As a retired interstate truckie,I am pleased to see that finally a common sense approach has been made to solving this ongoing problem.When you are driving a 63 ton B Double 1000km per day,it is important that rest breaks be taken,mainly to obey the rules set by people who never have driven a truck,but also from the a safety point of view.Many times I have planned my stops at set points along the route I am travelling,only to find,on arrival,that Ma and Pa Kettle have decided to set up camp with other caravanners,and that there is nowhere to park my 26 metre long vehicle.Despite being tired,or outside my driving hours,I had little choice but to continue my journey,hoping that the next rest area had enough room for me to park.On occasion,I have wrapped my trailers and prime mover around caravans illegally parked in designated "trucks only" parking areas,put my earplugs in,and gone to sleep. We won't discuss ensuing altercations! Cheers
-- Edited by yobarr on Thursday 8th of October 2020 03:18:47 PM
Good stuff. The thing is some folks still wont get it. Bit like 'self contained' many folks don't think the rules apply to them. (Mind you self contained is a grey definition).
Peter_n_Margaret said
11:37 AM Oct 8, 2020
There is a little grey in most rules and laws.
Our OKA motorhome has a GVM of 6.6T, so by legal definition, that makes it a truck.
We don't need to use the truck parking bays for compulsory rest stops, but we are technically prohibited from using the "non truck" rest areas.
So, what should we do?
We (illegally) use the "non truck" rest areas as that seems to us to make most sense from the perspective of the objectives of these laws.
Cheers,
Peter
Tony Bev said
02:26 PM Oct 8, 2020
I have always agreed, that the truck stops, should be for truckies, as they have a living to make
I will sometimes use a truck stop to stay overnight, when I know that I can park (up a side track), in an area where a truck can not park
I think that it is a matter of education, that will stop RV's parking in a truck stop
Perhaps if the $266 fine was displayed on a notice board, (at the entrance of the truck stop), it would encourage some RV's to move along
From my understanding of what is happening, more RV's are being sold, and more RV's are/will be, on the road, and an empty truck stop, may look inviting
Greg 1 said
07:51 PM Oct 8, 2020
They need a lot more rest areas for caravanners to be honest.
We are road users too and the last thing we all need is a bunch of very tired and fatigued nomads running off the island.
Some States are better than others, but all of them could do to get busy. Caravanning has become a National pastime.
Aus-Kiwi said
08:20 PM Oct 8, 2020
Im in the same with Pete . We try our hardest to stay out of the way .When tired . If half full or so ? We dont stop ! If we do ? In a corner out of the way . Often see caravans parked right in middle !!!
the rocket said
08:53 PM Oct 8, 2020
yobarr wrote:
As a retired interstate truckie,I am pleased to see that finally a common sense approach has been made to solving this ongoing problem.When you are driving a 63 ton B Double 1000km per day,it is important that rest breaks be taken,mainly to obey the rules set by people who never have driven a truck,but also from the a safety point of view.Many times I have planned my stops at set points along the route I am travelling,only to find,on arrival,that Ma and Pa Kettle have decided to set up camp with other caravanners,and that there is nowhere to park my 26 metre long vehicle.Despite being tired,or outside my driving hours,I had little choice but to continue my journey,hoping that the next rest area had enough room for me to park.On occasion,I have wrapped my trailers and prime mover around caravans illegally parked in designated "trucks only" parking areas,put my earplugs in,and gone to sleep. We won't discuss ensuing altercations! Cheers
-- Edited by yobarr on Thursday 8th of October 2020 03:18:47 PM
Good onya . Ma n pa parking in truck bays should be fined. Rocket
blaze said
10:02 PM Oct 8, 2020
I think it would be cost effective to make them larger with a distinct barrier separating the section, monitor them with remote cameras with $2000 fine for people not parking in their allocated area. Problem solved
cheers
blaze
Mobi Condo said
07:32 AM Oct 9, 2020
We are also guilty of using Truck Stops when we are tired and needing a rest.
BUT like others above are able to go way out back off the sealed area and ready to roll should there be unwanted attention.
