pancake land


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ We have a slight advantage for shipping but not for rail since our railways are already jam-packed with passenger trains.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^That's also why they did projects like the Betuwelijn and the two new tracks between Amsterdam and Utrecht. The Betuwelijn is solely for cargo and with the two new tracks between Amsterdam and Utrecht now make it possible to have 4 cargo trains an hour. But it's still not much, indeed hno:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Ukranian border isn't much fun for truckdrivers:


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Horrible hno:
A good thing those two-laned roads have shoulders, otherwise it would really have been impossible to pass there. How long does it take these guys to cross? A few days perhaps?

By the way, I assume this is the Polish-Ukrainiann border. Whap happens during the Euro 2012 tournament when many more people will have to pass here?


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## ImBoredNow (Jul 2, 2008)

Here are a few trucks going past in India
The person who took this video said: "Tussen de steden bestaat het autoverkeer voor 90% uit Trucks."
I don't know what that means.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Anrtpg6ncE


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

ImBoredNow said:


> The person who took this video said: "Tussen de steden bestaat het autoverkeer voor 90% uit Trucks."
> I don't know what that means.
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Anrtpg6ncE


I know 

It's Dutch and it means "90% of traffic between the cities are trucks"


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

can somebody explain why are those lorries waiting in a row at PL-UA border, while those some are overpassing them?


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## girlicious_likeme (Jun 12, 2008)

Our trucks go OVER THE LAKE during the winter. 
Our city was featured in Ice Road Truckers. 
The Nothwest Territories of Canada is full of diamonds, and the only shortcut to Yellowknife (where diamonds are shipped / flown) in Winter is to cross through the frozen lakes.

Yes, this runs ON THE LAKE.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

x-type said:


> can somebody explain why are those lorries waiting in a row at PL-UA border, while those some are overpassing them?


Maybe these trucks are empty and hence have nothing to declare?


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

@girlicious likeme: Have you seen the tv series "Ice road truckers"? It was on the Dutch tv during the last two months. I watched every episode, it's a good series


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

No, apart from my DVD collection, I don't watch much TV. Right now, I'm watching all James Bond movies  (I've got the entire collection).

I believe they do some ice trucking in Siberia too. Or on the Volga (which isn't in Siberia).


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^You should've seen it, it was very interesting. Though it was a bit overdone to spread it all over 12 episodes, which makes the last ones quite boring, because it's more or less the same. It must be scary to hear the ice cracking while you're driving a heavy truck on the big lakes, especially the first time.


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

Timon91 said:


> @girlicious likeme: Have you seen the tv series "Ice road truckers"? It was on the Dutch tv during the last two months. I watched every episode, it's a good series


interesting, in Croatia it was on TV also in last 2 months


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## Perennial Quest (May 24, 2007)

HERE you can see a couple parts of the series.


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## girlicious_likeme (Jun 12, 2008)

Timon91 said:


> @girlicious likeme: Have you seen the tv series "Ice road truckers"? It was on the Dutch tv during the last two months. I watched every episode, it's a good series


OF COURSE. I live in the city beside it. lol


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^Are you Jay?


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

Timon91 said:


> @girlicious likeme: Have you seen the tv series "Ice road truckers"? It was on the Dutch tv during the last two months. I watched every episode, it's a good series


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_Road_Truckers


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

That's the risk if you wanna drive there.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

I watch that show too. It's amazing how they have this short window of a few months each year when they must ship in supplies from the south to keep Yellowknife going throughout the summer.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Yeah, that's another story we haven't heard about in the series: the transport to Yellowknife. The roads leading there may be good, but the distances are huge. They delivered 10,000 loads in the season of the series, imagine all that heading to Yellowknife.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Timon91 said:


> That's the risk if you wanna drive there.


And not just the driving on the ice. I thought I heard one driver say he drove up to 18 hours a day. He could barely keep his eyes open. That's totally insane. (would be impossible here in europe btw, due to strict work- and restlaws for truck drivers).


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^Actually they have to drive 18 hours a day, but if you can do that for the two months, you earned enough money to sleep the rest of the year.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Timon91 said:


> but if you can do that for the two months, you earned enough money to sleep the rest of the year.


One moment of inattentiveness and you'll be able to sleep the rest of your life.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

That's the problem these guys have to deal with, yes. And certainly not everyone is suitable for this job. It's only a select group that is good for that. Most guys try is once and never return to the ice road.


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

Timon91 said:


> ^^Actually they have to drive 18 hours a day, but if you can do that for the two months, you earned enough money to sleep the rest of the year.


...or you can mate up with a buddy, and do it in shifts... :lol:


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Don't you think you'd be fed up with somebody after you spent two months in a truck with that guy?


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

^^ ...or you will be very good friends. intimate friends. :lol:

there are longer (or more longer) periods spent in a prison cell.
(and you even cant choose your cell-mate... :lol


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

It's not that uncommon, though. There are quite some companies that put 2 drivers on one truck to make it more profittable (especially on loads where time is a big issue).


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

Timon91 said:


> Don't you think you'd be fed up with somebody after you spent two months in a truck with that guy?


When one drives, the other one sleeps. :lol:



H123Laci said:


> ^^ ...or you will be very good friends. intimate friends. :lol:


:lol:


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

^^When one snores too loud it can get annoying 



H123Laci said:


> ^^ ...or you will be very good friends. intimate friends. :lol:


....if you sleep at the same time :jk: 

But too much OT


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## girlicious_likeme (Jun 12, 2008)

Timon91 said:


> ^^Are you Jay?


Out of the billions of names in this world... the answer is...

NO. lol.

Jay is a guy's name... and I'm a girl... lol


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## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Apparantly, some Renault Magnums can reach 140 km/h in the Netherlands


Other trucks can do it too. You just have to do some modifications. Most of the trucks have automatically limited speed limit when sold. In Germany automatic limit is 85km/h (even if speed limit on roads is 90 km/h) but if you service your truck in Spain there is no obligation for automatic limits and device can be removed. Then you can go back to Germany and drive 90km/h as is max speed limit for trucks on Autobahn. Most big companies do their servicing outside Germany. You gain 5km extra distance per hour about 50 km per day, 18000km per year. It is all when driver never brakes speed limit. 
At least it's how it used to be few years ago.
I used to hitchhike a lot in the past.
Once I was going from Worcester towards Wales on M50 with really cool trucker. I couldn't understand 80% what he was saying, so strong was his Welsh accent. He took 4 of us plus 4 rucksacks into the truck. Of course it is illegal itself. Then at one point he asked me to open little cover on dashboard in front of passenger seat and remove one of the fuses. It was automatic speed control. Speedometer in his truck had max speed at 130 km/h but going down the small hill we went well over that. Pointer touched end of the dial. 
I had similar situation with Polish trucker in Germany. I also had to remove one of the fuses and then all of his dials went dead. It was all to stop tachometer from registering speed and distance. Officially this driver was sleeping He did it because he spent previous 12 hour waiting at the border. 

I love hitchhiking with truckers. They have millions of stories to tell. It is fascinating subculture.


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## caco (May 25, 2006)

Mega-truck crossing São Paulo, Brazil.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Imagine crossing a Dutch roundabout with that


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

Timon91 said:


> Don't you think you'd be fed up with somebody after you spent two months in a truck with that guy?


Depends how cute he is.


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## Majestic (Jan 22, 2007)

del


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## Majestic (Jan 22, 2007)

> Imagine crossing a Dutch roundabout with that


:lol:

Do you also have in NL those "flat" roundabouts which you can basically cross going straight through them?


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Yes, but only a few. But I guess that a truck like this can go straight through any roundabout without noticing


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## Majestic (Jan 22, 2007)

It reminds me of those huge mining harvesters crossing roads. What happens is they close the road for a couple of hours and build a temporary sand dune or rail tracks to get it through.


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

^^ At least you can stand here normally, unlike in European trucks.


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Where is the flatscreen tv? I mean, that's an absolute must in an American truck


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## Majestic (Jan 22, 2007)

Wood-imitation details inside. How posh. 
What's the price for that truck beauty?


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

If I am not mistaken, 'road trains' deliver various bulk commodities, mainly operating in those parts of middle-of-nowhere Australia where railroads were never built.

Here in the USA, LCVs ('Long Combination Vehicles') can be seen on many major highways. 'Twins' of smaller sized trailers are common nationwide while longer and/or heavier combinations are only legal in certain states and/or on certain roads. For example, small-trailer 'triples' and 'turnpike doubles' (two normal-length trailers) are allowed on the Ohio Turnpike and Indiana Toll Road, but those must be assembled and disassembled in special yards located right at the main interchanges as they are not allowed on any of the other roads in those two states. 'Triples' are allowed in some western USA states, too. Also, Michigan allows normal-length trucks/lorries of nearly double the maximum weight of any other USA state and away from its state lines, rigs that are literally all wheels underneath are fairly common.

Mike


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

Some tidbits of 'road trains' in their native habitat:



Three-trailer road train:
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=-21.149579,118.712366&spn=0.002897,0.005493&t=k&z=18
(Great Northern Highway, about 100 km south of Port Hedland, WA.)

Another three-trailer road train:
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=-26.254573,118.662729&spn=0.002786,0.005493&t=k&z=18
(Great Northern Highway, about 40 km north of Meekatharra, WA)

One up close!
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=...cbp=12,60.06098369666671,,0,3.910652402507511

and going away:
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=...cbp=12,213.2409511519761,,0,5.132832993906252
(Great Northern Highway, Meekatharra, WA)

One with four trailers:
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=-28.166402,120.997528&spn=0.002738,0.005493&t=k&z=18
(Goldfields Highway about 80 km north of Leonora, WA)

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=...bp=12,229.83740864559743,,0,7.342512800180923
(About an hour northwest of Newman, WA on the Great Northern Highway. Interesting that this sign is on the 'wrong' side of the road.)

Enjoy!

Mike


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## kosimodo (Mar 6, 2003)

In Danmark it is legal to drive with trucks up to 25,25 meters long and 60 tons on motorways and certain selected important roads.



















Possible variations









Havent seen one yet.. and i drive a lot I have seen the price on the signplates at the Storebelts bridge.. Was fun to see. Next time i try to make a pic for u all


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Is Jan Krediet now operating in Denmark? I thought their headquarters were in Steenwijk near Zwolle.


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## kosimodo (Mar 6, 2003)

Jan Krediet, who knows him not

Found pic on danish newspapersite.. But i see them sometimes overhere...

edit: U r right Chriss, Jan Krediet, he lives her not


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## ElviS77 (Aug 3, 2007)

Just out of curiousity: What kind of power plants are fitted to these Australian monsters? Typically 60-ton loads in Europe are pulled by 550-700 hp Mercedes/Scania/Volvo/MAN trucks.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Verso said:


> ^^ At least you can stand here normally, unlike in European trucks.


