Lighting mcqueen:
So by your above statement you are saying that all the major car manufacturers are culpable by supplying tools, a jack and a spare wheel in the load compartment. There are no health and safety issues in changing a wheel, the cars manual has full idiot proof instructions, it doesn’t say call a garage, or this must not be carried out by the roadside.
Many trucks do not carry a spare wheel or a jack simply to give more payload or prevent theft
What does this have to do with the hato their sole responsibility should be to help the traffic flow. If someone is in unwilling or unable to change a tyre they should be adviced on the safety implications of waiting on the hard shoulder for recovery and left to it.
Mr B our soul responsibility is traffic incident management! someone with a flat on the hard shoulder however small it may seem to you its a massive ordeal for alot of people. Some TOs will stay with the vulnerable, ie small kids in the car, elderly etc to provide a fend off or reassurance until the recovery company arrives if they have 1!. During this time the option is give for verbal assistance to change the wheel and this is where the service comes under fire from the passing drivers! (some TOs will do it for the stricken driver) I personally will jack the car remove the wheel, replace with the spare tighten the nuts then get the driver to check that they are happy with the nut/bolts also request that as soon as possible take the vehicle to a garage and torque set the bolts by a qualified person. Although it is not in the live running lane it is still an obstruction on the motorway. If the road goes ■■■■ up because you have crashed, that hard shoulder obstruction for the police, ambo and fire could cause serve delays for them getting to assist you it happens every day.
Wheel nut, most car tools are specific not universal its surprising what tools people will hand you, thinking it came with the a car as new. Most vehicle jacks now are use once them toss it as per handbook instructions. More and more don’t come with tools or a spare!! just a can of puncture repair! Because we are a third party organisation we are liable if we change it (should the wheel fall off). The only way around that is to get them to tighten the nuts/bolts themselves.
The Highway Man:
You’d be very surprised at the amount of able bodied drivers who wont change a tyre and call for recovery as they don’t want to get their hands dirty! All we get is, “that’s what I pay recovery for!”
And that’s exactly right and also the exact reason why I have breakdown cover. I don’t see what the problem is. Or would you expect a person on their way to a business meeting in a suit to get themselves ■■■■■■■ up doing it themself? You’re not very bright Highway Man are you.
Lighting mcqueen:
Wheel nut, most car tools are specific not universal its surprising what tools people will hand you, thinking it came with the a car as new. Most vehicle jacks now are use once them toss it as per handbook instructions. More and more don’t come with tools or a spare!! just a can of puncture repair! Because we are a third party organisation we are liable if we change it (should the wheel fall off). The only way around that is to get them to tighten the nuts/bolts themselves.
Joe Bloggs “hello I’ve got a flat tyre dont know how to fix it”
Operator “o.k sir we’ll send a HATO to the scene to assist, he goes by the name of Rob K…”
Joe Blogg “Rob K!!! you know what, its…its fine, really, just remebered how to change a tyre, fancy that honestly I have, just…just dont send Rob, forgett i even called, we never had this conversation”
The Highway Man:
You’d be very surprised at the amount of able bodied drivers who wont change a tyre and call for recovery as they don’t want to get their hands dirty! All we get is, “that’s what I pay recovery for!”
Seriously? Thats why I keep gloves in the boot. I’d much rather change a wheel and be on my way. Although if it was an o/s one I would be mighty grateful to have that HATO vehicle sat behind me warning oncoming traffic while I did it.
Yea and how many nobs on a quiet motorway never move over a lane I ALWAYS DO WHEN I CAN OR MOVE OVER seriously.
Highways can be a pain and 70% total idiots ive had some dealing with them when ive broken down or been at the front of a accident.
What annoys me is those that look after lancaster to haydock stretch who think its funny after a accident has cleared to keep the m6 shut to the exact time it is due to open despite ■■■■ all been there and everything cleared up last year 20 ■■■■■■■ minutes after the accident was cleared and sat on their fat arses watching a gridlocked m6 been diverted on to the a6 laughing their heads off. If you was allowed to hit and run those 2 would have been dead.
Meanwhile im seeing how long it takes for that montracon mudflap thats near happendon services on the m74 south to be picked up been 5 days so far just sat there lol
Best highways guys are those on the m62 manchester side they dont seem to mess about
The Highway Man:
You’d be very surprised at the amount of able bodied drivers who wont change a tyre and call for recovery as they don’t want to get their hands dirty! All we get is, “that’s what I pay recovery for!”
And that’s exactly right and also the exact reason why I have breakdown cover. I don’t see what the problem is. Or would you expect a person on their way to a business meeting in a suit to get themselves [zb] up doing it themself? You’re not very bright Highway Man are you.
Rob, I sense that you are carrying a little more anger than is good for the soul, although The Highway Man’s response was not very well thought out either…
Some people are in a position to change a flat tyre themselves and some are not. We are all different. We must not condemn folk whose skills do not mirror our own.
Although surely, if you have breakdown cover, you are simply financing a company whose employees do the exact same job as VOSA employees?
Harry, my comment was very much tongue in cheek, hence the wink and the raspberry smiley. The majority of Rob’s posts are full of venom and derogatory comments aimed at my profession. I will hold my hands up and be the first to admit that the traffic officer service has its fair share of eejits, show me a job that hasn’t and i’d call you a liar! At the end of the day, all the majority of HATOs want to do is earn a honest days pay to provide for their families, is there anything wrong with that?
We should get big jase to sort this arguement out lol.
Hatos are a new service and still finding what works best.
The changing wheels thing is rubbish they shouldn’t do it and most don’t you wouldn’t expect a passing copper, trucker or business exec to would you? So why should hatos.
