why is it that whenever you see a trunking job, particularly night work, it always says “expereince essential”. Surely of all hgv work this is the easiest ; just going back and forth between the same 2 or more depots. Whereas general haulage jobs obvioulsy a lot harder as they require better navigation skills cus your always going to different places, are more likely to say “experience preffered”
i would have thought trunking work would be ideal for a newbie.
What newbies dont realise is
the amount of times trunking in the middle of the night,
your heading home and you get a phone call to pick up a extra delivery , or a trailer swap,
in the middle of a deserted industrial estate at 3.00am
Because there are only skeleton staff in the office
on nights,(if any at all)
They want a experienced driver who can solve most
problems on his own.
(not phone up about changing tacho paper etc…)
A lot of night trunking can be with 16ft high double decker trailers at full weight (44T} too more often than not. Maybe that’s why companies are not keen on newbies doing it.
tramp:
i would have thought trunking work would be ideal for a newbie.
In my view trunking is idea for a newbie. I would tend to think that “experience essential” means …“we can’t be bothered/don’t have the time/money to show anyone the ropes. We just want someone who can go…”
i started my life trunking,good way to learn the basics only
Yeah night trunking is easy 
, travelling the same route every night, keeping focused when your body is screaming at you telling you that you should be asleep ( just like the fine chaps who sleep all day in rdc’s ). As previously stated, in the majority of cases, when working nights, especially trunking, contact with your place of work is virtually non existent, being able to think, and act on your own initiative are essential, try phoning your transport manager at 3 a.m. for advice about any one of the numerous problems that you may encounter. You may learn more on days though, location of snack bars, places to hide etc.
give me night trunking, any night
road is your own no taxis, buses and blind pedestrians to worry about or coppers and traffic wardens waiting to pounce.
i always thought it was a great way to start and try and learn some skills if you are new to it.
Torture driving home is the small hours, body saying what are you doing ya nutter
Actually, the worst bit is if you finish around dawn, then your body starts waking up again, and you’re off home to try and get some kip… and you’ve been quaffing tea and coffee all night to keep awake too…
If you get to finish before dawn, you’re lucky, best job to have in the world. Finish later, and it can be a killer.
I did 3 months with Royal Mail on agency, 8 or 9pm starts and finished before dawn almost every time. Woke up naturally about 4 or 5pm, feeling fresh and invigorated.
7 months doing car-parts, midnight starts, 7-10am finishes, and felt dead the whole time, couldn’t sleep for 2 or 3 hours when I got home, stumbled in to work looking like a zombie…
Really got to love Alex Lester though 
Seek the dark!!!
i used to work nights on a non driving job, 10 pm - 6 am. it was great, everywhere quiet and peaceful, and in the daytime u can get stuff done. slept like a baby, although i did have blackout curtains.
I passed my class one and got a job on trunking straight away, it was with the double decker trailer down to Birmingham. Its a great way to learn, I hardly did any reversing though and when I went onto tramping it wasnt easy to reverse but I got used to it.
The worst part for me was about 3am when I started to get tired, no matter what you do to try and keep yourself awake it was no good, I had to pull over.
I found on nights, if I were to feel tired, it was usually as it was getting daylight. 
supply and demand
at the moment fella there are more drivers than jobs.
if you went to get your hair cut and there’s a choice of someone who has been crimping for years with a good rep in the area or the apprentice halfway though the college course who’s shaking at the thought of cutting real hair for the 1st time on there own, who would you choose to do their best on your barnet, and the apprentice isn’t fit! keeping in mind the truck driver is on there own once they set off.
most would view it as an unecessary risk
stevie