For those who live in the Brisbane Metroplex, you will have heard of the Truck carrying a windfarm part that got stuck under the Bridge on the Warrego Highway, outside Ipswich, about 40 minutes West of Club Middo.
AS you may or may not be aware is that I’ve driven a lot of kilometres over a lot of years. Ever since I got my license, all those years ago, and before that, Dad and the family, or just Dad and I, used to do a lot of kilometres before that, too. We used to love running with the trucks on the varying CB radios we’ve had throughout the years.
Even though I’m a caravan driver, I still love running with the trucks on the radio, and will talk with them for ages when they’ll talk back. So I’ve heard my fair share of Pilots and loads. I’ve also had plenty of “conversations” on Facebook groups and forums on the interwebs. Most of those were impolite slagfests.
Everyone is quick to jump on the driver, but things – as always – may be more complicated than they first appear. The only question that comes to my mind is this:
What the absolute hell was the pilot doing? Or the Police?
— Peter “Middo” Middleton
Fact: A highway Pilot/Escort must, by law, remain in contact with the load AT ALL TIMES.
Why the hell didn’t the Pilot radio back to the load and say “We are exiting on the Mt Crosby exit and immediately returning to the highway via the same on-ramp to avoid the bridge.”
I admit, the UHF radio traffic is pretty high in the area, you’ve got other commercial traffic with the truck going into and out of the area –
A point that must be made here that commercial operators are using UHF CB radio under the Group Licence issued for the 477MHz band by the ACMA. This also includes road construction crews.
It used to be the case that business use for UHF CB radio was prohibited although this appears not to be the case. However, the case remains that anyone is permitted to use whatever channel (at a frequency outlined in the Radiocommunications Act 1992) and the Group Licence issued by the ACMA. No one, but the ACMA have the authority to deny, berate, belittle, or bemoan any individual the rigths to use the frequencies as they please, under certain restrictions.
(On a side note, it’s with great lament that this still isn’t the case. I will do a whole rant on UHF radio soon.)
Ok, a the radio call was or was not made & missed or was or wasn’t made at all. Again, radio comms are great, if the message gets through. It hasn’t.
So old mate barrels into a bridge that was barely standing anyway…… Everyone watches on with hilarity and blames the truck driver.
This transport contract, alone, is worth $MILLIONS to haul these windfarm pieces to wherever the heck they’re going.
Why were they using retail-available, every-donkey’s-got-one (especially in that area), off the shelf radios to rely on when hauling these types of load,. especially the requirement for a pilot to be in touch with the load?
Shouldn’t they have had privately assigned frequency 2 way radios, even handhelds, and even given to the police, for communications?
I – someone not in the trucking industry – can name three such radio providers here in Brisbane.
Olbis Commincations at Rocklea (and an outlet in Garbutt, Townsville) have been in the game for a very long time and started in the Brisbane Suburb of Oxley (where I grew up) before I was born.
Now that I live on the Northside, I equally recommend Commex Communications at Windsor. They have doen a MASTERFUL job of fitting and tuning my both my car mounted UHFs so that I get performance that exceeds *my* expectations.
Then, as I drive to my favourite cafe in Stafford to buy my beans, I pass Trans Communications and, I’m told they have a mighty reputation but, so far, I’ve not used them. Doesn’t mean I wont in the future.
I don’t know if TransComm do, but I know for a fact that both Olbis and Commex even hire the radios for special events.
And, if pilots and truck drivers complain that they don’t want to deal with and extra radio, tell them to bite themselves. I deal with 2 all the time, so as their precious truckie arses dont have to hear some polite conversations that may offend them.
So, there is much, much more to unpack and while blaming the poor bloody truck driver, or the weather, is a little (ok, a lot) myopic. I, for one, will be watching.