From the Sharp End

Is it true that bosses can’t get bums on the seats of their cabs? If so, why? The best answers will come from the horse’s mouth, so we ask drivers for their view

- Lucy Radley

Apparently there’s a shortage of wagon drivers in this country. Various figures get bandied about as to exactly how short, but whatever way you look at it operators are telling us they can’t get bums on seats. ‘The industry’ thinks it knows why: people retiring more quickly than new drivers are coming in, the cost of training, a lack of facilities conveniently placed on the trunk road network, long hours and a poor public image usually feature in most articles on the subject.

What we don’t seem to see much of is the views of drivers themselves, both those still out on the road and those of various ages who have left transport entirely for whatever reasons.

Surely the best way to get to the bottom of this is to talk to those poor souls still rolling around in it? We decided to do just that.

When did it start to go wrong?

The problem with trying to work out when it all started to go wrong is that every generation will tell you it was better when they first started, and they all wear rose-tinted specs when they do it. But the general consensus points towards the back end of last century as when the tide started to turn.

“It went wrong in the late ’90s, I reckon,” says Yorkshire Terrier on TruckNetUK.com.

“That was when manufacturers and other firms stopped running their own wagons and contracted out to big logistics firms.”

“Years ago you either went hauling for a transport company and enjoyed the relative freedoms that allowed, or you were lucky enough to get a start on a company carrying their own goods,” Ian Judd recalls.

“These were usually a bit more regimented and sometimes not quite as well paid, but the work and hours you put in were nothing like those on general and often there would be pensions and other benefits.