Only leaving tyre marks is one of our skills, and being fully self contained does help a lot there as there is no need to exit the van other than to depart the spot.
Hopefully Ranger F.o.F. or other officialdom will be understanding of that. If not then we are "Sprung Badly" as was the phrase in the 1970's.
The new Qld Regulations seem to be quite much tighter than that even. They seem to look at the whole of the Road reserve (fence to fence) as the no go zone / Crown land etc.. Thus our preference for back road touring where ever possible.
hufnpuf said
09:44 AM Oct 9, 2020
So, are there rest stops designated for caravans and rest stops designated for only trucks? I've only just got my first caravan, I'm on a learning curve (and not in Qld, I'll have to add "rest stops" to my long list of things to look up)
Peter_n_Margaret said
09:50 AM Oct 9, 2020
hufnpuf wrote:
So, are there rest stops designated for caravans and rest stops designated for only trucks? I've only just got my first caravan, I'm on a learning curve (and not in Qld, I'll have to add "rest stops" to my long list of things to look up)
Some are sign posted "Trucks only", some are sign posted "No Trucks" and some are not sign posted as to use at all.
Cheers,
Peter
Aus-Kiwi said
10:06 AM Oct 9, 2020
Then theres signs saying rest of feeling tired . A little common sense goes along way !! Not very common unfortunately!!
Magnarc said
11:40 AM Oct 9, 2020
Blaze wrote,
I think it would be cost effective to make them larger with a distinct barrier separating the section, monitor them with remote cameras with $2000 fine for people not parking in their allocated area. Problem solved
Methinks more than a little cost prohibitive????
blaze said
11:47 AM Oct 9, 2020
Magnarc wrote:
Blaze wrote,
I think it would be cost effective to make them larger with a distinct barrier separating the section, monitor them with remote cameras with $2000 fine for people not parking in their allocated area. Problem solved
Methinks more than a little cost prohibitive????
why
Eaglemax said
04:00 PM Oct 9, 2020
yobarr wrote:
As a retired interstate truckie,I am pleased to see that finally a common sense approach has been made to solving this ongoing problem.When you are driving a 63 ton B Double 1000km per day,it is important that rest breaks be taken,mainly to obey the rules set by people who never have driven a truck,but also from the a safety point of view.Many times I have planned my stops at set points along the route I am travelling,only to find,on arrival,that Ma and Pa Kettle have decided to set up camp with other caravanners,and that there is nowhere to park my 26 metre long vehicle.Despite being tired,or outside my driving hours,I had little choice but to continue my journey,hoping that the next rest area had enough room for me to park.On occasion,I have wrapped my trailers and prime mover around caravans illegally parked in designated "trucks only" parking areas,put my earplugs in,and gone to sleep. We won't discuss ensuing altercations! Cheers
You had me in your pocket until that last sentence Yobarr....why? Well if you had the rig Peter and Margaret have and was legally allowed to park in a truck stop I wonder how many cowboys would take the law into their own hands as you did and corral the rig thinking its a mobile home (not classified as a truck) not qualified to be there?
While I agree with your endeavor of your post there is an air of precious mentality among some members of the community. "Truckies carry this country" and "Farmer feed you city people" and "thank a teacher if you can read this". A farmer relative of mine quoted the second quote- I had to remind him that although he had some accuracy in his importance of feeding people, his country mums life was saved by a city surgeon, that the most important job in a hospital is the humble cleaner (especially atm), that tyre manufacturers in the city and bearing makers supply the items that allow him to use machinery and those workers at petrol refineries are somewhat essential to him as well.
You just might corral a driver that had serious health issues and was forced to stop. In that case at least a knock on the door would be better than your prejudgement. Ask nicely then react accordingly. That gives you a chance to listen and in the case of the truck come motor home, saves egg on face.
