Truck stop granted licence to sell alcohol.

[Haliotis]

Bardon Truck Park, Coalville, Leicestershire, have been granted a licence by the council to serve alcohol.  The truck park owner claimed that professional drivers would not drive-and-drive, and a wooden-headed council swallowed that myth.

HGV drivers have been caught using their mobile phones and even watching TV on their social media devices whilst driving.  Are the general public, who have to share the roads with the HGV lot, really stupid enough to believe that HGV drivers are any better than drivers of other types of vehicles a/

Do we need the added risk of a boozed-up driver thundering along with a 38 tonner amongst the rest of us?

Sheer madness!!!

[Iscaman]

Sadly, the days of HGV drivers being the 'Knights of the Road' are long gone!

[Bper]

How does this make any sense, honestly officer I've only had one I promise "hic" and we wonder why councils are going bankrupt when these are the decision's they make.

[Haliotis]

Did the police make satisfactory arguments against the granting of this licence?   If not, what would be their excuse?  What “advantages” for council officers existed in promoting them to grant the licence?  Certainly, plain common sense was set aside for some reason!

Considering the type of vehicles operated by drivers who use this truck stop, will the police be exercising a positive presence to discourage drivers from purchasing alcohol? - because they should be, given their duty of care for other road users.

Whilst not wishing harm to any innocent parties, I cannot help but think that, at some future date, an incident related to alcohol being served from this outlet will occur. If/when it does, will we hear the old chestnut of “lessons have been learned” once again trotted out?

[AndyN01]

I'm thinking that "everyone" in authority is, quite simply, terrified of upsetting someone or the other?

So, to appease the few and/or avoid any sort of negative press (or even legal action) they just go - yeah, that's fine, go ahead, do whatever you like.

I'm definitely getting the grumpy old man vibes but no-one seems to have any common sense. Or maybe they do but are far too frightened to use it?

Maybe the fallout from the Post Office scandal might see some heads roll and, more importantly, some very senior ones (but I doubt it) and that just might influence some folks in their decision making?

Sad isn't it that "we" can see what IS going to happen...........

Andy.

 

 

[flash22]

you can go into most petrol stations and buy alcohol, smoking-related products, hell even a week's worth of shopping

you can also buy a petrol can and a box of matches/lighters that doesn't mean you are out to commit arson

 

Licences are hard to get and strictly controlled, 1 report of a drink and drive, the licence will be pulled or restrictions applied

 

I can tell you if someone has an addiction they will go to great lengths to get to their fix whatever it may be

 

this smells a lot like a conservative agenda - somebody please think about the children blah, blah, blah.................................. only if Diana was here

[Haliotis]

True, driver or not, anyone can go into an outlet and buy alcohol.  But this is about temptation.  A driver is sitting in a truck stop, possibly a little bored, or maybe in conversation with fellow drivers.  Relaxed atmosphere develops, and the availability of an alcoholic drink presents itself.  Trouble is, human nature can be a problem - how many people who are driving think they can hold their liquor better than is actually the case, and go on to exceed their limits and become a danger on the roads?

Is it not then foolhardy for responsible authority to create a potential threat to the lives of other road users by granting a licence; and especially to the owner of premises, where such owner would seem to feel the risks outweigh the welfare of the general public, simply to boost his/her opportunity to improve profits?

[Cyker]

Did they not already??   IIRC there is a literal pub on that site already, assuming it's the place I'm thinking of!

It's the one and only time I've been to Coalville, and I'm still a bit sad they knocked down the Discovery museum they had there - I'm not normally much of a museum goer, and was only there because they were hosting an event I attended, but it was an incredibly well curated display of the history of the area as well as all the engineering and railway stuff, and for some reason a gigantic crocheted Lion  (Are lions a big problem up there or something??  ), and me and my mates ended up touring the whole museum instead of the event we were there for!   Couldn't believe it when I read the local authority had it all torn down some years later - A huge cultural loss to the area  

[Rhymes with Paris]

Well, I see your point Albert .

But truck stops used for overnight stops after the permitted hours on a tachograph are legitimate.

And I can see a scenario where after a long day at the wheel up (or down) the country, and a stop,a shower, and a roast beef dinner accompanied by a couple of glasses of chat enough de Pap.

Followed by a good nights sleep, and refreshed to drive off, with no alcohol left in the body.

Of course anyone can choose to drink and drive, but they would have to be pretty stupid to do so,too stupid I am guessing to hold an HGV licence and to put their livelihood and licence in danger of being taken away.

From what I saw at Stibbington truck stop on the A1 , the drivers were very professional, they of course had a choice to stash any amount of alcoholic drinks in the sleeper cab or room, but did not from what I saw.

In fact in 2002 , I made a mistake pulling out from there on a motorcycle in the rain, and a HGV driver saved me by being super aware , and pulling out to avoid me and block any traffic coming into me overtaking him.

I think I would trust most of them not to be stupid.

 

 

[Rhymes with Paris]

44 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Did they not already??   IIRC there is a literal pub on that site already, assuming it's the place I'm thinking of!

It's the one and only time I've been to Coalville, and I'm still a bit sad they knocked down the Discovery museum they had there - I'm not normally much of a museum goer, and was only there because they were hosting an event I attended, but it was an incredibly well curated display of the history of the area as well as all the engineering and railway stuff, and for some reason a gigantic crocheted Lion  (Are lions a big problem up there or something??  ), and me and my mates ended up touring the whole museum instead of the event we were there for!   Couldn't believe it when I read the local authority had it all torn down some years later - A huge cultural loss to the area  

Oh Cyker, you should be careful Oop North, and even the midlands I know you are not used to it.

