Keeping on Trucking

Without trucks the world would come to a grinding halt. This is also true of various other segments of the transportation community, but for the moment I want to focus on the trucking industry.

I was idly watching some YouTube videos about trucking around the world which made me happy and relieved that I live in Spain. The worst complaint I have about trucking traffic in Spain is that when they are travelling in convoy they stick much too close together, sometimes nose -to-tail. This creates a wall of trucks that makes it impossible for other traffic to get off the motorway, as well as to get on.

It is also illegal for good reason. When vehicles travel too close there is not enough time for the following driver to react to whatever the driver ahead is doing. That is why there are minimum prescribed distances that must be adhered to in order to contribute to safe driving.

When this is observed there should be a coordinated police action to stop the entire convoy and to issue fines and a loss of points to all drivers as what they are doing has huge potential negative consequences. Also, the drivers know better.

I have to say that I have the utmost respect for the driving abilities of the drivers who pull considerable loads along Spain's roads. To drive along the motorways is one thing but they often turn onto roads that barely accommodate two cars travelling in opposite directions. There are many times when things get held up for considerable periods of time as two giants try and pass one another along these narrow slips of roadway, but there are only rare disastrous crashes. The record in third world countries is just the opposite.

To give people trucks and a driving permit is an exercise in suicide encouragement in those countries. The things they do with their trucks, or try to do is enough to make my skin crawl. The standard recipe seems to be that first overload the trucks in an insecure manner, then add as many people on top of the payload, and then you head off down the road at far too fast a speed. It does help to restrict the population growth in certain countries.

In India a person dies every four minutes from road crashes. Also, in India there are liquor shops spaced every one minute along highways. In 201,5 147,000 people died from highway incidents.

On our own roads we would all do well to give truck traffic the respect it deserves. By that I mean we should do ourselves a favour by driving defensively. It would help to be aware that these machines take longer to get up to speed, but they are also more difficult to stop. It would not be wise to position your own car so as to cause a truck to come to an emergency stop. He may not be successful and should you stand in the way you will pay the price.

It would also be wise to give them turning space, including a wide berth for the trailer. Some awful video footage I watched showed the trailer as it fishtailed and swung around the cab and smashed into the camera platform which was a car or other truck. In one very sad case a car that was full with people had stopped at a red light. A truck had stopped alongside but it had braked sharply which caused its trailer that was full with bricks to roll over on to the car. It's hard to see how anyone in that car would have survived.

Truck traffic is with us everyday and it is essential to our way of life. Truckers have the responsibility to drive with care and caution, and absolutely sober and drug-free, which goes without saying. We have to do our part as well and long may we exist together.

Copyright (c) 2017
Eugene Carmichael

The Conflagration

A great fire broke out this week in my region about twenty kilometres away from where I live. That was much too close because this was a tire dump that went up in flames producing thick, black toxic smoke. Luck was in for us as the smoke blew off to the West but it sure as hell was a nightmare for everyone living under its fallout.

The problem is that today's tyres are so well made to meet stringent standards for safety and security that when the thread wears down and the tyre has to be disposed of the question becomes, "How?"

All around the world this universal problem has experts scratching their heads, and in the meantime the tyres go to holding dumps and they accumulate. Here in Spain we are having horrendous high temperatures in the cities and the mountain tops, but in these dumps where there could be millions of tyres the heat that builds must be truly hellish. Its no surprise that from time to time spontaneous combustion will occur and that will be the start of something that is almost impossible to stop.

Apparently some place in Wales had stored 10 million tyres and a fire broke out that burnt continuously for 15 years. For this reason the dump owner cannot set his own fires, but apart from the hellish nature of fighting to control such an outbreak fire is probably his best friend. The stockpile will be reduced in volume but the cost to the environment is unacceptable.

Re-Threading was thought at one time to be the solution and while the industry continues to do rethreads these are dangerous in countries with high speed highways. Trucks especially use them but I constantly come across threads that come off, which is not good for the vehicle that lost it; for following vehicles they can cause accidents as they become an obstacle that can cause a car to go out of control.