There are actually quite some european trucks where can you can stand normally. But don't forget the most expensive trucks are only driven by one-man companies. Since transport is all about the money, you need to compensate it elsewhere, so you might earn less. Choise is up to you then.


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

Verso said:


> ^^ At least you can stand here normally, unlike in European trucks.


in DAF XF i can stand up without touching the roof with my 190 cm


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## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

^^ Pics, please.


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## RipleyLV (Jun 4, 2008)

x-type said:


> in DAF XF i can stand up without touching the roof with my 190 cm


How about Scania R470?


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

@ DELCROID: Showing numerous pics of Venezuelan trucks is not what this thread is about, I suggest you read the first post.


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## DELCROID (Apr 9, 2006)

OK sorry ... I thought it was about trucks in general :? .... no problem.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

No, those are more suitable in the general Infrastructure & Mobility.

Highways and Autobahns is not about cars either, more about the actual infrastructure, construction, future and policies, but not about the type of Nissans or so.


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## ModelFan (Jan 9, 2008)

Natomasken said:


> Here are a couple pics of "road trains" I found on the internet somewhere (maybe this website?).


wow! thas its big. Here (in Mexico) we do not have anything like this.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

kosimodo said:


> Havent seen one yet.. and i drive a lot


I sometimes see several of them a day... Especially at the harbours (Rotterdam). Mostly versions are only C or D though. I think versions A, B and E must be quite difficult to back onto a dock. You need to have an extreme kind of 'feeling' for that with 2 turning points.


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## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

Brazil:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

The European parliament wants to vote for a proposal to kill the European freight sector. It's about the Eurovignette which would cause truck tolls up to 65 cents per kilometer. This is on top of several environmental tolls several countries already have. 

What is the purpose of this? There's no alternative than truck freight in Europe on a large scale, this will only cause inflation due to rising prices for every good, and more and more freight transport companies will go bankrupt. Lesson one in "How Europe killed freight transport".


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Bad plan in my opinion. A truck-only corridor is way more expensive than a regular widening, you need a whole extra set of overpasses, bridges, tunnels, ramps, etc. I believe the idea also showed up in Missouri along the I-70 corridor.


They should just put those rigs on railcars.

Mike


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

That only works for certain types of goods and distances. In todays world, we work with just-in-time-deliveries. That doesn't work with the inflexibility of rail freight.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

*CANADA*

*The Ice Roads, Northwest Territories*
Remotely situated hundreds of kilometres north of the Northwest Territories’ capital of Yellowknife, supplying the infrastructure requirements for the diamond mines is a difficult task. Each winter, a small window of opportunity between February and March exists where the *600 kilometre Winter Road is constructed over frozen lakes and land* to allow supplies from the south to reach the diamond mines. Outside of this opportunity, everything from workers to food reaches the mines via aircraft. The proposed Bathurst Inlet Port and Road Project intends to connect the Winter Road to an Arctic port, allowing for year-round supply access. Some make it through with few incidents, others are not so lucky!









http://www.nunalogistics.com/images/winter_road/trucks_02_550x366.jpg









http://www.automotiveblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/ice-truck-1.jpg

*Old Labatt Breweries Truck*








http://blog.hemmings.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/CanadianWhiteLabatts_resized.jpg

*Mining and heavy industrial trucking scenes*








http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3590/3323495596_1a531a5384.jpg?v=0









http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2027/2299466916_c8c310b479.jpg?v=0









http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3406/3337735375_730e66446a.jpg?v=0









http://farm1.static.flickr.com/107/304521007_ee6a4275be.jpg?v=0









http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3186/2576606938_ddfd9e31e2.jpg?v=0

*Typical trucking scenes*








http://www.beaverbrokerage.com/beaver/images/iStock_000004808874XSmall_01.jpg









http://farm1.static.flickr.com/6/74608694_83600f19f7.jpg?v=0









http://farm1.static.flickr.com/87/265378283_341a1295d9.jpg?v=0

*Canada-USA border nightmare post 9-11: $1.5 billion in trade/day*









http://www.eastasiaforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/large_canada-trade-trucks-300x222.jpg









http://www.tfhrc.gov/pubrds/07july/images/jon4.jpg








http://media.canada.com/ff204c0a-f375-4bc5-91b0-f6cc14acdaa1/1-27thumbDRIC 1.jpg








http://media.canada.com/8945f135-bc08-4a1e-9d5c-fb296155eece/truckbpor.jpg


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

> Iowa 80 is the world's largest truck stop, located along Interstate 80 off exit 284 in Walcott, Iowa. Set on a 220-acre (89 ha) plot of land (four times larger than an average truckstop and 2.5 times larger than Disneyland) -- 75 acres (30 ha) of which are currently developed -- the site receives 5,000 visitors daily, and features a 67,000 sq ft (6,200 m2) main building, parking for 800 trucks, and 15 fuel pumps. Four-hundred and fifty employees staff the megaplex.


That's big


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

isaidso said:


> *Mining and heavy industrial trucking scenes*


I would love to see those monsters for real someday. You just have to feel so small standing next to it.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

This is trucking as it was meant to be


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## Timon91 (Feb 9, 2008)

Great video. Montana is one of the most beautiful states in the US. I visited Glacier NP a couple of years ago. Gorgeous :cheers:


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## Majestic (Jan 22, 2007)

Wow, that's got to be be the coolest trucking video I've seen, stunning landscapes, great music and all in HQ :cheers:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

*Swiss truck tolls*

Trucks do not pay for a vignette, like automobiles, but pay a distance based tariff, called the "Schwerverkehrsabgabe". It works electronically with GPS and an On-Board Unit (OBU). It's similar to the German truck tolls, only the Swiss truck tolls are included on every road, not just the motorways.

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwerverkehrsabgabe_(Schweiz)

Since not everybody can read German, I try to make a short briefing about the Swiss truck tolls here in English.

The tolls are based on;

1) Distance travelled in Switzerland
2) Weight of the vehicle
3) Emission of pollutants

The tolls were introduced at € 0,01 per km and per tonne for the medium emission class in 2001. The weight limit was also increased to 34 tonnes at that time. In 2005, the tolls were increased to € 0,016 (+60%) and the weight limit was also increased to 40 tonnes, allowing heavier trucks.

After the Lötschbergtunnel opened (rail), the toll increased to € 0,017 to encourage trucks to use the rail tunnel. 

That way, the most common transitroute from Basel to Chiasso costs € 170 - € 210, depending on the emission category.


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## Marek.kvackaj (Jun 24, 2006)

I luv to see more pics of different trucks on roads from differnt countries..;-)..particularly holand is really transit country..

when i drive from Bratislava to Prague there is usually one lane only for trucks reserved ..










Mostly trucks are from Hungary, Poland ( usually can see them from Brno to Prague), plenty Slovakian trucks plates, big increase of Bulgarian and Romanian trucks recently..Romanian trucks Ill say increased tenfold 

Fair share of Baltic trucks along with few Slovenien, Croatian, German . Serbian (only handfull per one trip to Prague start to see them only few years ago) and off course from Turkey and Russian trucks

really few Ukraian trucks ....

off course you can see Holland trucks here and even French trucks. However Spanish and Italian trucks are really rarity to see them here but occasionally can meet them on road here.. But I have to say that biggest rarity to see was truck from Sweden here...

Ill say overall from entry to Eu intensity of trucks on Bratislava-Prague highway incerased 2 to 3 fold


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

I calculated the truck tolls on trans-Alpine corridors. By truck I mean a HGV of the regular 40 tonne weight and/or maximum number of axles and medium emission class.

All amounts are one way.

*France - Italy*
Marseille - Genova € 97,20
Lyon - Torino € 368,40
Genève - Torino € 300,60

*Switzerland - Italy*
Basel - Torino € 220,40
Basel - Milano € 201,20

*Germany/Austria - Italy*
München - Verona € 199,80

*Austria - Slovenia*
Salzburg - Ljubljana € 117,14 (excl. Slovenia)
Linz - Maribor € 123,42 (excl. Slovenia)


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> I calculated the truck tolls on trans-Alpine corridors. By truck I mean a HGV of the regular 40 tonne weight and/or maximum number of axles and medium emission class.
> 
> All amounts are one way.
> 
> ...


And some people in Europe wonder why so many things there are so expensive.....

hno:

Mike


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## hoosier (Apr 11, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> That only works for certain types of goods and distances. In todays world, we work with just-in-time-deliveries. That doesn't work with the inflexibility of rail freight.


It makes much more sense to spend money removing freight rail bottlenecks than it does to spend billions on truck only lanes. It's cheaper too.


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## siamu maharaj (Jun 19, 2006)

isaidso said:


> *CANADA*
> 
> *The Ice Roads, Northwest Territories*
> Remotely situated hundreds of kilometres north of the Northwest Territories’ capital of Yellowknife, supplying the infrastructure requirements for the diamond mines is a difficult task. Each winter, a small window of opportunity between February and March exists where the *600 kilometre Winter Road is constructed over frozen lakes and land* to allow supplies from the south to reach the diamond mines. Outside of this opportunity, everything from workers to food reaches the mines via aircraft. The proposed Bathurst Inlet Port and Road Project intends to connect the Winter Road to an Arctic port, allowing for year-round supply access. Some make it through with few incidents, others are not so lucky!
> ...


Waht do they mean by winter road is "constructed"? Don't they just driver over the ice?


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## siamu maharaj (Jun 19, 2006)

A question for the Europeans:

I work at the advertising agency for Shell Pakistan. One of our plans had Shell driving across Pakistan in trucks and educating the truckers. One problem we faced was that Shell has rules for not driving in the night. My question is, is driving in the night considered unsafe in Europe? (Shell's rules are made there). I just can't understand why anyone would think it's dangerous to drive in the night.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Most European roads are very safe at night. Interchanges often have lighting, roads have reflectors, reflective road markings and reflective signs, and animals can not access a road very easy, so the danger is reduced to robberies on remote rest areas and drivers fatigue.


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## BIK (Nov 29, 2004)

Don't want to be rude, but we are talking about Pakistan here, right? I would think it is unsafe to drive during the day, let alone night over there.
That rule must not be in operation in Europe, and if it was, it is probably something to do with noise polution.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

This thursday is the "Fronleichnam" holiday in much of Germany. That means "LKW-stau" at the borders! I plan to go watch thursday evening, when hundreds of truck have lined up at the shoulder.


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

Marek.kvackaj said:


> when i drive from Bratislava to Prague there is usually one lane only for trucks reserved...


terrible route... :nuts:



>



apocaliptic photo...

like in a disaster film: like a vulcanic eruption or burning oil wells...


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

siamu maharaj said:


> Waht do they mean by winter road is "constructed"? Don't they just driver over the ice?