Tony
-- Edited by yobarr on Thursday 8th of October 2020 03:18:47 PM
Bill B said
04:47 PM Oct 9, 2020
Don't believe all the B S you read Tony, as he is just trolling again
yobarr said
09:26 PM Oct 9, 2020
Eaglemax wrote:
yobarr wrote:
As a retired interstate truckie,I am pleased to see that finally a common sense approach has been made to solving this ongoing problem.When you are driving a 63 ton B Double 1000km per day,it is important that rest breaks be taken,mainly to obey the rules set by people who never have driven a truck,but also from the a safety point of view.Many times I have planned my stops at set points along the route I am travelling,only to find,on arrival,that Ma and Pa Kettle have decided to set up camp with other caravanners,and that there is nowhere to park my 26 metre long vehicle.Despite being tired,or outside my driving hours,I had little choice but to continue my journey,hoping that the next rest area had enough room for me to park.On occasion,I have wrapped my trailers and prime mover around caravans illegally parked in designated "trucks only" parking areas,put my earplugs in,and gone to sleep. We won't discuss ensuing altercations! Cheers
You had me in your pocket until that last sentence Yobarr....why? Well if you had the rig Peter and Margaret have and was legally allowed to park in a truck stop I wonder how many cowboys would take the law into their own hands as you did and corral the rig thinking its a mobile home (not classified as a truck) not qualified to be there?
HI TONY...thanks for your thoughts on this.You will,no doubt,have noted that the vehicles I "coralled" were,in fact,caravans that were being towed by cars,and had blatantly been parked in areas marked as "Trucks only". People,such as Peter and Margaret,who drive vehicles such as they do,generally have enough common sense not to park in these areas,even though they technically should. Unfortunately,common sense is often conspicuos by its absence.
While I agree with your endeavor of your post there is an air of precious mentality among some members of the community. "Truckies carry this country" and "Farmer feed you city people" and "thank a teacher if you can read this". A farmer relative of mine quoted the second quote- I had to remind him that although he had some accuracy in his importance of feeding people, his country mums life was saved by a city surgeon, that the most important job in a hospital is the humble cleaner (especially atm), that tyre manufacturers in the city and bearing makers supply the items that allow him to use machinery and those workers at petrol refineries are somewhat essential to him as well.
Some good points here,but I would suggest that the many thousands of farmers who daily feed millions of people,thus keeping these people alive,would be more important to the general well being of the community as a whole,than would be the surgeon who saved the life of one "country mum?".Persons who contribute to the supply of tyres and bearings undoubtedly make a positive contribution to the smooth operation of our country,but to do so,they need to be fed....farmers.And this food is useless unless it is delivered to consumers...truckies.
You just might corral a driver that had serious health issues and was forced to stop. In that case at least a knock on the door would be better than your prejudgement. Ask nicely then react accordingly. That gives you a chance to listen and in the case of the truck come motor home, saves egg on face.
Interesting observation,but I suspect that few caravanners would welcome a knock on their van door at 3am,asking if they were parked in my assigned parking area because they had "serious health issues".Truckies drive for a living,and are legally,and stupidly,obliged to take regular "rest breaks" to satisfy rules created by office-bound pen-pushers who have no idea how truck drivers operate,and have likely never even sat in a truck.But that"s another story! Thanks though,Tony,for your thoughts. Cheers.
Tony
-- Edited by yobarr on Friday 9th of October 2020 09:35:49 PM
I think it would be cost effective to make them larger with a distinct barrier separating the section, monitor them with remote cameras with $2000 fine for people not parking in their allocated area. Problem solved
Methinks more than a little cost prohibitive????
Truck drivers can face big fines and or court appearances if they exceed their hours. the cameras tell the story
Mike Harding said
09:26 AM Oct 10, 2020
We did this problem a few months ago:
Now, as then, the only solution is to build more and much better rest areas for car drivers until that happens cars and caravans will continue to use the truck stops.
Governments won't build more until someone puts pressure on them and I suggest the trucking industry bodies should be part of that group along with the motoring organisations at al.
Warren-Pat_01 said
10:53 AM Oct 10, 2020
I'm with Graeme (Aus-Kiwi) on both of his posts.
If I'm really tired, I'll stay at an off road truck stop for a break, lunch - out the way of any incoming truck. When able to keep driving, I exit, continuing on our way.
Wayside (that give a bit if a lane to the LHS of the through traffic) truck stops are a no-no, there's barely enough room for a large truck!