Clearly something new is required to replace the wheel in its present form. Manufacturers have been concentrating on developing new and super efficient, secure tyres to serve heavier and faster vehicles, but that still leaves the by-product when the tyre wears out.

I'm not suggesting I have any ideas, this is not my area of expertise, and I'm certain experts are researching the issue. As drivers we change our tyres as and when necessary and think no more of the matter. Every now and again we are reminded that the problem has not gone away. When one of these dumps goes up in flames a lot of people are affected.

An illegal tyre dump near Madrid it appears was set afire by arsonists which resulted in 9,000 people being evacuated. That's the type of impact a fire like this can have because of the toxicity of the burn off. A normal forest fire is bad enough and Spain is having more than enough of those, but to turn a horror into a genuine nightmare a tyre fire will do.

Copyright (c) 2017
Eugene Carmichael

Summer Kamikaze Motorcycle Riders

I am a fan of motorcycles having ridden them all my life. Even now we have a Honda 125 that is for sale, but I have ridden a great variety of bikes, including the King of the Road, The Honda Goldwing
I have been accused of having been everything from a hooligan to a model rider, and I have earned those titles. I don't know what happens to turn a respectable and responsible person into a lunatic when he gets on his bike, but it happens every day.

They greatest sin that we bikers commit is that the rules that are followed, (kind of) by car and truck drivers don't seem to matter to us. Because of our slim size we seem to think that we can just zip in between the traffic and be on our way. Summer makes it worse because off goes the heavy clothing with skid protection and we ride around with t-shirts and shorts and flip-flops.

Many a person who has road rash will tell you it damn well hurts!

To make matters worse guys place their girl friends on the back of the bike and there she sits looking so vulnerable, holding on for dear life. He so often thinks he will give her a thrill by riding real fast, when if he wants to really impress her all he has to do is get her back home safely.

Considering how fragile a rider is, in comparison to a car driver you might think that out of self-preservation they would be very careful, but no, they seem to enjoy tempting fate. These are generally young men who think of themselves as being indestructible. I have been there and done that. What was I thinking?

The one thing this crowd don't do at all is take advice from anyone other than themselves. They have to have the experience of crashing, perhaps several times and bearing the bruises before they come to realize that they should slow down. It's just a part of growing up and hoping to survive to maturity. Perhaps too many don't make it.

So give them a little extra room if you don't want your car to be scraped and let's all try to enjoy Summer driving.

Let's all stay sober while on the road, especially those biker clubs who are so proud of their bikes. A good way to smash them up is to drink then ride.

Copyright (c) 2017
Eugene Carmichael

Summer Fines (Multas) like flies

One way to definitely tell that it is Summer is by the arrival of flies and new fines. That's important because in some regions of the country it is difficult to tell that it is Summer because their weather is more like Winter with hail and snow. Crazy!

Some functionary has sat at his desk day after day thinking of new rules to dog motorists and now that it's Summer it is also time to raise the curtain. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying that these don't make sense, just that they are here and we have to be aware:

1. It is such an easy thing to inadvertently do because we dress down when the weather gets hot, but if we forget to change our shoe wear and get in the car with our flip flops we risk a fine of 80 euros. One reason for that is they can slip off the foot when you have an emergency and impair your ability to bring the car to a full stop quickly.
2. This is one for the young guys with the six-pack gut, but driving around without a shirt is not cool and will get you a fine of 80 euros. However, your sister could probably get away with it.
3. It's definitely recommended that you stay hydrated by drinking lots of water but if you do so while driving, in spite of the bottles that you open with your teeth, you will still be fined 100 euros. This is a playing- it- safe rule because it does distract your attention, even if a little bit.
4. One reason why the driver might hang his arm out the window is that it does channel air into the car, however, apart from the fact that you need both hands on the steering wheel far too many people have actually lost their arm to passing traffic. You will also pay a fine of 80 euros and let's face it, you really didn't need to attract the attention of the police.
5. I always wear a hat or cap while in the car but if I'm wearing one that covers my ears I will attract a fine. This is because a hat, or anything that covers the ears also reduces the ability to hear road sounds like the ambulance or police trying to get past you. Needless to say wearing earplugs to listen to music or to talk on the phone are no-no's. The fine is 80 euros.
6. Summertime is ice-cream time and leaving the beach on the way to the car is too tempting to pass the ice-cream truck. This is fine for your passengers, although I would insist everybody finishes theirs before getting in the car. For the driver in particular you are simply not allowed to lick and drive. Who wants to concentrate on turning the wheel when the taste of ice-cream is so much better?  Fine for this is a sour 100 euros.
7. Here's one that most people don't give a moment's thought to and that is the placing of objects on the rear tray behind the passengers without clamping them. The risk of this is that should the car have to make an emergency stop all that stuff will go flying. The most common item on the space is an umbrella, and if it has a pointy end it becomes a spear. This sounds more like something that falls under education rather than a fine-able offence, but the police have to make a living too, so 200 euros for the cost of having to stop and advise you.
8. I don't know what is so offensive about washing your car while properly parked on a public road. It seems to really piss off a lot of people, almost as much as driving around in a dirty car. It almost seems as though the car wash lobby have successfully persuaded the authorities to direct everyone to their fore courts because if you insist you might pay anywhere between 30 to 3,000 euros for the privilege of making your beautiful pride and joy sparkling clean in the sight of passing traffic. Very strange!
9. This is a peculiar one that makes me wonder where it comes from. The offense is having your co-driver (?) placing feet on the dashboard. This does not state whether the car will be in motion or not, nor does it state whether the offender will be female or male. The wording for this needs to be severely tightened up because we could be talking about two different types of offenses, but in any case the fine will be 100 euros.
10. This next one has long been an offense but perhaps they are trying to make the fine more realistic. If so they have failed yet again. The offense is throwing a cigarette butt, whether lit or not from a vehicle, whether moving or not. The potential for disaster that this action carries is indescribable. There have been cases where the butt has landed in another vehicle, or on the motorcyclist following behind, and of course forest fires have started as a result. As I write this the first major fire of the Summer season is still burning after four days and has caused horrendous damage. It seems to have been started by nature, which is the only positive thing to
11. be said. The fine is still only 200 euros and the loss of 4 points. Considering the potential loss of property and life and the energy put into fighting the blaze caused by your cigarette that's no punishment at all.
12. Always remember to carry the car documents and your own driving permit. Many of these things can be determined by the police themselves through the internet but it is our responsibility to have our driving license with us when behind the wheel. I find my permit useful in all matters where I need photo identification. The fine is a small tap on the wrist of 10 euros.
13. Finally, if you exceed the lawful capacity of people in the car for which it is rated you will only be fined 80 euros. This will be the best outcome if it's the only result because if your are involved in a crash your insurance will be nullified and you could be exposed to millions in risk. Don't do it!
14. This is the one that is not included but should be, and one day after something very tragic and highly publicized happens it will be. That is smoking while driving causes such high risk from lighting the cigarette in the first place, to the disposition of the ash, including that which falls into the crotch of the driver, especially if it is still burning, and the throwing of the butt from the car, instead of placing it in the ashtray, all of these things are unnecessary risks that do cause problems that are preventable now.

I hope that we all have a safe season of driving over the Summer. Remember that alcohol is never a good idea when driving, but when coupled with heat the effect is made worse. The other killer is tiredness. The moment you feel exhaustion setting in start looking for a place to pull over to rest. So often it happens to me close to my home that I think I can make it without stopping. I have learned that this is a mistake.

You need only close your eyes once to never open them again.

Have a safe and happy Summer.

Copyright(c) 2017

Eugene Carmichael