Yes, but a great deal of work is done to ensure the route is safe. Certain sections are flooded and frozen repeatedly to thicken the ice, other areas are cleared of excess snow so ice freezes thicker quicker. I imagine that other measures are taken depending on the terrain being crossed. Bogs, lakes, bridges, etc. might all be prepared slightly differently. I'm not sure if markers are used along the route, but I imagine a fair degree of grooming takes place, especially after storms.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

For truckers (I know there are some) and non-truckers here, I wonder what's your favourite truck. For me it would be something like this:

#1 Daf
#2 Mercedes
#3 Volvo
#4 Scania
#5 MAN

Don't have experience yet with Renault and Iveco, so I can't judge about those...

When purely based on looks, I love Volvo and Scania, especially the newer models. Not to mention the torpedotrucks from those marks. :cheers:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Looks: American trucks
Space: American trucks
Economics: European trucks
Kitsch: Japanese trucks


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

^^ But how often do you see a American or Japanese truck here?


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Actually, this figure baffles me too. I didn't expect it to be 99,2%/0,8% but more like 92/8. However, I drove past the new Betuwe freight line yesterday, and this was one of the numerous times I didn't saw a single train on it.


The Betuwe route has the same problems of Italian HSL lines: it has different electrification and signalling system of the main network, in this case, 25 kV instead of 1500 V DC and ETCS instead of (I think) ATB.

Because of this, trains have to be modified to run on it. And rail companies (*) apparently aren't really pressed to do this modifications on their trains, so they continue to use the existing 1500 V DC railways.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betuweroute

(*) as for motorways, railways have been splitted into infrastructure and transport companies. Usually there is a national company owning tracks and one railway operator, plus others private operators.



H123Laci said:


> figures says its 99,1/0,9:
> 
> _Domestic freight:
> Trucks: 565.992.000 tonnes
> ...


You should compare also the tonnes*km.

Traffic, both passenger and goods, is mainly local.

100 people making 1 km each and 1 person travelling for 100 km are both 100 passenger*km.

As example transit traffic throught Switzerland (border to border), tha is long distance traffic, is 75% by rail and 25% by road. On short distances the proportions are inverted.



ChrisZwolle said:


> The European parliament wants to vote for a proposal to kill the European freight sector. It's about the Eurovignette which would cause truck tolls up to 65 cents per kilometer. This is on top of several environmental tolls several countries already have.
> 
> What is the purpose of this? There's no alternative than truck freight in Europe on a large scale, this will only cause inflation due to rising prices for every good, and more and more freight transport companies will go bankrupt. Lesson one in "How Europe killed freight transport".


Switzerland already has this kind of tax. But for transit trucks it is equivalent or less to the fare of a single passage throught the Mont Blanc or Féjus tunnels (without counting motorway's tolls).


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Some European trucking companies are really big.

Norbert Dentressangle for instance... They have 8500 trucks, 9300 trailers and cross the Channel 660 times per day on average... :nuts:


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

http://www.nomegatrucks.eu/


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

I don't understand the opposition to longer trucks... they're more fuel efficient, cost efficient, and require less trucks to transport the same goods. 

The traffic safety issue is grossly exaggerated, since they are likely to be limited to major roads, mostly freeways. Opponents always create the image these trucks will drive through towns and villages, while the fact is they will only be seen on freeways and industrial parks.

Scandinavia, most notably Sweden and Finland have these trucks, sometimes even longer (30m) for over 30 years, and those countries rank among the safest in the world.

The weight issue is also nonsense, what counts is axle load, no matter if the vehicle is 30 tonnes, 40 tonnes, 60 tonnes or 200 tonnes.


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## Danielk2 (Jun 2, 2009)

We have those big trucks in Denmark too, the problem is that they can only stop and load/unload cargo at approved locations, making it unefficient if you need to drive 20-30miles away from the original route to load/unload or park the truck.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> The weight issue is also nonsense, what counts is axle load, no matter if the vehicle is 30 tonnes, 40 tonnes, 60 tonnes or 200 tonnes.


No, the total weight may also be a restriction.

A short explanation is here:

http://www.nomegatrucks.eu/mega-trucks-in-5-minutes/


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Interesting observation in this video: American truckers put on both signals when crawling uphill @ 20 - 25 mph on a freeway. I haven't seen that in Europe.


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## mgk920 (Apr 21, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Interesting observation in this video: American truckers put on both signals when crawling uphill @ 20 - 25 mph on a freeway. I haven't seen that in Europe.


IIRC, using the four-way/hazard flashers is required in the traffic laws of most, if not all, states (vehicles going below a certain speed on those sorts of roads).

BTW, from the instruments ('C' temp readouts and a km/h speedometer) on that rig, it appears to me that that is a Canadian truck/lorry.

Mike


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

This is why 2.5 m shoulders are not sufficient. Now this is an exit, imagine a truck breakdown on busy freeway!


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## Danielk2 (Jun 2, 2009)

We have the same problem in Denmark, with 2,5m shoulders, If a truck breaks down in a tunnel (which i have only seen once), it blocks all traffic, since the danish tunnels don't have emergency lanes or emergency stops hno:


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## PLH (Mar 9, 2007)

^^ Hardly any country has shoulders in tunnels.



ChrisZwolle said:


> This is why 2.5 m shoulders are not sufficient.


But you have far wider ones, haven't you? 3,5 m?


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

These 25 m trucks are also an increasing sight on Dutch motorways: 





While such longer trucks have been common for decades in Scandinavia, they weren't introduced until recently in the Netherlands. Their main advantage is that they can ship more against a slightly increased fuel consumption. Obviously, these 25 m trucks do not fit on every street, so they are limited to certain routes, mostly motorways and main roads without roundabouts. 

I know the Jumbo supermarketchain in the Netherlands uses some of these 25 m trucks to supply long-distance supermarkets, especially the Veghel - Groningen route (230km). They have their largest Jumbo in Groningen, which would otherwise require 4 trucks, they now supply them with 2 long trucks.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Chriszwolle said:


> and main roads without roundabouts.


You must be surprised how quite easily they can take roundabouts. Okay, it's not going very fast and they need all the space they have, but it fits.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Here's a triple truck. I wonder how long they are, must be in the 40m range.
I-80 Nevada


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Obviously, these 25 m trucks do not fit on every street, so they are limited to certain routes, mostly motorways and main roads without roundabouts.


On long distances and on with routes with a lot of traffic. This should be the domain of trains instead.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Depends on what you see as "long distances" and the type of cargo. NL doesn't have long distances or much room on the railroad network for freight trains. Railroad freight is only 0.8% compared to 99.2% with trucks (in tonnage).


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

Jeroen669 said:


> You must be surprised how quite easily they can take roundabouts. Okay, it's not going very fast and they need all the space they have, but it fits.


That truck's trailers have so many tires... There should only be two sets of tires, with a stout under-frame if necessary, because going around curves like that wears down the extra tires much more quickly than having only sets of 2 like we use in the USA.

That particular truck has 3 sets of tires in the cab, 3 sets of tires on the first trailer (including the joiner-gadget linking it to the second one - the connector thing isn't articulated so i count it as part of what it doesn't bend relative to), and FIVE!! sets of tires on the last trailer. American tractor-trailers with multiple-trailer setups usually have 2 or 3 axles on the tractor, one axle on each trailer and one on the joiny-thing (which IS usually articulated relative to both trailers.) True, this is likely a result of most toll booths charging trucks by the number of axles, but it still saves a LOT of wear on the tires, which in the end saves a lot of wasted rubber.

I don't know why exactly it is that multiple-trailer setups are used in the US... Perhaps they're so the trucks can fit into particularly tight spaces, because the trailers are about half the length of the full-size single trailers that are used MUCH more often.

(I use "set of tires" and "axle" interchangeably here)


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

> I don't think that in 1996 life was really more difficult than today just because there were less transports.


Again, you're forgetting that there are more countries than Switzerland alone. Tens of millions of people faced significant welfare increase in central Europe.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

I'm not surpirsed by the increase of transports, but I don't think it's all fundamental for our lives. Traffic at the Brenner Pass: 20.4-26.9-48.2 (again 1986-1996-2007).

It is true that traffic betweend Italy and Switzerland/Austria (and then Central Europe) increased more than between Italy and France (I still use this examples because they are the only ones I have found for each year from 1984 onwards). Ventimiglia+Fréjus+Mont Blanc: 28-46.3-49.1 (againe same years, the traffic has not increased much in 11 years).


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Coccodrillo said:


> I'm not surpirsed by the increase of transports, but I don't think it's all fundamental for our lives.


There are very few things fundamental for our lives... Even cars can be seen as a luxury, since millions of people (even in europe) can easily live without it. Still we allow people to have it, despite of all the problems. Why?



Coccodrillo said:


> American and Japanese cars are different, and one might want visit the US one year and Europe the next.
> 
> I accept these transports, as they offer different products.


Both American and Japanese cars bring people from A to B. And going on holiday is a luxury in the first place. In the Netherlands this year about 3 million people stay in their own country during the holidays, and can still be very happy about that.



Coccodrillo said:


> What I like less are useless transport like Italian rubbish recycled or burnt in Germany, Swiss cream bottled in italy, or South African water sold in in Danemark.


Again: there just are people willing to pay for it. And who says water produced in South Africa tastes exactly the same? As an outsider you just can't judge about what people need, and what they don't need. If you want people to have less 'need', raise income taxes for high incomes. (I'm definately for that) But please don't tell people what to buy, and what not to buy (and so what has to be transported or not)...


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

EU: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drivers'_working_hours

USA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hours_of_Service

The amount of driving hours between the two is staggering. A European driver can only drive 90 hours in 2 weeks, while an American driver can drive for almost 140 hours in 2 weeks. Considering the speed limits, an American trucker can drive twice the mileage of a European trucker.


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## Basincreek (Mar 10, 2008)

Jeroen669 said:


> Why do people have relationships with people that live hunderds/thousands of kms away, while there sure will be sweet guys/girls living on the corner?


Off topic but fun fact, there isn't one woman between 18-40 years old that's single in my town of 2200 people. We had some journalist here doing an article on it a while back. Therefore there are lots of single guys that need to travel 60-80kms just to find a woman to date.



ChrisZwolle said:


> The amount of driving hours between the two is staggering. A European driver can only drive 90 hours in 2 weeks, while an American driver can drive for almost 140 hours in 2 weeks. Considering the speed limits, an American trucker can drive twice the mileage of a European trucker.


Something that happens here in the USA are husband/wife trucking teams. They travel together so that one rests while the other drives. Is there something analogous in Europe?


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ I don't think many truckers do that.

A problem is that European trucks have far less living space for the driver than American trucks. In Europe, the length is limited for the total combination, not only the trailer. That's also why most trucks are cab-overs.


