Safe Driving Behaviour
This domain examines the everyday habits that decide whether a loaded lorry arrives safely: speed choice for the conditions, following distance, lane and overtaking discipline, correct use of lights and signals, personal fitness to drive, and the standard procedure after a motorway breakdown.
Speed and following distance
Speed must allow you to stop within the distance you can see to be clear. The two-second rule is a minimum for a car in dry weather; a laden lorry needs three to four seconds, more in rain or on worn surfaces. At 80 km/h on dry tarmac, reaction distance alone is about 22 m and the braking distance of a fully laden lorry can exceed 40 m, so a gap sized on car intuition is not enough.
Overtaking and lane discipline
Overtake on the left and only when you can see the road is clear for the whole manoeuvre, allowing for the length of the vehicle. Overtaking is prohibited at pedestrian crossings, at junctions, on bends and crests with restricted view, at level crossings and wherever a line or sign forbids it. After overtaking, return to the right lane without cutting in, and remember that a long vehicle needs a much larger gap to complete the move.
Lights and communication
Use dipped headlights at night, in tunnels, in rain and in fog. Front fog lights are for fog, heavy rain or falling snow; the rear fog light is only for genuinely poor visibility and must be switched off when conditions improve, because it dazzles and masks brake lights. Hazard lights warn others of a stationary hazard or sudden queue, not of illegal parking.
Personal condition and distractions
Fatigue, alcohol, drugs and some medicines are not compatible with driving a lorry. A mobile phone may only be used hands-free, and even then concentration suffers. Eating, smoking and adjusting navigation while driving all remove attention from the road.
Worked example
A driver at 80 km/h keeps two seconds behind the vehicle in front, a gap of about 44 m. Reasoning: reaction takes about 22 m of that, leaving only roughly 22 m to stop a lorry needing 40 m or more on dry tarmac, so the gap is unsafe. He should hold at least three seconds, ideally four when fully laden.
Motorway breakdown
Pull onto the emergency lane or hard shoulder, hazard lights on, handbrake, engine off, hi-vis vest on before leaving the cab, place the warning triangle, keep passengers behind the barrier and call 112. Never attempt repairs from the traffic side.