What ■■■■■■ me of though is a 5 mile tail back in both directions because someone has there hazzards on on the hard shoulder and they’re surrounded battenberg’d 4x4s and people are crawling past! Only stop with lights showing when it’s necessary not whenever your stationary on the hs.
Danny27404:
Highways can be a pain and 70% total idiots ive had some dealing with them when ive broken down or been at the front of a accident.
What annoys me is those that look after lancaster to haydock stretch who think its funny after a accident has cleared to keep the m6 shut to the exact time it is due to open despite [zb] all been there and everything cleared up last year 20 [zb] minutes after the accident was cleared and sat on their fat arses watching a gridlocked m6 been diverted on to the a6 laughing their heads off. If you was allowed to hit and run those 2 would have been dead.
Meanwhile im seeing how long it takes for that montracon mudflap thats near happendon services on the m74 south to be picked up been 5 days so far just sat there lol
Best highways guys are those on the m62 manchester side they dont seem to mess about
Sorry Danny, but that just shows how much you DON’T know about the job HATO’s do!
If a motorway is closed for any reason, it’s 99.99% the Police who are in charge of the incident, the hato’s are at the closures to stop knob-heads moving the cones and going through the closure because they don’t believe it applies to them!
As I said, The Police are in charge of the incident, and they will say when the c/way is OK to reopen, once that instruction is given, the HATO’s will reopen the c/way as quickly and safetly as possible.
As for the mudflap on the M74, That’s Scotland! no Hato’s up there didn’t you know!!
The Highway Man:
You’d be very surprised at the amount of able bodied drivers who wont change a tyre and call for recovery as they don’t want to get their hands dirty! All we get is, “that’s what I pay recovery for!”
And that’s exactly right and also the exact reason why I have breakdown cover. I don’t see what the problem is. Or would you expect a person on their way to a business meeting in a suit to get themselves [zb] up doing it themself? You’re not very bright Highway Man are you.
Rob, I sense that you are carrying a little more anger than is good for the soul, although The Highway Man’s response was not very well thought out either…
Some people are in a position to change a flat tyre themselves and some are not. We are all different. We must not condemn folk whose skills do not mirror our own.
Nothing to do with that. I am perfectly capable of changing a wheel myself but I choose not to because
a) I can’t be arsed
b) I don’t want to get mucky
c) it’s covered by the breakdown cover which obviously covers any type of ‘breakdown’ anyway, which, for £3.50 per month is peanuts for something that saves me from a whole pile of potential hassle.
Although surely, if you have breakdown cover, you are simply financing a company whose employees do the exact same job as VOSA employees?
I can only assume you have made some mistake here as I don’t see any similarities between the roles. Breakdown man comes out and fixes your car or tows it home when it breaks and doesn’t act like a little Hitler trying to nobble you for something = very useful. VOSA bod acts like God and hands out FPN for having satnav stuck to screen = no use whatsoever and ■■■■ we can do without.
One thing I have noticed is that when there is any flak heading the way of HATO, they immediately close ranks, is that the expensive police training they receive?
Like Marmite, we love it or hate it, like Marmite, it all comes in a brown jar with a yellow lid. Sometimes we want to find some in the cupboard, the rest of the time we don’t think about it
Wheel Nut:
One thing I have noticed is that when there is any flak heading the way of HATO, they immediately close ranks, is that the expensive police training they receive?
We should be more like the Frenc… HATO’s, at least they stick together.
A lot of car and truck drivers that seat too low in the seat,ie,their eye level is the same height as the steering wheel,is this a look cool gesture,or the air valve is broken in the seat,it is not just the silver haired brigade that do this in their Metro on the way to the garden centre 50 miles away.
toby1234abc:
‘… I have seen a lot of hatred towards these fine folks…’
I save my venom for the civil servants and political egg heads that took their very effective predecessors off the roads.
HATO’s often seem embarrassed and toothless …and can’t wait to finish shift. How could I hate such a sorry bunch who only want to pay a mortgage? Despite being qualified (I reckon!) I wouldn’t do their rancid job.
Like much that the government touches, they now typify “Sad UK plc” by being expensively done on the cheap.
Bearing in mind that Blair didn’t tell us many truths, weren’t HATO’s originally a means for Brown to save costs with the savings spent on bombing Arabs …and to pay our daily EU membership subscription, etc?
Meanwhile, the Germans have their very effective Politzei - and we have HATO’s. Hmmm, food for thought!?
So as such, aren’t HATO’s simply (as a collective of individuals) a well meaning gaggle of bods who are effectively toothless when it comes to managing feral bits of road system. Rather than hate them perhaps pity them?
I saw a hato officer yesterday dinnertime just before J39 M6 Shap southbound lying down on the hard shoulder putting a jack underneath a car to change some one’s tyre, wasn’t you Highwayman was it ?
If so , you should really wear a hat, the reflection was dazzling
Well done that man for chucking the rule book out !
Wheel Nut:
One thing I have noticed is that when there is any flak heading the way of HATO, they immediately close ranks, is that the expensive police training they receive?
Im a very experienced officer with a roads policing back ground with lots of years under my belt, take it from me their are Highways officers who are the dog ■■■■■■■■ at what they do and there are fricking idiots among us! Its very much a lottery who attends a job. I personalty think there is a serious management problem, they have never been out on a road and desk assess everything. Its a very difficult place to work.
I have no reason to close rank i will deal professionally with any situation regardless of how big or small. Just telling it as it is
Wheel Nut:
One thing I have noticed is that when there is any flak heading the way of HATO, they immediately close ranks, is that the expensive police training they receive?
