Passed my class 1 in a AEC Mandator in 1976, 1st truck was a Mastiff, no sleeper cab, no taco, still used lie sheets(log books), slept across seats, loads were roped and sheeted,no sat navs or mobile phones,away 3/4 nights aweek, but loved every minute of it
I was a trailer mate for Dema Glass 🍷🍷🍷 we had a Leyland comet , then a foden & finally a scainy . and i Loved my job i have a model of the lorry and trailer made by crafty pop's . I could also tell you a few tales regarding the job back 🔙 then .
I was lucky with my driving career, I caught the end of the old era My first lorry was a TK Bedford in 1966, based in north London, my first artic was a 1958 AEC Mercury working for BRS Gloucester I did 20 years of night trunk in various vehicles Daf 85's Leyland Marathons, F10 Volvos etc I wouldn't want to be on the road now, with GPS trackers, and the boss knowing when you stop for a cuppa I loved every minute of my 47 years on the road, even roping and sheeting in the winter.
if you want to see the only tv program where they drive trucks all around the world then it wont be england or america they never came up with this idea then you have to watch german tv series Auf Achse
3 years ago,foreigners worked for 4.5pound/hour,motel based ,no Nino and 15 hour shift .Big bosses have laughing stock in offices.I looked online and jobs offered are almost the same as 4 years ago. In Denmark from 2020 new hourly rate of DKK 164.96 (19.19 pound) an hour was announced. The rate was applicable as of January 1st.There houses are more cheap than in U.K just to make an ideea. Rules also mean that foreign drivers working in Denmark must be paid the same while they are in the country. This will be strictly enforced from 2020