The problems of parking and tachograph infringements, are on my mind a lot since working more in the UK. It’s a sad fact that the busiest motorway in the country (M25) has only 3 service areas along it’s entirety. If you’re heading west from the Dartford crossing it’s a long way to the next service area after Clacket Lane services with Fleet services being 47 miles away and Reading services being 56 miles away both should be within reach of a driver with over one hour driving time left but quite often it can take 2 hours to reach Reading services, with very few places in between where a truck can park off the road and the driver can have use of the normal facilities that they may require through the night such as food, washing facilities and toilet, it’s a disgrace that there is such a large distance between the service areas on such a busy road.

So what about the future? I am still scratching my head, thinking of ways to introduce the 5 extra days holiday entitlement I now have to give along with the 5 more I’m going to have to give next year! I appreciate the fact that my drivers do need a holiday, they also need to be earning money too, as with most other companies holiday pay is based upon basic hours only, no overtime or night out allowance meaning my drivers will be down by around £200 next year and a further £200 the following year and my costs will be up covering the holidays.

The lead time of a year on new trucks you hear about doesn’t bother me at the moment as I don’t know what truck to buy next anyway! But more on this another time. . .

John English has been trading for 20 years, mainly international work but more recently in the UK. he runs 4 Scania artic trucks, all unmarked white, His drivers are all British drivers with approx 20 years experience

2008 could mark changes to my business, I started in 2001 by buying out a friends business. The deal was was done in January. I was to take over on the first of March. On Feb 28th all livestock movements were banned – for three weeks nothing moved, after that movements to slaughter slowly resumed under licence. For the next few years we rebuilt the business - concentrating mainly on farm to farm movements rather than abattoir work ( probably 70% farm to farm and 30% abattoir)

Foot and mouth reappeared last year and it seems to have altered this balance completely (with a downturn in livestock prices contributing ) ! Since the autumn the balance seems to be 90% abattoir and 10 % farm to farm. Add to this the fact that the number of livestock lorries on the road seems to reduce each year and a nearby haulier deciding he didn't want to go to an abattoir in South Wales any more, it means I have just had the busiest January I've ever had !

As this is usually a quiet time I have been just about been able to cope, but looking forward to next summer I can see major problems getting the work done . In the past when I've had a busy week I worked out I can only be in one place at a time and have subbed the work out to nearby livestock hauliers ( obviously taking a small “commission” off the top) but the question rearing it's head now is the purchase of a second lorry and finding a driver! To get another lorry on the road will take a couple of months at least so I only have a month or so to weigh up the pro's and con's !

On the plus side an extra lorry would make coping with the work much easier, increase my turnover and hopefully profits. On the negative side there's finding a driver, paying wages, paye etc. buying the lorry insuring and maintaining it ! Watch this space while I keep thinking !!!

Denis Fuller is a owner operator based in the south west, running a single truck on livestock and agricutural haulage

David Preston, Managing Director Prestons of Potto

The latest subject that intrigues me is technology and transport, and whether it is working for the transport operator. In terms of fuel economy we are finding the latest trucks less full efficient than their predecessors despite extensive driver training. Whilst the complex engine management systems are needed to meet latest emission standards surely burning more fuel will result in greater CO2 emissions which seems to be the most critical factor, and when some of these systems fail even the manufacturers dealers seem to run out of ideas and revert to the old standby of fitting new parts until finally the fault has gone away and a huge bill created but nobody is sure which part had failed. In fact the added complexity of a modern truck seems to make it more unreliable than one of 10 years ago.

The latest braking technology does produce undoubted safety benefits but like Michael Schumacher if you gave him better brakes it does not increase his safety margin but merely shortens his braking distance. A similar effect was noticed a few years ago when testing aerodynamic aids. A truck retro-fitted with a spoiler kit had showed no improvement in fuel economy but the driver when interviewed noticed the truck was accelerating quicker than before.

Tyres also despite electronic traction control are not lasting as long as they did a few years ago. It seems that most technology in trucks is not very user friendly and the engineers that design trucks pay little regard to its actual performance during the life of the truck. In one area modern trucks are falling way behind consumer demand is that of electrical capacity.

Drivers these days demand cooking and food storage facilities that would satisfy Nigella and entertainment packages better than most rap stars limousines. The resulting lack of electrical capacity to satisfy this usually results in a very expensive jump-start at South Mimms Services. Perhaps like a caravan park the lorry parks could provide electrical hook up points to plug the trucks into.

Founded over 50 years ago Richard Preston and Son Ltd is one of the most recognised transport companies in the UK. Better known as Preston's of Potto it is a multi faceted transport company operating over 220 vehicles. Preston's has 4 depots throughout the UK serving most sectors of the industry. Preston's offers a large amount of warehousing and also provides total management solutions for its varied clients.

Just in time deliveries, don't make me laugh, I have come to the conclusion there is no such thing. Last week I was called out late at night (at, I hasten to add, a premium rate) to run my Sprinter with a “line stopper” load to a factory in Wiltshire.

Arriving at my clients depot to load everything as usual was at panic stations with the van being loaded quite literally within seconds of the handbrake being applied. With much worried looks and frowns I was repeatedly asked if I could get this extremely urgent load to Wiltshire by 10am next day, and it was impressed on me just how vital it was that this load was there on time. Apparently without these highly important plastic washer things the whole factory would stop production, no doubt resulting in an economic meltdown in the South West that would spread worldwide causing global recession. Well perhaps not that bad, but there was certainly a real sense of impending doom if the washers didn't make it on time.

Driving safely and courteously through the night (Yes some of us white van men do you know) but inspired by the life and death urgency of the load I arrived at the destination with time to spare. With a sense of pride of having averted some terrible misfortune on the inhabitants of Wiltshire I presented myself and my paper work, at the goods in leper hatch.

At this point the whole story of professionalism within our logistics industry falls apart. Now don't get me wrong, I am used to being ignored, ( I'm a) Married, b) have 2 teenage children). But for some strange reason I find standing getting ignored at a leper hatch in the pouring rain and gale force winds for 30 minutes by a goods in clerk who looks young enough that he should be still at Primary school a little galling, even more after I had got out of my nice warm bed to get the most important plastic washer thingy's to his warehouse in time to stop civilisation collapsing around his ears..

After a while contemplating if dragging a ignoramus through a leper hatch would in fact be unreasonable I decide that a less forthright approach may work better, and announce my presence at his window yet again, this time a little louder and with a few extra words that his mother probably didn't teach him. The little Oik at this point manages to at least acknowledge my presence by uttering the immortal words, “You will just have to wait your turn driver”.

Some what taken aback, firstly because the mutant behind the desk has actually registered my freezing cold presence and secondly, because from where I am standing I can survey the entire factory yard, and one thing is noticeable to me, although obviously not to the halfwit behind the desk, is that apart from a solitary Sprinter van the entire place is totally bereft of any vehicles, drivers , horses and carts, wheel barrows, in fact anything that could in any way shape or form carry any sort of load.

I could rant on but you probably have got the drift of my whine already, suffice it to say, the plastic washer thingys, that were so vital to the economic well being of Wiltshire, finally got unloaded 3 hours after the point when the world was supposed to stop turning if they hadn't been delivered.

But business is business and I know that even though those urgent plastic thingys are not that urgent after all, when my customer phones me up next week in a panic, yet again I will drag myself out of bed and head for Wiltshire. But this time I will be taking a good book with me to read.

Paul Mcbride runs a small courier business running 4 light vehicles on urgent deliveries throughout Europe