By all means state the fine but add that random police patrols may catch illegals! People often take the risk knowing that they won't be caught other than by an irate truckie - personally I think the police would be the most polite!!
More parks for caravanners use would be welcome. QLD is woefully INADEQUATE for anything (new passing lanes are slowly being built) except near the KINGDOM OF THE GREAT SOUTH EAST!!
Mobi Condo said
11:12 AM Oct 10, 2020
Aus-Kiwi wrote:
Then theres signs saying rest of feeling tired . A little common sense goes along way !! Not very common unfortunately!!
Yes we have GREAT delight, particularly in one eastern State, when we pass, at maybe 90kph, a sign which reads most emphatically 'POWER NAP NOW'.
Then we drive for maybe 50 varying to well over 100 k before there is a rest area.
Warren-Pat_01 said
02:23 PM Oct 10, 2020
MC x2
It doesn't take long to guess that answer!!
And it happens on both major highways - from the North & the West! Although the western, south western highways will keep you awake with their roughness! I wondered whether I was too asleep & missed the rest spot!!
boab said
03:01 PM Oct 10, 2020
I have read this with some interest as i did a few years doing hotshots with road trains mostly here in the west up and down the perth to newman road. I can not remember any time i could not park due to a caravan being in the way several years ago lynfox made it compulsory for there trucks to park up from 10pm until 6am that caused truck stops to fill up. I did a dozen or so runs from Perth to Qld coal fields and the same never had problems parking due to caravans. I think yobarr is just playing games here for a start i doubt he could corral a car and van with a b double if he drove a real road train with prime mover and 3 trailers perhaps he could do the corraling trick personally i dont take to much notice of any thing this man writes.
Eaglemax said
06:33 PM Oct 10, 2020
To quote Yobarr
"Some good points here,but I would suggest that the many thousands of farmers who daily feed millions of people,thus keeping these people alive,would be more important to the general well being of the community as a whole,than would be the surgeon who saved the life of one "country mum?".
Does not deserve further comment.
Tony
-- Edited by Eaglemax on Saturday 10th of October 2020 06:34:02 PM
-- Edited by Eaglemax on Saturday 10th of October 2020 06:34:27 PM
Rob Driver said
10:30 AM Oct 11, 2020
Got to agree with boab and some others above.
Confrontation from a section of the transport industry will never fix this problem.
These Bitumen Cowboys will always have a hate for caravans and caravanners.
I am a retired driver who has owned and operated trucks throughout Australia all my working life and when towing a caravan these highway jockeys display their ignorance an a regular basis.
We all know the type that sit right up your bumper on and off the throttle with their intimidating tactics. Worse still, it is deemed uncool to talk to caravanners on the UHF amongst their childish peers.
Enough said on that matter as I am sure we have all come across those types that actually call themselves professional drivers.
Here is a Video from a couple of years ago made by a guy who actually knows the problem that can exist in parking bays and offers sensible and more importantly, non confrontational advice to assist all of us on the road.
It goes without saying that if it is a Trucks Only area then all vanners and motor home operators should keep out.
Anyhow here is the link to the movie and is well worth the watch for all.
My personal thoughts are that if an educational video about how trucks work with regard to turning, manoevering, stopping or braking and including Parking Bay etiquette were made and become easily available for all motorist to watch then this would go a long way toward us all travelling in a much safer environment.
Regards
Rob Driver
Peter_n_Margaret said
12:48 PM Oct 11, 2020
bentaxlebabe wrote:
It goes without saying that if it is a Trucks Only area then all vanners and motor home operators should keep out.
What is your view regarding those of us who drive motorhomes that are legally classified as "trucks" (ie have GVMs of 4.5T and greater)?
Should we use "no trucks" rest areas (where we could be fined), should we use "trucks only" rest areas (we are legally trucks) or should we take our pick?
ps... we are GVM 6.6T but just 6m long overall (about half the length a many van/tug combinations).
Cheers,
Peter
Rob Driver said
01:14 PM Oct 11, 2020
Peter_n_Margaret wrote:
bentaxlebabe wrote:
It goes without saying that if it is a Trucks Only area then all vanners and motor home operators should keep out.