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## Basincreek (Mar 10, 2008)

I find it interesting that there are so many restrictions on trucking there when Europe is much more dependent on it than the US is thanks to the very large freight rail system in North America.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Basincreek said:


> I find it interesting that there are so many restrictions on trucking there when Europe is much more dependent on it than the US is thanks to the very large freight rail system in North America.


That's a myth. 

In tonnage kilometers;

US: road: 84% source: wikipedia
EU: road: 77% source: Eurostat

(only comparing road to rail, leaving out other modes)


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Fast forward this one to 1 minute. Taken on I-80 in Wyoming I think.






Always a bunch of suckers who think they can drive 60 mph on a snow-covered road.


----------



## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

^^ wow, that was cool... 
where do you get the 60mph? (was it your estimation?)


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

That's just my guesstimate. He goes pretty fast.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

I like these; Turnpike doubles. 









Triples are even longer:


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Here's a knucklehead who thinks he can go down Donner Pass at 65 mph.


----------



## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Fast forward this one to 1 minute. Taken on I-80 in Wyoming I think.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


What language do they speak?
Dutch? German?
What are they doing driving truck in US?


----------



## SS Enforcer (Aug 31, 2009)

Excellent thread guys I am a truck driver from Australia with over 20 years heavy vehicle driving behind me and have to say I am surprised that most of your comments regarding the industry are correct and very perceptive. Trucking the world over is much the same you know move freight from point A to point B sounds simple eh ? but not always.

The total international freight task is growing at a staggering rate each year on average and the authorities are struggling to keep up with the demand. As there are many more trucks hitting the road each year there appears less rest areas due to them being mainly full. This is due to new enforcement techniques for drivers rest hours.

I confine myself to just driving Petrol and Lpg tankers around town or near country trips and won't do any more long distance work due to the increased surveilance/harrassment/policing of the industry. There are many experienced guys like me that have left the industry due to the new rules.

Long distance driving in Australia is a bit different to Europe in that the majority of freight runs are 800 - 1000 k's + per leg and are usually done on an overnight basis. We also have the long runs across the country and up into the north where I used to drive Road Trains. The average working day then was about 18-20 hrs now it's 12-14. Like the US most of the long distance drivers are payed by distance and not by the hour so it's all about _making miles_ as they say.

I am going to Europe next month and will be doing 2 weeks of driving in France and Spain and will be looking forward to driving on some nice Euro roads and seeing different trucks from what I am used to here. Last time I had an interesting meal with some truckers in Innsbruck so this time am hoping to chat with some French or Spanish guys. I approach truckers all over the world and usually have no trouble engaging them once I establish I am a fellow driver. A Cuban guy in Florida thought I was spying on him when he saw my camera though  

cheers


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

geogregor said:


> What language do they speak?
> Dutch? German?
> What are they doing driving truck in US?


Some kind of German, though I couldn't understand everything. In the end, he said "du scheisse jah" (you shit yeah), so I think it's German. There are more videos circulating on youtube with German truck drivers in the U.S. When it comes to truck driving, the U.S. is still the land of opportunities compared to over-regulated Europe.



SS Enforcer said:


> I am going to Europe next month and will be doing 2 weeks of driving in France and Spain and will be looking forward to driving on some nice Euro roads and seeing different trucks from what I am used to here. Last time I had an interesting meal with some truckers in Innsbruck so this time am hoping to chat with some French or Spanish guys.


That's nice. First of all, nearly all trucks in Europe are cab-overs with a total combination length of 16.5 meters. Only car carriers are somewhat longer, aroudn 18 meters. Some countries do have longer trucks, but they are not as common as regular trucks, except for like Sweden and Finland.

The problem is many truckers here in Europe do not speak much English, especially not from southern and central Europe. I was once trucking with a neighbor in Germany, and a UK trucker asked for road conditions ahead over the CB. A long time no response, until some German trucker answered something that looked a bit like English. :-S


----------



## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Here's a knucklehead who thinks he can go down Donner Pass at 65 mph.


wow. that was even cooler than the previous one...

but why didnt he (driver of the cameracar) stop?

It was very dangerous to drive in the smoke, and he should have help to the crashed driver...


----------



## Seppl (Aug 3, 2008)

geogregor said:


> What language do they speak?
> Dutch? German?
> What are they doing driving truck in US?


They speak german. The one guy says: "Look over there..." 

After the truck has crashed the same guy says: "Did you record it?"

The others one says: "Yes of course!"

The first guy finishes with the sentence chris already translated.

It is kind of a southern german accent so it is not that easy to understand.


----------



## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

SS Enforcer said:


> Excellent thread guys I am a truck driver from Australia with over 20 years heavy vehicle driving behind me and have to say I am surprised that most of your comments regarding the industry are correct and very perceptive.


Nice to have another trucker here.  You said you've driven the real big stuff, maybe you can show us some pics?



> The total international freight task is growing at a staggering rate each year on average and the authorities are struggling to keep up with the demand. As there are many more trucks hitting the road each year there appears less rest areas due to them being mainly full. This is due to new enforcement techniques for drivers rest hours.


Same problem here. It's quite difficult to find a parking spot at rest areas on major truck routes, though they say it's become less of a problem since the crisis.



> The average working day then was about 18-20 hrs now it's 12-14. Like the US most of the long distance drivers are payed by distance and not by the hour so it's all about _making miles_ as they say.


Paying truckers by distance is forbidden here. I think paying by mileage encourages people to drive unsafe speeds, doesn't it?



> I am going to Europe next month and will be doing 2 weeks of driving in France and Spain and will be looking forward to driving on some nice Euro roads and seeing different trucks from what I am used to here.


Have fun!  Maybe this can be a preview of what some european trucks can look like.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Another nice set of Doubles. These trucks pull 2 48 foot trailers, so the total length is around 35 m or 115 ft.


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## mattec (Aug 2, 2009)

geogregor, I think I know where your avatar is.

It's around Wytheville VA, right?


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Great song, remake of the 1975 song (from the 1978 movie)


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## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Great song, remake of the 1975 song (from the 1978 movie)


Wow!!!!!
I've seen this movie when I was very young, it was before iron curtain collapsed. We still had just two TV channels then and only two hours of programs before afternoon (the same movie which they screened later in the evening - for people who worked late shifts). 
I was sick so I didn't go to school and that's how I managed to see it.
Ech, old times.
I loved this movie but I have never actually seen it again.

@mattec
Yes, it is somewhere in Virginia but I don't remember exact location


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

geogregor said:


> Wow!!!!!
> I've seen this movie when I was very young, it was before iron curtain collapsed. We still had just two TV channels then and only two hours of programs before afternoon (the same movie which they screened later in the evening - for people who worked late shifts).
> I was sick so I didn't go to school and that's how I managed to see it.
> Ech, old times.
> ...


Yup, its near Wytheville.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

These truck drivers are just asking for accidents...


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## RKC (Jun 16, 2007)

^^ even if i didn't care about safety, i would hate looking at nothing else but he back of that truck all the time.


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## x-type (Aug 19, 2005)

RKC said:


> ^^ even if i didn't care about safety, i would hate looking at nothing else but he back of that truck all the time.


don't worry, he will catch first situation to take left lane and try to overpass the other one (what will last for some 3 km)


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

RKC said:


> ^^ even if i didn't care about safety, i would hate looking at nothing else but he back of that truck all the time.


Now you understand why truckers also want to overtake


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## Stainless (Jun 7, 2009)

RKC said:


> ^^ even if i didn't care about safety, i would hate looking at nothing else but he back of that truck all the time.


Probably trying to save fuel by slipstreaming


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## SS Enforcer (Aug 31, 2009)

Stainless said:


> Probably trying to save fuel by slipstreaming


Nope .... if you look again you will see a slower vehicle up front which has caused the trucks to start to bunch up a bit. That car with the weird box thing on the trailer is probably going slowly. I have been in this same situation a thousand times at least.

Still not much to worry about as trucking in Europe is slower than here or in the states.

Cheers


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

ChrisZwolle said:


> These truck drivers are just asking for accidents...


Where is that photo taken? I wonder... because few truck drivers in Greek motorways (hopefully not all) are drive like in the photo above hno:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

A28 near Zwolle, the Netherlands.


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## ir desi (Dec 9, 2007)

Unfortunately, there seem to be some truckers who are conscious of the weight of their vehicle, and others who think they are out for a Sunday drive. Driving through the hills of Vermont on I-91, I was faced with one trucker like this. I-91 has many steep grades, often 6-8%. This trucker sat behind me and refused to maintain distance. I initially came upon him as he was cresting a hill. He had slowed down to about 30mph as he crested. Minimum speed limit if unposted on Vermont Interstate highways is 45mph. I gave about 400ft, enough to see the headlights in the rearview, and moved into the right lane in front of him. As we came down the hill, he brought himself as close as in the photo above. This happened over and over again. You'd think with the hills he'd fall behind as he slowed down on the ascent, but he always caught up in the same way on the descent. Okay, you might say, I should get out of the way, this truck is heavy and despite brakes is going to have variant speeds. But even once we reached the relatively flat sections of I-91 in Massachusetts, this guy still sat on my tail with at most 20 ft between us.


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## stoian (Sep 24, 2009)

christos-greece said:


> Where is that photo taken? I wonder... because few truck drivers in Greek motorways (hopefully not all) are drive like in the photo above hno:



The second truck is with bulgarian registration("E"-Blagoevgrad area).


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Check the end of this video:

I-80 near Reno, Nevada


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

The open borders of Europe....


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## peezet (Sep 17, 2008)

Chris,

Is this the dutch A1 near Oldenzaal ???
I though they made a big truck parking place near Hengelo to avoid this .


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Yeah, it's at the German border. This was nothing by the way, the line was only 1.5 km long. If there's a German federal holiday during the workweek, the line can be 10 km long.

As far as I know, they want to increase capacity of this rest area at the border, plus expanding the Lonnekermeer rest area. However, all capacity for truck parkings are already taken east of Apeldoorn, so they have no other option than to drive to the border and have a nice 24 hours at the shoulder. (2 days in this case, as saturday October 3rd was the German unification day + sunday)


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## SS Enforcer (Aug 31, 2009)

ir desi said:


> Unfortunately, there seem to be some truckers who are conscious of the weight of their vehicle, and others who think they are out for a Sunday drive. Driving through the hills of Vermont on I-91, I was faced with one trucker like this. I-91 has many steep grades, often 6-8%. This trucker sat behind me and refused to maintain distance. I initially came upon him as he was cresting a hill. He had slowed down to about 30mph as he crested. Minimum speed limit if unposted on Vermont Interstate highways is 45mph. I gave about 400ft, enough to see the headlights in the rearview, and moved into the right lane in front of him. As we came down the hill, he brought himself as close as in the photo above. This happened over and over again. You'd think with the hills he'd fall behind as he slowed down on the ascent, but he always caught up in the same way on the descent. Okay, you might say, I should get out of the way, this truck is heavy and despite brakes is going to have variant speeds. But even once we reached the relatively flat sections of I-91 in Massachusetts, this guy still sat on my tail with at most 20 ft between us.


