Is it illegal to drop a trailer without putting the trailer brake on on a public road.just
read in a magazine it is .I have never heard of that before.
Yes I know it’s good practice to put the brakes on every time you drop a trailer.
It is interesting that you have raised the point about trailer parking brakes because at nearly every Rdc or transport depot I deliver at , there is a safety memo stuck on the wall.
The memos detail a near miss accident, an injured person or sometimes a fatal .
All due to drivers standing in front of their runaway tractor unit, trying to stop it by pushing it, which is never going to work.
Experienced drivers do it.
All ours automatically come on when the red line is detached. Even the old trailers they refurbed were altered to this system. No need for a park brake not to be on on a modern trailer given that there are solutions available which automatically put the park brake on when the red line is disconnected.
Just out of curiosity, why would you not put the trailer brake on anyway?
In my opinion, whether its legal or not the trailer brake should be on when its disconnected from a tractor unit.
Strikes me as nothing but laziness to not be bothered to pull a button that take about ten seconds
The-Snowman:
Just out of curiosity, why would you not put the trailer brake on anyway?
In my opinion, whether its legal or not the trailer brake should be on when its disconnected from a tractor unit.
Strikes me as nothing but laziness to not be bothered to pull a button that take about ten seconds
Considering most are next to the legs too, it’s hardly a great difficulty to give the little red knob a tug.
Laziness pure and simple.
A.
toby1234abc:
All due to drivers standing in front of their runaway tractor unit, trying to stop it by pushing it, which is never going to work.
Experienced drivers do it.
I lost my composure at this point when my mind was cast back to cartoons where someone puts their hand out to order a steamroller to stop or similar!
Conor:
All ours automatically come on when the red line is detached. Even the old trailers they refurbed were altered to this system. No need for a park brake not to be on on a modern trailer given that there are solutions available which automatically put the park brake on when the red line is disconnected.
We had those at interbrew/inbev in Magor when I was on that contract, bloody brilliant idea and add to that the fact that on a lot of the trailers (well, over half of them at least) the trailer park brake valve/button was on the headboard so a) you could actually see it pop on when disconnecting, and b) you didn’t have to faff around finding it when you were coupling up either.
In fact it was those trailers that started me religiously applying the TPB on any and all other trailers either before I went under them or when I was dropping them as something felt missing from the procedure if I didn’t.
The other thing I liked about the interbrew/inbev trailers was no buckles on the curtains, just the hooks that you looped onto a steel cable and then press a button for the cable to taut the curtain, bloody marvellous 
Reef:
The other thing I liked about the interbrew/inbev trailers was no buckles on the curtains, just the hooks that you looped onto a steel cable and then press a button for the cable to taut the curtain, bloody marvellous
i remember asda had some of those about 10 years ago but i think they ditched the idea. saw it operated one time and was amazed at the simplicity!
fingermissing:
Is it illegal to drop a trailer without putting the trailer brake on on a public road.just
read in a magazine it is .I have never heard of that before.Yes I know it’s good practice to put the brakes on every time you drop a trailer.
And what would be the reason to be dropping the try on a public road ?
As everyone has said its the best practice anyway not only that if someone ploughed into an unbreaked trailer could that trailer move , more than one with applied breaks
nick2008:
fingermissing:
Is it illegal to drop a trailer without putting the trailer brake on on a public road.just
read in a magazine it is .I have never heard of that before.Yes I know it’s good practice to put the brakes on every time you drop a trailer.
And what would be the reason to be dropping the try on a public road ?
As everyone has said its the best practice anyway not only that if someone ploughed into an unbreaked trailer could that trailer move , more than one with applied breaks
Do you think that a dropped trailer without the parking brake applied is unbraked?
the maoster:
nick2008:
fingermissing:
Is it illegal to drop a trailer without putting the trailer brake on on a public road.just
read in a magazine it is .I have never heard of that before.Yes I know it’s good practice to put the brakes on every time you drop a trailer.
And what would be the reason to be dropping the try on a public road ?
As everyone has said its the best practice anyway not only that if someone ploughed into an unbreaked trailer could that trailer move , more than one with applied breaksDo you think that a dropped trailer without the parking brake applied is unbraked?
Of course not but then when we had trailers with the ratchet style parking breaks you knew the trailer break needed to be on 
I absolutely agree with that 100% Nick. I can’t be the only one who’s chased a trailer around the yard trying to pick it up 
.
The problem I have now is everybody nodding sagely and agreeing that trailer brakes must be applied to dropped trailers when they have no real concept as to why. There’s a very good reason that the button is very small for most trailer brakes, and that reason is to stop drivers dicking about with them!
the maoster:
I absolutely agree with that 100% Nick. I can’t be the only one who’s chased a trailer around the yard trying to pick it up
the maoster:
I absolutely agree with that 100% Nick. I can’t be the only one who’s chased a trailer around the yard trying to pick it upThe problem I have now is everybody nodding sagely and agreeing that trailer brakes must be applied to dropped trailers when they have no real concept as to why. There’s a very good reason that the button is very small for most trailer brakes, and that reason is to stop drivers dicking about with them!
What made it worse was the legs had wheels on 
oh the joys of trailer racing in the paper yard 
the maoster:
There’s a very good reason that the button is very small for most trailer brakes, and that reason is to stop drivers dicking about with them!
What a complete and utter load of crap!
I thought it was obvious why you needed the brake on, which dawns on you quickly when you’re pushing an unhitched trailer! 
But the previous driver ensuring it’s on won’t necessarily save you if the forkies have since hit the shunt and maneuvered it a little! 
The way I see it, the only safe way is to check during the hitching…
Even with these modern trailers that apply park brakes automatically I guess until its universal the reason to apply trailer brakes regardless is commonality.
I think on standard trailers a lot of misunderstanding exists about what exactly that red airline does. People presume pulling the red off applies the “spring brakes”. On most trailers pre the new upgrades Conor mentioned, pulling the red airline off actually applies emergency air into the service chamber, but the park brake chamber remains charged and the spring compressed. Only pulling the park brake will the air be released in the park chamber and the spring released.
I thought the only place you didn’t apply the trailer brake was on a ro ro terminal.
Everyone seems to be missing the point here, which is whether or not the trailer brake is applied is irrelevant, it is illegal to drop a trailer on a public road.
I Never apply the brake and these new auto button pop out trailers add an extra minute to my brew and facebook time [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND TIGHTLY-CLOSED EYES]