Training for cross Channel driving
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• A training course, believed to be the first of its kind in the UK. for hgv drivers about to embark on Continental work is now offered by the RHA Essex Group Training Association, which observes that "in the past drivers have been forced to pick up the skills and techniques of Continental driving by the hit-and-miss method of sending them in company with an experienced man".
Now haulage companies will be able to have their drivers trained by suitably qualified professional instructors, on vehicles designed for training, and on a course that covers both theoretical and practical aspects of driving in Europe.
Each trainee will receive full information on his personal preparation for driving abroad, the documentation required to take goods to and from the UK, the hours and records affecting British drivers abroad and the highway codes, taxation and Customs procedures for all major countries in Europe. And he will have the opportunity to put this knowledge into practice by driving over a selected route through Northern Europe. Each trainee will also visit the premises of a Continental haulier to observe at first-hand the methods of handling, dispatching and sealing of goods in transit, and witnessing the procedures at four major cross-Channel ports.
Training can be on rigid and artic vehicles and the course is of five days duration. Cost, with a rigid vehicle, is £100 per trainee: with an artic, £120. Accommodation will cost approximately £20 extra. There will be two trainees per course which is RTITB grant-approved, the Board having assisted in the development of the scheme. Assistance has also been given by Seabourne Shipping Co Ltd which is making its facilities available for visits by trainees.
Further information and booking forms are available from Mr T. Davies, Essex GTA training officer, Station Approach, Kelvedon, Colchester, Essex (tel. Kelvedon 863).