Why didn't you drive a bit quicker and get out of his way or just sit behind him and let him go . Obviously you wanted to get under his skin like I have seen many like you do.

cheers


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## Qaabus (Aug 4, 2006)

Riksveg 60 between Olden and Innvik in Norway:


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## Perennial Quest (May 24, 2007)

Qaabus said:


> Riksveg 60 between Olden and Innvik in Norway:


Unfortunately I didn't understand a thing of what they said, but that road is something unbelievable! :nuts:


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## Danielk2 (Jun 2, 2009)

As far as i understand, the guy talks about the problems with large trucks in the area, and the importance of the transport company, and later that rolf thing talking about his transport company. Later some guy says that there is 10 buses and 34 trucks on the road - a day! And later Einar talks about problems with passing other trucks on that road.


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## Perennial Quest (May 24, 2007)

Danielk2 said:


> As far as i understand, the guy talks about the problems with large trucks in the area, and the importance of the transport company, and later that rolf thing talking about his transport company. Later some guy says that there is 10 buses and 34 trucks on the road - a day! And later Einar talks about problems with passing other trucks on that road.


Thank you very much for the translation.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Nice piece of technique.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Disturbing video about the parking problems along Italian motorways:


----------



## durio uno (Oct 26, 2009)

.
.
.
Malaysia - MB Actros 2640

From PrimaPlus


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## durio uno (Oct 26, 2009)

.
.
.
Malaysia - MB Actros 2540

From PrimaPlus


----------



## durio uno (Oct 26, 2009)

.
.
.
Malaysia - Scania P124L 360

From PrimaPlus


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

What a thread!!!

I love the trucks!!!

I'd like to post some pics of mexican trucks...


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## geogregor (Dec 11, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Disturbing video about the parking problems along Italian motorways:


Is it legal to park in these small lay-bays?


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

ir desi said:


> ....this guy still sat on my tail with at most 20 ft between us.


Duel? :lol:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

geogregor said:


> Is it legal to park in these small lay-bays?


No, they're SOS lots, because Italian shoulders are not wide enough to accomodate trucks, and they're usually not safe for cars too, because Italian motorway usually have guardrails or barriers right next to the small shoulder. But if there's no alternative for those truckers, I can understand they have to use them. 

The alternative is to keep on driving and the chances of getting caught for exceeding hours of service is quite big, because of the digital tagographs they have these days. Truckers can be fined up to 4 weeks after the violation 2000 kilometers away.


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

Qaabus said:


> Riksveg 60 between Olden and Innvik in Norway:


thats crazy... :bash:

why dont they signal it between passing points?


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## H123Laci (Dec 6, 2007)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Disturbing video about the parking problems along Italian motorways:


fucking idioten... :bash:

europe is a big shit heap...

spends horrible amount of money for the uneconomic railways and kicks and plunders the road transport... :bash:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Need a truck?








Photo by Roger Trucker!


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## andrelot (Aug 6, 2008)

Well, one of the most interesting experinces I had interacting with trucks in Italy was on A3 highway, connectin Salerno to Reggio Calabria. It's a 2x2 highway than runs mostly through very mountainous terrain in Southern Italy, and they are upgrading it from old standards (3,4m lanes, no hard shoulder, 80km/h limit in most places) to modern Italian standards. Therefore, they're not only widening the carriageway, but reconstructing the highway, shortening some segments, cutting new tunnels to avoid sharp curves etc.

Near Villa San Giovanni (where you can take the ferry to Sicily) there's a long 40km segment which is being modernized, but is almost only tunnels and bridges one after another. Therefore, the road there is 2X1 until they modernize the opposite carriageway, then they'll transfer all trafic there, modernize the other carriageway and finally clear everything up.

I'll never forget: there's a 60km/h limit in the WHOLE 42km strecht, which has absolutely NO PASSING POINT. I'm very afraid of speed traps (Autovelox), so I play it safe and abide to them. Point is: I've not driven there for a while, so I made an "extra acceleration maneuver" to pass a truck in a hill, only to find myself holding the whole lane back into 42km (most of it was in the descent lane, from 1.300m to almost sea level).

So, you imagine me, at dusk, holding an Italian big lorry for 42km! The driver cursed me, honked, flashlighted me in the tunnels etc. There was no way I could "yield" to him: one tight lane, no shoulder, temporary median placed on. It was very frightening, I had just moved back to Italyu, and it was my first long-distance trip alone in Italy after I'd got my license. There was no visible traffic in front of me, but tons of advises of Autovelox. After 10 or 15km, I just turn the radio volume higher and tried to ignore the honking from following drivers, but singal would go off inside the tunnels.

I was kind of relieved when my exit came... and I could strecht my legs while crossing to Sicily.


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## Joel-Something (Dec 8, 2009)

Mate you must be the dumbest shit alive if you think that cyclist get a whole lane...you dont thats why they give u a little bit on the side of the road..its painted in green and has a white cyclist..thats were you ride.


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

*MORE PICS OF AUSTRALIAN ROAD TRIANS​*​


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

ModelFan said:


> wow! thas its big. Here (in Mexico) we do not have anything like this.


We don't have anything like this but we have this:

*SOME PICS OF MEXICAN TRUCKS​*​



























:banana:


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Need a truck?


:lol: :lol: 

That's original!!


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## Xpressway (Dec 2, 2006)

^^So?

i don't see anything special about those pics.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Those are Turnpike Doubles. Unheard of in most parts of Europe, but common in North America.


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## Xpressway (Dec 2, 2006)

ChrisZwolle said:


> Those are Turnpike Doubles. Unheard of in most parts of Europe, but common in North America.


They're everywhere here in Chile.

They aren't that big compaired to a road train.


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

^^ Obviously.

But every country has thier own "big" trucks.


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## NorthWesternGuy (Aug 25, 2005)

Mmm... I wonder if Australian road trains have "normal" engines with 400-600 HP:?


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## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Maxx☢Power;31265352 said:


> There was an incident like that in my hometown a couple of years ago where a cyclist got run over by a truck because the driver couldn't see him in the mirrors. Cyclist died :/


Which is why I have seen large stickers on the backs of trailers, warning that the truck has large blind spots and may swing wide in order to turn. Generally geared towards motorists, but have seen a few geared towards cyclists.



ElviS77 said:


> Just out of curiousity: What kind of power plants are fitted to these Australian monsters? Typically 60-ton loads in Europe are pulled by 550-700 hp Mercedes/Scania/Volvo/MAN trucks.


Similar sized engines in the trucks down under.



ChrisZwolle said:


> Those are Turnpike Doubles. Unheard of in most parts of Europe, but common in North America.


Also known as a B train.
A Train: One tailer
B Train: Two trailers
C Train: Three trailers



NorthWesternGuy said:


> Mmm... I wonder if Australian road trains have "normal" engines with 400-600 HP:?


See second quote in my reply.


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## Dr.Mabuse (Jun 6, 2009)

Oversized transportrs


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## butch83 (Mar 24, 2006)

^^


















(darkroastedblend.com)


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## Nikkodemo (Aug 23, 2006)

:eek2:

That's REALLY awesome!!!

And AMAZING!


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## Aokromes (Jan 5, 2005)

More heavy trucks here: http://www.roadtransport.com/blogs/big-lorry-blog/heavy-haulage/


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## Rebasepoiss (Jan 6, 2007)

Parts of a small ferry in Tallinn:


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## marki (Nov 23, 2007)

This one is big too









Image is from: http://users.skynet.be/spotterfreak/airbusa380.html (it has nice Airbus A380 images too)


This one has the airbus A380 inside, so it must be really big (like the Tardis) 









from http://members.casema.nl/goldewijk/


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## MRS50 (Jun 18, 2009)

*Canberra, Australian Capital Territory*

One of the advantages of Canberra is that the roads are alot wider compared to other Australian cities. There is usually less traffic on the roads than the other cities, and little truck traffic.

It's lanes which are, in the main, wider than many other city's arterials, having been built usually to 3.7m wide. Many of the urban arterials have shoulders and the divided carriageways are often linemarked with the kerbside lane wider than the median lane. 

You often see many semi-trailers move around the city without any problems, even during peak hours.


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

How come so many Australian trucks have round headlights? In the US, they switched from round headlights to square or rectangle in the early 70s, and in the early-mid-90s from rectangle to most any shape that looks nice.


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## MRS50 (Jun 18, 2009)

nerdly_dood said:


> How come so many Australian trucks have round headlights? In the US, they switched from round headlights to square or rectangle in the early 70s, and in the early-mid-90s from rectangle to most any shape that looks nice.


Yes get with the program Australia! Most of the new Australian Kenworth models are still built with the round headlights, but the modern exterior design of the trucks look ok. 



















here's some other pics of trucks in Australia...


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## Danielk2 (Jun 2, 2009)

A german Coca-Cola Christmas truck (in Dronninglund, Denmark)


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## a_ghost (Dec 19, 2009)

Truck in Borneo island Indonesia

Mining truck hauling coal.

















Some highway still on gravel but it's solid so heavy truck could going through.

















Crossing the river by ferry, since the road infrastructure is minimum in the inland area.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Some 25.25 m trucks I spotted today in the Netherlands.

1.









2.









3.









4.









5.


----------



## Di-brazil (Sep 12, 2009)

brazilian trucks


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ Do you have anything else from Brazil to show except for googled pics? It's not a contest to post as much googled pics from Brazil in any thread as possible...


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## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Next question: 5th wheel, or (most likely), drawbar setup? If it's the former, then yes, it IS possible to reverse such a setup. If it's the latter: I'm not so sure. Canadian Freightways does use a drawbar setup, but drivers split the trailers for maneuverability.


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## Jschmuck (May 27, 2008)

Anyone from Europe know what the rules for truck drivers in Europe are(driving time, sleeper berth time)? I do understand that they do use onboard electronic recorders...I just wanted to compare since Im a driver myself in the USofA. I tried researching the info myself but with no luck.
thanks


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ With the lower speed limits and much more strict hours of service, a European trucker can drive approximately 40 or 50% of the mileage an American trucker can drive in 2 weeks.

A European trucker is not allowed to drive more than 9 hours per day. They are allowed to drive 10 hours per day twice a week. The longest sustained driving is 4.5 hours, after which a 45 minute break is mandatory. A driver is not allowed to drive more than 56 hours per week. In two weeks, a trucker cannot drive more than 90 hours.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Fargo Wolf said:


> Next question: 5th wheel, or (most likely), drawbar setup? If it's the former, then yes, it IS possible to reverse such a setup. If it's the latter: I'm not so sure. Canadian Freightways does use a drawbar setup, but drivers split the trailers for maneuverability.