What is your view regarding those of us who drive motorhomes that are legally classified as "trucks" (ie have GVMs of 4.5T and greater)?
Should we use "no trucks" rest areas (where we could be fined), should we use "trucks only" rest areas (we are legally trucks) or should we take our pick?
ps... we are GVM 6.6T but just 6m long overall (about half the length a many van/tug combinations).
Cheers,
Peter
Hi Peter,
I do see where you are coming from and totally agree that this is a grey area in the regulation.
My take on this for the exercise is that these truck only rest areas are for the professional drivers to comply with compulsory rest stops.
Trucks are never or at least rarely parked up there for any time that is not necessary for them to comply.
Motor home operators may consider if they are permitted to camp there due to a technicality with the weight of their vehicle then who controls how they set up? Where within the rest area that they set up? How long they stay and how spread out might their camp become.
Whilst you and some others would be considerate and maybe only stop if absolutely necessary and even park up out of the way, I can personally assure you that you would be in a minority.
Having said that, most who drive larger motor homes may have had previous truck operating experience. With a motor home that is 6 metres long would generally not be a problem accessing a No Trucks parking Bay and to be in that area would not cause any inconvenience to other visitors.
We would all like common sense to prevail but unfortunately quite frequently it doesnt.
If I were in a motor home I would not use a Truck Only parking Bay and take my chances explaining the situation to an authorised officer for being in the No Trucks parking Bay. It would be extremely rare for any officer to question a motor home in No Truck parking Bay as opposed to the other option.
We could all bring up various scenarios re vehicle configurations but if we look at the reason for the truck only parking bays being for professional drivers to have their respective breaks as required by law, then it really becomes a no brainer.
Regards
Rob Driver
Peter_n_Margaret said
03:15 PM Oct 11, 2020
bentaxlebabe wrote:
If I were in a motor home I would not use a Truck Only parking Bay and take my chances explaining the situation to an authorised officer for being in the No Trucks parking Bay.
So you suggest that I break the law......
Cheers,
Peter
Rob Driver said
04:47 PM Oct 11, 2020
Peter_n_Margaret wrote:
bentaxlebabe wrote:
If I were in a motor home I would not use a Truck Only parking Bay and take my chances explaining the situation to an authorised officer for being in the No Trucks parking Bay.
So you suggest that I break the law......
Cheers,
Peter
Lets state what I did say in its entirety.
It would be extremely rare for any officer to question a motor home in a No Trucks parking Bay as opposed to the otheroption.
I thought I gave you a reasonable explanation of my interpretation.
You seem to be missing the point that while your motor home and some others are over 4.5 T you are not required by law to complete log books, record of travel, working hours and rest breaks.
The Truck Only Parking Bays are provided for the drivers of trucks to comply with the law.
Unless you can enlighten me I am not aware of any driver of a motor home or caravan to have to comply with any of the rules and laws relating to trucks and drivers.
If you dont wish to come under the scrutiny of the law wether or not you are a truck or wether or not you are a motor home, why dont you just camp overnight at the hundreds of Showgrounds, Pub Camps, National Parks, Private Farm Stays, Free Camps, or dare I say it, Caravan Parks that are readily available to all recreational vehicles.
You may realise that the list above is not available to Professional Truck Drivers and their rigs and this is why motor homes and any other Recreational Vehicles should stay out of TRUCK ONLY parking bays.
I am not in any way suggesting that you should break the law Peter.
I have pointed out several other options for you and others with concern regarding overnight stops.
As a retired interstate truckie,I am pleased to see that finally a common sense approach has been made to solving this ongoing problem.When you are driving a 63 ton B Double 1000km per day,it is important that rest breaks be taken,mainly to obey the rules set by people who never have driven a truck,but also from the a safety point of view.Many times I have planned my stops at set points along the route I am travelling,only to find,on arrival,that Ma and Pa Kettle have decided to set up camp with other caravanners,and that there is nowhere to park my 26 metre long vehicle.Despite being tired,or outside my driving hours,I had little choice but to continue my journey,hoping that the next rest area had enough room for me to park.On occasion,I have wrapped my trailers and prime mover around caravans illegally parked in designated "trucks only" parking areas,put my earplugs in,and gone to sleep. We won't discuss ensuing altercations! Cheers
-- Edited by yobarr on Thursday 8th of October 2020 03:18:47 PM
Our OKA motorhome has a GVM of 6.6T, so by legal definition, that makes it a truck.
