The menace of heavy trucks on the road

It is not a subject of discussion that heavy duty trucks are vehicles that occupy a bigger section of the road. If it is not a fuel tanker moving on 22 tyres, it is a boxy body truck carrying a container loaded with merchandise. Heavy duty trucks can also at times be box body lorries or trucks that carry sand. These merchandise carriers are such a scare to several road users and none seems immune to their size.
Bright James, a motorist, says on several occasions, he has been bullied by heavy duty trucks while driving.
“Heavy duty truck drivers do not respect other motorists. They always think they have a right of way. I have observed that truck drivers expect me to read their mind and watch out for their behaviour and act accordingly,” Bright says. However, such is presumptuous and is such a very bad driving habit.

Parking in wrong places
For Anthony Makumbi, a motorist, heavy vehicles become a problem when they break down and he finds himself in a situation where he cannot continue with a particular route and has to devise or look for alternative routes to use.
“Sometimes trucks park in wrong places and end up blocking or cutting off certain roads. If I do not find another road to use, they never give way. There are times when they use narrow routes you would not expect them to use and cause unnecessary traffic,” Makumbi says, adding that when turning, trucks sometimes breakdown, thus blocking the road and paralysing traffic flow.

Long and big in size
Sheeba Nassuna, a motorist ,observes that trucks are not only long in nature, meaning that they occupy bigger sections of the road, but that their height is also scary to other motorists.
“When I am driving, I have for several times been at the mercy of big trucks. Even when the road is narrow and it is to be shared, truck drivers will find a way of squeezing me into a corner. When I hoot at them, they never understand that there is another motorist using the same road,” Nassuna explains.
“If they (truck drivers) can have an element of patience and consideration to other motorists, some of the fatal accidents would not happen,” Nassuna adds.

Occupying more road space
Charles Ssebambulidde, the spokesperson of the traffic directorate, agrees that heavy duty trucks are a hindrance to traffic flow. During peak hours, once there are two trucks in a queue of traffic jam, it is equivalent to nine or 10 saloon cars.
“In case a truck experiences a small mechanical problem, even if it parks on the roadside, its body will somehow occupy a small section of the road and this to some extent narrows down the road,” Ssebambulidde explains.
Before 2009, trucks caused a lot of traffic jam within Kampala City Centre.
This then paved way for the commencement of the construction of the semicircle Kampala Northern Bypass that runs through parts of Naalya, Bukoto, Bwaise, Namungoona and Busega, among others, to decongest the city centre and clear it of the traffic jam that was caused by trucks.
“We have urged and continue advising truck drivers to make use of the Northern Bypass to avoid traffic jam in the city where there is less space for them,” says Ssebambulidde.
Nonetheless, while they are a menace, saloon car drivers should also apply some caution when driving. According to tranbc.ca, an online portal, they are advised to stay out of the trucks’ blind spots, avoid cutting infront of them, allow ample room for passing, give lots of advance notice before making any move around heavy trucks, and keep out of runway lanes.
These are precautionary measures to ensure that you are not in the wrong.

What to watch out for
Much as trucks are fond of causing traffic jam in major towns and Kampala City Centre, along highways, they are more of a menace to saloon cars in a number of ways.
Bright James, a motorist, observes that when they break down especially in tight spots such as corners, their drivers do nothing to alert other motorists of the breakdown by using hazard triangles.
The loud and sharp hooting from truck horns sometimes pushes saloon car motorists into panic and pressure that can at times lead to causing accidents or veering off the road into a swamp.
At night, truck drivers are also fond of applying full lights and end up blocking sight of the road by motorists on the oncoming traffic direction. This, however, Charles Ssebambulidde, the spokesperson of the traffic directorate says is dependent on the character and discipline of the driver.
“Unnecessary loud hooting and driving with full lights to block another motorist’s sight is a traffic offence. If you confuse a motorist in a small car simply because your car is bigger than theirs, you will both go down.
The solution is to be accommodative so that all drivers of trucks and those in small cars can all use the road in a friendly manner,” Ssebambulidde advises.
In case a truck is driving recklessly on a narrow road, it is advisable not to compete with them. Give them space until you reach a wider point to overtake, least you risk an accident.