Indeed, drawbar setup (with centre placed axles), quite similar to this:


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

If that's the case, then the driver would drop the second trailer.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Another "LZV" in the Netherlands. I've read Germany and Belgium are also interested in 25.25 m trucks.


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## piotr71 (Sep 8, 2009)

ChrisZwolle said:


> A European trucker is not allowed to drive more than 9 hours per day. They are allowed to drive 10 hours per day twice a week. The longest sustained driving is 4.5 hours, after which a 45 minute break is mandatory. A driver is not allowed to drive more than 56 hours per week. In two weeks, a trucker cannot drive more than 90 hours.


That's all correct. I let myself to add one less important thing. This 45 mins break can be split in two and taken earlier, but first break must be no shorter than 30 mins, then after next 15 mins break(altogether 45) driving time begins afresh. As Chris said, twice a week driving time can be extended by 1 hr, however 45 mins rest has to be done before that.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Two more LZV trucks of 25.25 m in the Netherlands.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

An unfinished, but already running, truck. Photo taken today in Italy.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

A Dutch LZV for city distribution, showing it's manoeuvrability. They intend to drive long-distance with these LZV's, then uncouple them near the city and individually haul them into the cities.


----------



## Revenant (Aug 6, 2010)

*Melbourne, Australia trucking scene*

This is typical of the freeways in Melbourne. It is not uncommon to be completely boxed in by big rigs.


----------



## Revenant (Aug 6, 2010)

*Australian trucks:*



















Flickr "truckaus".


----------



## Revenant (Aug 6, 2010)

*More Aussie trucks*

In Melbourne - from FLickr "truckaus"


















Roadtrain in Northern Territory









In Melbourne - from Flickr "Truckaus" 











Melbourne:



















Road train in Melbourne....FLickr "palmygirl99"










Road Trains


----------



## Xusein (Sep 27, 2005)

They look so American, lol. Nice pics.


----------



## Guest (Aug 12, 2010)

^^They are (Peterbilt, Kenworth) I like it.


----------



## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

What is it with round headlights on Australian trucks? So many of them that would have rectangular ones in the States have round ones in Australia...


----------



## Revenant (Aug 6, 2010)

nerdly_dood said:


> What is it with round headlights on Australian trucks? So many of them that would have rectangular ones in the States have round ones in Australia...


dunno man, maybe they are more powerful than square lights, benefitting travel in remote areas?


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Xusein said:


> They look so American, lol. Nice pics.


That's because they were the only British Colony that tried to be as American as possible. That's why there are so many North American vehicles, though built as RHD, in the country. You'll find Ford, Chevy and Dodge P/U trucks, as well as familiar models of cars and vans. The same applies to the highway trucks, most of which are built under license in the country. New Zealand is also experiencing an increase in North American trucks, both P/U (the Ford F-Series being the most popular) and heavy trucks.


----------



## Revenant (Aug 6, 2010)

old truck - again from Australia


----------



## Tego (Oct 24, 2006)

:cheers:


----------



## vitinhooo (May 1, 2007)

Some brazilian trucks:

VW:









by zé 01(Flickr)









by zé 01(Flickr)


Volvo:









by dsciphone(Flickr)


Scania:









by DelfinoMattos(Flickr)

.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Another "LZV" (25.25m) truck in the Netherlands.

Location: A28 motorway near Staphorst

LZV-1 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


A "convoy exceptionnel" (I doubt if it's really a CE) carrying fruits from the Greenery to the north of the Netherlands.

truck-1 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


A Benny Wezenberg truck. This one will supply an Albert Heijn supermarket.

truck-2 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


----------



## piotr71 (Sep 8, 2009)

Convoy exceptionnel in England. Blue one has interesting numberplate.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Transport of two cars of the Davos-Parsenn funicular up to 2700 m above sea level: http://la1.rsi.ch/home/networks/la1...04bf882&date=05.09.2010&stream=low#tabEdition

The vehicle run 3.3 km/h uphill and 0.5 km/h downhill, the cars were too heavy (17 tonnes) to be transported with an helicopter.


----------



## g.spinoza (Jul 21, 2010)

Trucking the antennae (100 tons each) of ALMA astronomic facility on site, at almost 5000m of altitude in the Chilean Andes:
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/09/alma-telescope/

Due to extreme altitude, vehicles are pressurized.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

I've read regular combustion engines don't work very well at altitudes over 4.000 meters.


----------



## g.spinoza (Jul 21, 2010)

ChrisZwolle said:


> I've read regular combustion engines don't work very well at altitudes over 4.000 meters.


Here are the specs of ALMA Transporters:
http://www.eso.org/sci/publications/messenger/archive/no.132-jun08/messenger-no132-23.pdf

They don't explain it very well, they just say that they are equipped with 2 500kW diesel engines, functioning at 320kW at 5000m.


----------



## keber (Nov 8, 2006)

There is only about 60% of normal atmospheric pressure at 4000 m. Still, engines do work, but power output is reduced compared to normal altitudes (no different as with people).


----------



## malegi (Aug 21, 2010)

Trucks on the waiting line for the Paranagua's Harbour in southern Brazil.

They transport soybeans for 2,000 kilometers and have to wait lines of 15 kilometers in a 40 C weather.


----------



## engenx4 (Jul 2, 2010)

Brazilian trucks again
Vw








Scania




































vw


----------



## gramercy (Dec 25, 2008)

brazil could do with some railroads...


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Yep, trucking bulk goods (like sugarcane or soybeans) thousands of kilometers is not very efficient.


----------



## malegi (Aug 21, 2010)

We know, it's just the lobby of the automoblistic industry from the US, Germany and others that always corrupted our week governament to stop building new railways... and keep selling trucks, cars. 
The results? Nowadays more than 70% of our economy depend on roads to keep moving... our products cost more than it should.. and rich countries keep getting wealthier and we still stuck in this third world misery... we just don't take advantage of our potential.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Another LZV (Long, Heavy Truck) with three containers.


LZV by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


A Mack truck working as a shock absorber to prevent collisions between cars and road workers at emergency repairs.

Mack by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

What is the central axe on the first photo?


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

They need to lift certain axles to comply with axle load regulation. They can now divide the weight of the truck over the right axles. For example, if the containers are empty (which looks like it), they lift certain axles. If it is heavy, they need to drop more axles to prevent damage to the pavement.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Thank you. This system is common, but I have never seen an axle so spaced from the others on the rear (maybe because it is steering?).


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

I think the last two containers are on one individual trailer. This type of trailer is not commonly used for other purposes than LZV.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

The first vehicle is a normal truck with 3 axles. Then there is certainly an indipendent dolly, and then this strange 1+3 axles trailer. The "medium" axle may also be used only to park the trailer when there isn't the dolly, just like this.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

It doesn't look like a dolly to me. LZV's with dolly's do exist, but this seems to be a mega trailer of 12 - 13 m length.

Look at the layout-sticker on the back:


----------



## vycanismajoris (Aug 29, 2008)

malegi said:


> We know, it's just the lobby of the automoblistic industry from the US, Germany and others that always corrupted our week governament to stop building new railways... and keep selling trucks, cars.
> The results? Nowadays more than 70% of our economy depend on roads to keep moving... our products cost more than it should.. and rich countries keep getting wealthier and we still stuck in this third world misery... we just don't take advantage of our potential.


Interesting. If such a big country can't go on it's own way of development, that's a pity.


----------



## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Coccodrillo said:


> The first vehicle is a normal truck with 3 axles. Then there is certainly an indipendent dolly, and then this strange 1+3 axles trailer. The "medium" axle may also be used only to park the trailer when there isn't the dolly, just like this.


I was a bit confused about the 4th axle of the trailer as well, but the orange-yellow plate in the middle betrays that this trailer must be splitable. You'll see that sometimes with sea containers too, when there are 2 20 ft's loaded on one chassis. Nice piece of technique.


----------



## CNGL (Jun 10, 2010)

Di-brazil said:


> brazilian trucks


My eyes! I can't see those hearts unless it says "Frigo" below!


----------



## malegi (Aug 21, 2010)

vycanismajoris said:


> Interesting. If such a big country can't go on it's own way of development, that's a pity.



Welcome to the third world, or the 'real world' considering that the majority of the world's population live on this condition.
Those things are slowly changing, wait a few more decades and you will see.

A pity is what humans can do with humans.. in such a big proportion such as europe did with africans, south americans....


----------



## engenx4 (Jul 2, 2010)

CNGL said:


> My eyes! I can't see those hearts unless it says "Frigo" below!


:lol::lol:










Frigo es española, en brasil llama Kibon=quebuen


----------



## Blaskovitz (May 30, 2009)

CNGL said:


> My eyes! I can't see those hearts unless it says "Frigo" below!


hmmm Algida in Poland


----------



## TheFlyPL (Jun 21, 2007)




----------



## CNGL (Jun 10, 2010)

^^ In Italy is also Algida. In France is Miko and in Portugal Olá. I continue on the roadside rest area.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Usual road trains in Australia are up to 4 trailers long. However, the Granite Gold Mine in the Northern Territory runs 7-trailer road trains on private property (hence not limited by government regulations). These are called "powertrains", and they have an additional engine unit.


----------



## CNGL (Jun 10, 2010)

^^ :crazy:. Once, I saw a photo with a truck with some 20-30 trailers, I don't remember.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Yes, those are guiness book of records attempts. I believe the record is 112 trailers. However, these are not actually used in transport. The K-variant of the road train (pictured above) is the longest truck combination in use in the world, but not legal on public roads. (they operate on private property of the mine, and drive a 100 km round-trip. They substitute dump trucks).


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

CNGL said:


> ^^ :crazy:. Once, I saw a photo with a truck with some 20-30 trailers, I don't remember.


I know when I took my air brakes course, the instructor mentioned that in some Dutch/Danish container ports, there are trains of up to 20, 20 foot long, close coupled container trailers. Not legal on the road of course, but effective at moving a lot of short containers around.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Apparently, there was a trial in the UK with 90 meter trucks. Not sure if this pic is fake (parked trailers it seems)


----------



## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

^^ Definately parked. I don't see any dolly's and the 'legs' of the trailers are all put down.


----------



## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Fargo Wolf said:


> I know when I took my air brakes course, the instructor mentioned that in some Dutch/Danish container ports, there are trains of up to 20, 20 foot long, close coupled container trailers. Not legal on the road of course, but effective at moving a lot of short containers around.


I used to be at the container termainals in Rotterdam quite often in 2008, but I haven't seen them that long. More like 5 of 6 40ft's. For example here, at the Delta Terminal on the Maasvlakte.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

A nice ecocombi combination I spotted on the A1 motorway. This configuration is rather unusual. These are probably used for voluminous transport with not too much weight considering the low number of axles.