We don't need to use the truck parking bays for compulsory rest stops, but we are technically prohibited from using the "non truck" rest areas.
So, what should we do?
We (illegally) use the "non truck" rest areas as that seems to us to make most sense from the perspective of the objectives of these laws.
Cheers,
Peter
I will sometimes use a truck stop to stay overnight, when I know that I can park (up a side track), in an area where a truck can not park
I think that it is a matter of education, that will stop RV's parking in a truck stop
Perhaps if the $266 fine was displayed on a notice board, (at the entrance of the truck stop), it would encourage some RV's to move along
From my understanding of what is happening, more RV's are being sold, and more RV's are/will be, on the road, and an empty truck stop, may look inviting
Good onya . Ma n pa parking in truck bays should be fined. Rocket
cheers
blaze
We are also guilty of using Truck Stops when we are tired and needing a rest.
BUT like others above are able to go way out back off the sealed area and ready to roll should there be unwanted attention.
Only leaving tyre marks is one of our skills, and being fully self contained does help a lot there as there is no need to exit the van other than to depart the spot.
Hopefully Ranger F.o.F. or other officialdom will be understanding of that. If not then we are "Sprung Badly" as was the phrase in the 1970's.
The new Qld Regulations seem to be quite much tighter than that even. They seem to look at the whole of the Road reserve (fence to fence) as the no go zone / Crown land etc.. Thus our preference for back road touring where ever possible.
Some are sign posted "Trucks only", some are sign posted "No Trucks" and some are not sign posted as to use at all.
Cheers,
Peter
Blaze wrote,
I think it would be cost effective to make them larger with a distinct barrier separating the section, monitor them with remote cameras with $2000 fine for people not parking in their allocated area. Problem solved
Methinks more than a little cost prohibitive????
why
-- Edited by yobarr on Friday 9th of October 2020 09:35:49 PM
Truck drivers can face big fines and or court appearances if they exceed their hours. the cameras tell the story
We did this problem a few months ago:
Now, as then, the only solution is to build more and much better rest areas for car drivers until that happens cars and caravans will continue to use the truck stops.
Governments won't build more until someone puts pressure on them and I suggest the trucking industry bodies should be part of that group along with the motoring organisations at al.
If I'm really tired, I'll stay at an off road truck stop for a break, lunch - out the way of any incoming truck. When able to keep driving, I exit, continuing on our way.
Wayside (that give a bit if a lane to the LHS of the through traffic) truck stops are a no-no, there's barely enough room for a large truck!
By all means state the fine but add that random police patrols may catch illegals! People often take the risk knowing that they won't be caught other than by an irate truckie - personally I think the police would be the most polite!!
More parks for caravanners use would be welcome. QLD is woefully INADEQUATE for anything (new passing lanes are slowly being built) except near the KINGDOM OF THE GREAT SOUTH EAST!!
Yes we have GREAT delight, particularly in one eastern State, when we pass, at maybe 90kph, a sign which reads most emphatically 'POWER NAP NOW'.
Then we drive for maybe 50 varying to well over 100 k before there is a rest area.
It doesn't take long to guess that answer!!
And it happens on both major highways - from the North & the West! Although the western, south western highways will keep you awake with their roughness! I wondered whether I was too asleep & missed the rest spot!!
To quote Yobarr
"Some good points here,but I would suggest that the many thousands of farmers who daily feed millions of people,thus keeping these people alive,would be more important to the general well being of the community as a whole,than would be the surgeon who saved the life of one "country mum?".
Does not deserve further comment.
Tony
-- Edited by Eaglemax on Saturday 10th of October 2020 06:34:02 PM
-- Edited by Eaglemax on Saturday 10th of October 2020 06:34:27 PM
Confrontation from a section of the transport industry will never fix this problem.