Yes lions are a problem,dragons too, the !Removed! things crap everywhere in the parks, and the owners never pick it up.

 

[AndyN01]

Having family "Up North" we find the dragons very useful at this time of year for defrosting purposes.....

[Mjolinor]

59 minutes ago, AndyN01 said:

Having family "Up North" we find the dragons very useful at this time of year for defrosting purposes.....

Dragons only in the West. We get the odd sun seeking haggis but they are not dangerous. The real worry is Southerners, strange lot those.

[Haliotis]

How do you decide who is “from up north” or “from down south”?   For example: people from Inverness could deem someone from Newcastle-on-Tyne to be a “southerner”.  Conversely, Cornish people could deem a person from the Midlands to be a “northerner”.

Regional accents are also interesting. People born and living in Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Coventry seem to be generally difficult to distinguish one from another, yet the Birmingham accent is distinctly different.  Amusingly though, I have had people from southern England think that I am from Birmingham.  So, not only do we have our own individual accents, others will judge our origins according to how we sound to them.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Remember in the mid-70's, I did a period of detached duty at an office in Oldbury in the Black Country. 

6-6.5 miles away from home in Harborne and my permanent office in Selly Oak - both suburbs of Birmingham.

Had real difficulty understanding some Oldbury residents who had a broad Black Country accent. Markedly different to the Birmingham accent.

 

[AndyN01]

As a Brummy, born pretty much next door to Selly Oak I'm amazed you only had "difficulty" in Oldbury. A work colleague was from Dudley and if we were working over there I might as well not have been there as I couldn't understand a word after about 2 minutes when my mate dropped back into his "native tongue."

Brilliant folks though. Incredibly friendly and down to earth. Thinking about it very similar to the folks we meet up in the North East. 👍

Andy.

[Bper]

Strange with accents my mother was born and raised in Birmingham and left there in her mid twenties to come to South London..However she didn't have a brummie accent but her brother's and sisters had very strong ones.😀

 

[Mjolinor]

Southerners are South of Liverpool, end of.

[Rhymes with Paris]

It really doesn't matter where anyone is from,or what accent they have.

What really matters is how we treat other people, there are local people here who need to be errr. stopped, to be polite.

And I have met very bad people all over the place, including a very threatening crack addict in the canaries,a s*x pest in the middle of Germany who needed a slap to put him off pestering my wife, and an illegal money changer in Budapest,who was a different kind of pest, to describe but a few.

But to balance this, most people you are likely to meet are very welcoming and kind, even southerners in the UK.

I remember when I first went down to Reading tech, the locals even forgave my lack of skill with a knife and fork, tearing into my college canteen pasty with my fingers, however eyebrows were raised when I scooped the beans into my mouth with my left hand.

I soon became integrated, and enjoyed many a pub lunch with napkins and a chilled Gavi.

 

 

[dannyboy413]

I was born in Bradford and lived in Bradford, or not too far away, for my first 40+ years. I have now lived in Ireland since 1998 and I still get people asking me, "is that a Yorkshire accent?".  🙂

[Bernard Foy]

On 1/18/2024 at 9:52 AM, Haliotis said:

Bardon Truck Park, Coalville, Leicestershire, have been granted a licence by the council to serve alcohol.  The truck park owner claimed that professional drivers would not drive-and-drive, and a wooden-headed council swallowed that myth.

HGV drivers have been caught using their mobile phones and even watching TV on their social media devices whilst driving.  Are the general public, who have to share the roads with the HGV lot, really stupid enough to believe that HGV drivers are any better than drivers of other types of vehicles a/

Do we need the added risk of a boozed-up driver thundering along with a 38 tonner amongst the rest of us?

Sheer madness!!!

I agree a recipe for a disaster. Anyone with a single brain cell would see that making alcohol available at truck stops is total madness. It makes me wonder if brown envelopes were on the go, nothing else can explain it. Alcohol should not be for sale on any of the motorway stops anywhere.

[Haliotis]

Trouble is, Bernard, the faceless officials who hand out these licences do not have to help clear up the the mess, sort mangled bodies from tangled wrecks, or knock on the doors of next-of-kin with devastating news.

[Crickleymal]

I'm still surprised at petrol stations selling alcohol. It just seems weird given the amount of effort put into drink driving campaigns over the years. 

[AndyN01]

Maybe all "age restricted" products should only be sold in "specialist" shops where ID is a pre requisite?

So not in supermarkets, petrol stations, discount shops etc. etc.

Tongue firmly in cheek....

Andy.

 

[Haliotis]

Supermarkets do operate a requirement for age identification where there is doubt.  And it is not necessarily limited to alcoholic products.

[Rhymes with Paris]

As I am oldish, I can buy kitchen knives and alcohol without being challenged about my age.

But I have no intention of getting blathered and going out , driving around and stabbing someone.

I see the points being made, but surely it is more about the responsibility of the people buying,than the location.

I see sense in the long established American doctrine of no open containers of alcohol in vehicles, so no implication of drinking and driving.

I often used to buy a bottle of chatto le feet on the way home from work 60 miles away to share over dinner with my lady.

Didn't get tempted to swig it while driving though, and lose my licence and livelihood.