LZV 25,25 m by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


----------



## Nuclear Winter (Oct 23, 2010)

*More Australian hardware*

Flickr Adze45






















































This one is in Melbourne







































some Australian fire trucks:


----------



## Nuclear Winter (Oct 23, 2010)

*Australian Trucks*


----------



## Varzuga (Jul 5, 2009)

border of Krasnoyarsk krai and Tuva, Siberia


----------



## piotr71 (Sep 8, 2009)

>


Some panels of this nosed Iveco are shared with regular Stralis sold in Europe. Compare doors, for instance.


> wiki


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> These cabs should be allowed in Europe too! Time to remove the tight total length restrictions.


I hope not!


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ Sad site. People don't know what they're talking about (as usual). I was mainly talking about larger cabs to allow truckers to have more living space.

The anti truck lobby are a bunch or stupid unrealistic whiners. The same type of people who complain the most if things are not in stock at the supermarket.

We need larger trucks. They're more economical and slash truck movements by 30%. Switzerland itself is the least environmentally sensible country in Europe when it comes to trucking. Their tolls are so high that 30% extra mileage is still cheaper than driving through Switzerland.* They think the trucks switch to rail, but in reality they simply drive longer distances, burn more fuel and emit more pollutants to bypass the ridiculous tolls in the country. The Swiss truck toll is two times higher than in Austria, 3.5 times higher than in Germany and 4 times higher than in Italy.

* On the Frankfurt - Milano route (600 km) it is cheaper to drive via München and Verona (950 km). That's 350 more truck kilometers due to the Swiss tolls. The Austrians are very thankful for that.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> ^^ Sad site. People don't know what they're talking about (as usual). I was mainly talking about larger cabs to allow truckers to have more living space.


I was unsure about the sense of your phrase, also because I can't see pictures from this computer.

But this doesn't change the basic idea that megatrucks are still dangerous: they are not intented for local distribution, for longer trips, it's better to send semitrailers or containers alone by train or by ship (even on inland waterways, like the Netherlands do, with a very good 40% share or so).

For a Frankfurt-Milano trip a truck could use the Freiburg-Novara RoLa, or sending only the semitrailer (that would be better if only there was a higher clearance on swiss and italian railways).

Anyway even the ASTAG (swiss truck lobby) and some italian truck drivers, as I can read, oppose because of both the cost to adapt roads and the loss of working places.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> The Swiss truck toll is two times higher than in Austria, 3.5 times higher than in Germany and 4 times higher than in Italy.


But for a comparable lenght (Basel-Chiasso, 300 km) it's still less than the combination A40+T1 Mont Blanc+A5 or A43+T4 Fréjus+A32.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Most anti "mega trucks" people suggest that these mega trucks are a problem. Why are these a problem? They will be limited to major routes, mostly motorways and industrial areas. You really will not find them supplying your local supermarket or driving through your residential street or school zone. Hence, the "problems" are hugely blown out of proportion. It really doesn't matter if you pass an 18.5 m or 25.25 m truck on the motorway.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

That's another the problem - they are in competition on long distance routes, and for these trains and ships are better. On these distances the train can be competitive - some services like Hupac proves that.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

So, what's wrong with market economy? Let them truckers roll! 

If rail freight was really that competitive, you wouldn't need weight/length restrictions on trucks.


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## Dimethyltryptamine (Aug 22, 2009)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/quarterdeck/5341717430/sizes/l/in/[email protected]/








http://www.flickr.com/photos/quarterdeck/5338137534/sizes/l/in/[email protected]/








http://www.flickr.com/photos/quarterdeck/5335559618/sizes/l/in/[email protected]/








http://www.flickr.com/photos/quarterdeck/5334945616/sizes/l/in/[email protected]/








http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/5212474500/sizes/l/in/[email protected]/


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

ChrisZwolle said:


> So, what's wrong with market economy? Let them truckers roll!
> 
> If rail freight was really that competitive, you wouldn't need weight/length restrictions on trucks.


Rail freight suffer of lack of capacity on some lines (Germany, parts of the Gotthard and Brenner railway), difference of gauge obliging to tranship goods (Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Finland, ex-URSS), small loading gauge and excessive Eurotunnel tolls (Britain), inefficiency and auto-sabotage by railways themselves (Italy), lack of competition (France, partly Italy)...all problems unknown by road (except saturation).

When these restrictions doesn't apply rail can sometimes be cheaper, even when one would not think so, like a France-Barcellona grain traffic switching from road to rail in Canfranc (near the Somport tunnel), because it is cheaper, even if from Canfranc onwards there are very good roads or motorways, and before the horrible french N134.


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

It's true that in America the larger trucks are most common on highways and do not directly drive to most supermarkets. For that, smaller trucks similar in size to trucks common in Europe (but still shaped like the larger trucks) are used.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Back on a computer with a decend connection I can post some curiosities I have seen. Photos are of a bad quality but still curious.

A truck rescuing another truck.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

A trailer carrying a "crane" (I don't know the exact word) to hel unloading the truck.










A snow vehicle.










New trucks.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Short trailer, but with three axles. May it be one of the extensible trailers sfor containers?










Single axle trailer.










And finally a trailer with a strange wheel arrangement.


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## Jschmuck (May 27, 2008)

> A trailer carrying a "crane" (I don't know the exact word) to hel unloading the truck


Forklift is one name


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## Beijo1 (Jan 16, 2011)

*Australian Trucks*

*Australia*


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

^^ Yes, but these forklifts are especially made to be transported on the back of the trailer. I know the dutch word for it, which is kooiaap (litterally translated: cagemonkey :lol I know they're often used here for distribution to hardware stores.



Coccodillo said:


> Short trailer, but with three axles. May it be one of the extensible trailers sfor containers?


Looks like a normal 20ft container chassis, but I don't know about the weird thing in the front of the trailer. Looking at the position of the axles, I don't think it will be extensible.



Coccodillo said:


> I hope not!


Allowing larger cabs (with same trailer sizes) won't hurt the train and shipping sector. But even with larger trailers, as already said, it's called market economy. But I don't think it's usefull to discuss that with you. 

Cabover or torpedotrucks don't make the difference btw: If I could choose between a torpedotruck with small sleeping compartment or a cabover with 2 meters of extra space I'd definitely would choose the last.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

I think maximum lenght has already been increased from ~17 to 18.75 m. Is this true also for the motor vehicles or only the complex tractor+semitrailer?


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

18.75 m is only for auto trailers. Regular semi-tractor + trailer is still 16.5 meters.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

^^ Any combination of box-truck + small trailer is allowed to be 18.75 long, not just car trailers. Generally this means a increase of 1.60m in loading length (15.20m vs. 13.60m for regular semitrailers).


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Yes, you're right. However, this does not really increase the amount of tonnage I believe. First you cannot transport long elements and the small distance between the box truck and the trailer cannot be used for storage, which means the effective loading space doesn't increase very much.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

^^ There's also a amount of space between a tractor and a semitrailer, it barely differs.  
However, there are other disadvantages compared to a regular semi-trailer:

- total weight is a little higher (so there's a little less loading weight)
- loading/unloading needs uncoupling and 2 free docks (unless there's a through-loading system, which is quite expensive and not always practical)
- coupling and uncoupling demands more precision from the driver
- both box-truck and trailer need to be loaded/unloaded before driving off, while you easily can uncouple a semitrailer and couple an other one


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Another advantage of semitrailers


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

Jeroen669 said:


> ^^ Yes, but these forklifts are especially made to be transported on the back of the trailer. I know the dutch word for it, which is kooiaap (litterally translated: cagemonkey :lol I know they're often used here for distribution to hardware stores.


Those are seen occasionally in my area, I don't really know what to call them other than a forklift.


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## piotr71 (Sep 8, 2009)

Coccodrillo said:


> A trailer carrying a "crane" (I don't know the exact word) to hel unloading the truck.


In England they call it "Moffet truck".


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

It's a forklift that's been specially built to be carried on the back of a truck or trailer in that fashion. The DIY chain Home Hardware and I believe Home Depot has them on some of their trucks.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Coccodrillo said:


> Another advantage of semitrailers


Not every semitrailer is suitable for the HUPAC-system, they need to be modified for that. Apart from that, transfering regular sea containers is a more efficient way for using intermodal transport.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

There are some prototypes of cranes that "hang" the semitrailers using, on one side, the wheels. I don't know how is the other side attached, but they are supposed to be usable with nearly any trailer.

There are other more expensive systems like the Modalohr, or some other similar systems still under test.

Containers and swap bodies are still the best systems but not everyone can, or want, to use them.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

An unsuccesful system has been the roadrailer, that used strenghtened semitraler capable to mount rail boogies and to resist the bigger forces of a train. In Europe they were known as "kombirail".


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Megaswing system, loading and unloading.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

That is a very nice piece of technique, but I don't think that there's a lot of future for these things. It will be too expensive.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

It's probable, the Roadrailer system proves that. A way to charge unmodified semitrailers on Hupac-style wagons would be better. As I said something like this is under study.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

I was thinking, maybe it would be nice to show some specialities in trucking, since there's so much difference between the types of work and types of vehicles. I've done many different things in truck driving the last 3 years, so I can give you some background information.


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Coccodrillo said:


>


Wonder how long the air line in the pic lasted. That's a lousy way to route it, since it's at high risk of rubbing on the rail bogie's wheel.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Army trucking in the Netherlands:

1.

army truck-1 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr

2. This picture isn't zoomed and he kind of cut me off here. 

army truck-2 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr

3. 

army truck-3 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr

4.

army truck-4 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr

5.

army truck-5 by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


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## vitinhooo (May 1, 2007)

Brazilian trucks:























































That's what we call as roadtrain(or "rodotrem", in Portuguese) in Brazil.


----------



## xrtn2 (Jan 12, 2011)

^^ European style


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## vitinhooo (May 1, 2007)

^^ Yeah, in Brazil most of the trucks are in European "style". Major brands(heavyweight trucks) are: Volkswagen(now MAN Latin America), Scania, Volvo, Iveco, Mercedes-Benz, and most recently MAN.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Swiss trucks: http://www.specialtrucks.ch/001_ola...er_oem/010-01_nfz-naw/011_naw_startseite.html


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Single axle semitrailer:



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Saurer:



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Steyr:



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

An old Saurer (I suppose) truck used as snowplow. Note the steering wheel on the right to allow a better view of the side of the road.










A Rolba snowplow.










(all photos taken in January-February 2011)


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

A "lateral" forklift.



















Strange way to park a trailer!










(all photos taken in an Alptransit Gotthard worksite in February 2011)


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

> Single axle semitrailer:


We call those "city trailers" in the Netherlands as they are more suitable for city distribution (especially for large supermarkets which require a full truckload but are not very good accessible).


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

I have also seen a similar (but smaller) single axle semitrailer towed by a vehicle like a Mercedes Sprinter, or a similar one from anothe builder. Unfortunately I didn't manage to take a photo.