These Bitumen Cowboys will always have a hate for caravans and caravanners.
I am a retired driver who has owned and operated trucks throughout Australia all my working life and when towing a caravan these highway jockeys display their ignorance an a regular basis.
We all know the type that sit right up your bumper on and off the throttle with their intimidating tactics. Worse still, it is deemed uncool to talk to caravanners on the UHF amongst their childish peers.
Enough said on that matter as I am sure we have all come across those types that actually call themselves professional drivers.
Here is a Video from a couple of years ago made by a guy who actually knows the problem that can exist in parking bays and offers sensible and more importantly, non confrontational advice to assist all of us on the road.
It goes without saying that if it is a Trucks Only area then all vanners and motor home operators should keep out.
Anyhow here is the link to the movie and is well worth the watch for all.
youtu.be/2IY07AkC3Ts
My personal thoughts are that if an educational video about how trucks work with regard to turning, manoevering, stopping or braking and including Parking Bay etiquette were made and become easily available for all motorist to watch then this would go a long way toward us all travelling in a much safer environment.
Regards
Rob Driver
What is your view regarding those of us who drive motorhomes that are legally classified as "trucks" (ie have GVMs of 4.5T and greater)?
Should we use "no trucks" rest areas (where we could be fined), should we use "trucks only" rest areas (we are legally trucks) or should we take our pick?
ps... we are GVM 6.6T but just 6m long overall (about half the length a many van/tug combinations).
Cheers,
Peter
Hi Peter,
I do see where you are coming from and totally agree that this is a grey area in the regulation.
My take on this for the exercise is that these truck only rest areas are for the professional drivers to comply with compulsory rest stops.
Trucks are never or at least rarely parked up there for any time that is not necessary for them to comply.
Motor home operators may consider if they are permitted to camp there due to a technicality with the weight of their vehicle then who controls how they set up? Where within the rest area that they set up? How long they stay and how spread out might their camp become.
Whilst you and some others would be considerate and maybe only stop if absolutely necessary and even park up out of the way, I can personally assure you that you would be in a minority.
Having said that, most who drive larger motor homes may have had previous truck operating experience. With a motor home that is 6 metres long would generally not be a problem accessing a No Trucks parking Bay and to be in that area would not cause any inconvenience to other visitors.
We would all like common sense to prevail but unfortunately quite frequently it doesnt.
If I were in a motor home I would not use a Truck Only parking Bay and take my chances explaining the situation to an authorised officer for being in the No Trucks parking Bay. It would be extremely rare for any officer to question a motor home in No Truck parking Bay as opposed to the other option.
We could all bring up various scenarios re vehicle configurations but if we look at the reason for the truck only parking bays being for professional drivers to have their respective breaks as required by law, then it really becomes a no brainer.
Regards
Rob Driver
So you suggest that I break the law......
Cheers,
Peter
Lets state what I did say in its entirety.
It would be extremely rare for any officer to question a motor home in a No Trucks parking Bay as opposed to the other option.
I thought I gave you a reasonable explanation of my interpretation.
You seem to be missing the point that while your motor home and some others are over 4.5 T you are not required by law to complete log books, record of travel, working hours and rest breaks.
The Truck Only Parking Bays are provided for the drivers of trucks to comply with the law.
Unless you can enlighten me I am not aware of any driver of a motor home or caravan to have to comply with any of the rules and laws relating to trucks and drivers.
If you dont wish to come under the scrutiny of the law wether or not you are a truck or wether or not you are a motor home, why dont you just camp overnight at the hundreds of Showgrounds, Pub Camps, National Parks, Private Farm Stays, Free Camps, or dare I say it, Caravan Parks that are readily available to all recreational vehicles.
You may realise that the list above is not available to Professional Truck Drivers and their rigs and this is why motor homes and any other Recreational Vehicles should stay out of TRUCK ONLY parking bays.
I am not in any way suggesting that you should break the law Peter.
I have pointed out several other options for you and others with concern regarding overnight stops.
Regards
Rob Driver