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

That's unusual for a trailer that size to be a single axle. Usually, anything over 20 ft have tandem axles. In Canada, a single axle semi trailer is called a "hotshot", as priority loads can be quickly loaded, transported and unloaded.

Saurer and Steyr. That's two names I haven't read about in a long time.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

There are still a lot (considering their age) Saurer trucks in Switzerland, both cabover and with advanced engine like the snowplow. Also Steyr trucks can be often seen.


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Neat on both counts.


----------



## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

A strange low profile semitrailer and two more conventionals trucks (Scania 113 H 340 and an Iveco). There are modified trucks to fit some small railway loading gauges, but this one is really too low (european rail loading gauges usually have a rounded top, so modified trucks have either a rounded top, or a flat one, but lower than usual).


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

That first one is used for transporting steel. It's so heavy they don't need all the space like a regular height trailer.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Dutch army truck:


army truck by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


----------



## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

Slovenian army truck used by Croatian army. 








_http://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slika:TAM_kamion_HV_Tigrovi.jpg by Suradnik13_

And one used by Serbian police. 








_http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:TAM-110.jpg&filetimestamp=20080501085409 by Srđan Popović_


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## phiberoptik (Apr 12, 2009)

^^
Verso, Verso. You don't know history. It's not Slovenian, but Yugoslovenian truck :tyty: TAM 150


----------



## Verso (Jun 5, 2006)

phiberoptik said:


> ^^
> Verso, Verso. You don't know history. It's not Slovenian, but Yugoslovenian truck :tyty: TAM 150


Last time I checked, "Yugoslovenia" didn't exist any more. And it's not like Slovenia didn't exist before 1991.


----------



## phiberoptik (Apr 12, 2009)

just tipfeller, :lol:


----------



## russianpride (Dec 22, 2008)

Army trucking in Russia.


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

russianpride said:


>


Kraz, or Kamaz?

Nice pics BTW.  I always find military movements like this interesting.


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Fargo Wolf said:


> That's unusual for a trailer that size to be a single axle. Usually, anything over 20 ft have tandem axles. In Canada, a single axle semi trailer is called a "hotshot", as priority loads can be quickly loaded, transported and unloaded.


Single axle trailers are only common in urban areas, you don't see them that much on motorways for instance. Mostly, they're also a few meters shorter. Normal trailers have 3 axles, sometimes 2 (but unlike american trucks, most tractors have only 2 axles) I don't get the difference between those trailers as it comes to speed. :dunno:




Coccodrillo said:


> I have also seen a similar (but smaller) single axle semitrailer towed by a vehicle like a Mercedes Sprinter, or a similar one from anothe builder. Unfortunately I didn't manage to take a photo.


I guess you mean something like this?










These things are officially not considered as a truck, so you can drive them with just a BE-licence. Disadvantages: difficicult to manoevre if you haven't got experience with the bigger stuff, and the maximum payload is very low. I guess they're also more expensive than a regular box truck, I'm not sure about the last thing, though.


----------



## russianpride (Dec 22, 2008)

Fargo Wolf said:


> Kraz, or Kamaz?


URAL-4320


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Jeroen669 said:


> Single axle trailers are only common in urban areas, you don't see them that much on motorways for instance. Mostly, they're also a few meters shorter. Normal trailers have 3 axles, sometimes 2 (but unlike american trucks, most tractors have only 2 axles) I don't get the difference between those trailers as it comes to speed. :dunno:
> 
> I guess you mean something like this?
> 
> ...


Neat.  Well, the Mercedes/Dodge/Freightliner Sprinters are 1 tonne vehicles, so it could tow a fair size trailer.


----------



## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

What is a common fuel capacity for a large semi-truck? I thought it was around 1000 liters, giving them a range of just over 3000 kilometers. However, on the Dutch A1 near the German border a truck got a tire blowout and ended up in the ditch and it was said he had 2800 liters of diesel leaking. That sounds very much to me. 2800 liters (and maybe he already consumed some) means he has a range of almost 10000 kilometers (or more than 3 weeks of continuous driving).


----------



## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

That sounds about right, according to a friend. It all depends on the size of the fuel tanks. It's hard to tell nowadays, because there are so many variations.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

25.25 m trucking 


LZV Tielbeke by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

25.25 m trucking 


LZV Tielbeke by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


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## Armidall (Jul 27, 2010)

More of Hardcore Siberian Trucking:


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## Jeroen669 (Nov 29, 2006)

Fargo Wolf said:


> That sounds about right, according to a friend. It all depends on the size of the fuel tanks. It's hard to tell nowadays, because there are so many variations.


For a normal european truck, a tank of that size seems unlikely. I've got a 800 liter tank on my truck, and it takes the full space between the front and the rear axle on the left. Technicly, I think 2 X 600 liters is about the max.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

If you understand German, this is an interesting video about the rest area troubles for truckers.


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## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

I'm guessing it was about the lack of parking for trucks, as I don't speak German. It looked like some were parking on the hard shoulder of the motorway, as even the slip road was full.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

A bidirectional triple truck used in the Lötschberg base tunnel construction taken from http://www.ferden.net/:


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## nerdly_dood (Mar 23, 2007)

Coccodrillo said:


> A bidirectional triple truck used in the Lötschberg base tunnel construction[/IMG]


So that's kinda like a truck version of James May's Alfaab? :banana:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

A 25.25 m container truck. You don't see too many of these.

LZV 25 25 m by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


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## pritm (Feb 11, 2011)

Trucking in India


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## Suburbanist (Dec 25, 2009)

I have a question? In your country, what is the legislation concerning the use of roads/highways by agricultural machines?


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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)

Trucking in India


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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)




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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)




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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)

Few modern trucks. These are rare and in no hurry to become a more familiar sight on indian highways.


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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)




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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)




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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)




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## pritm (Feb 11, 2011)

Suburbanist said:


> I have a question? In your country, what is the legislation concerning the use of roads/highways by agricultural machines?


No idea about what legislations you are actually asking for.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

I know that in Switzerland slow vehicles are allowed on the Gotthard and San Bernardino motorway tunnels at least in winter when the passes are closed (with some restrictions on time or the need of escort I suppose). Is that what Suburbanist is looking for?


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## Zagor666 (Feb 20, 2011)

Here you see a real professional truck driver :lol:


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## Paddington (Mar 30, 2006)

:hahaha:


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## malegi (Aug 21, 2010)

Amazon, Brazil. Road: BR-163, between Guarantã and Santarém.


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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)

insane


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## tall_dreams (Aug 12, 2009)

so much traffic yet no effort to upgrade the road


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## malegi (Aug 21, 2010)

tall_dreams said:


> so much traffic yet no effort to upgrade the road


Actually they are paving that road. There was almost 1,300 km to pave. 

Nowadays, there are still 1,011 km missing. :nuts:


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Nice 25 meter truck in Denmark.

It's curious how this truck has German license plates as 25 m trucks are not allowed to drive in Germany!


25 m truck by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


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## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Jeroen669 said:


> For a normal european truck, a tank of that size seems unlikely. I've got a 800 liter tank on my truck, and it takes the full space between the front and the rear axle on the left. Technicly, I think 2 X 600 liters is about the max.


It all depends on the make/model of truck. Most trucks have two, or more (saddle) tanks, so 800 liters is easily achievable.



ChrisZwolle said:


> Nice 25 meter truck in Denmark.
> It's curious how this truck has German license plates as 25 m trucks are not allowed to drive in Germany!
> 
> 
> 25 m truck by Chriszwolle, on Flickr


Over length permit perhaps? Or more likely, careful planning. The driver probably split the load in Germany, bringing each trailer into The Netherlands, then hooked it all together as one load.


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

Lack of truck parking in Germany;

green = no lack
yellow = 1 lacking parking lot per km autobahn
orange = 3 lacking parking lots per km autobahn
red = more than 5 lacking parking lots per km autobahn


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## AtD (Oct 22, 2002)

^ What is "lacking"? Is it based on traffic stats?


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

If there is no sufficient space, trucks will park outside the designated areas; for instance along driveways of the parking area, on the on- and off-ramps or along the shoulder. By the way, this includes off-motorway rest areas (Autohof).


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)




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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Single axle semitrailer in Thusis, Graubünden-Grigioni-Grischun, Switzerland. Other semitrailers of the same company (a great supermarkets and shopping malls chain) have two steering axles and side doors.

50% of their goods between major distribution centres are transported by rail: http://m10.migros.ch/en/unsere-verantwortung-en/umweltschutz-en/transport-en


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## xrtn2 (Jan 12, 2011)

MAN open the first store in Brazil










International trucks open new stores in Brazil


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Another single axle semitrailer...


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## ChrisZwolle (May 7, 2006)

^^ Are they rare in Switzerland? This type is frequently used in the Netherlands for city distribution of supermarkets.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

I don't see them frequently, nor in Lugano (TI) nor in other cities. I see one maybe one or two times a month. Most common distribution vehicles are two axle trucks, and (less frequently) semitrailers with two axles, with some space between them and at least one steering axle. Very few times I have also seen small van like Mercedes Sprinter with a single axle semitrailer.


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## Coccodrillo (Sep 30, 2005)

Transport of a truck to the construction sites of the Linthal hydropower complex in Switzerland.










http://www.tuttotrasporti.it/mondo_camion/immaginebig_articolo.cfm?codiceimg=315047&codedicola=372758&codice=328897&codarticolo=328897&pagina=372758&torna=/mondo_camion/articolo.cfm#gallery

http://www.tuttotrasporti.it/mondo_camion/articolo.cfm?codice=328897


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## ont_happy (Feb 1, 2009)

*Thailand*

24.05.2011 

Laemchabang port, Chonburi, Thailand

http://www.pantip.com/cafe/ratchada/topic/V10596423/V10596423.html


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## redbaron_012 (Sep 19, 2004)

In Melbourne Australia......many people don't like trucks this long in the city although they are limited to using Ring Roads and freeways. Much longer ones use Central Australian Highways.


Uploaded with ImageShack.us


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## Fargo Wolf (Oct 23, 2009)

Coccodrillo said:


> Another single axle semitrailer...


Didn't know that they are that rare over there, though there are straight trucks that do the job quite nicely. In Canada, these single axle "hotshot" trailers are quite common, either as singles, or doubles. Canadian Freightways anf Gordon Food Services are two companies that make extensive use of these types of trailer.



redbaron_012 said:


> In Melbourne Australia......many people don't like trucks this long in the city although they are limited to using Ring Roads and freeways. Much longer ones use Central Australian Highways.


These used to be legal in the Canadian Province of BC and illegal in AB (Alberta) Now it's the other way round.

I can see the point people make about vehicles that long in built up areas. You have to know EXACTLY where every single wheel is when driving through town. Especially when turning or navigating a roundabout.

The Road Trains in central Australia are what, up to five 53' (foot long) units (trailers)?


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