TRAINER’S NOTES

Police forces across the country have been using unmarked trucks as part of Operation Tramline

MEET MANDY

Mandy Wannerton is the DAF Press & Demonstration Driver

peration Tramline, and the work done by Highways England and the Police to identify driving offences from the cab of an unmarked HGV, makes interesting reading. More than 21,000 offences have been spotted since its launch in 2015, including over 6,000 cases of using a hand-held mobile phone, over 6,000 instances of not wearing a seatbelt, 1,500 of not being in proper control of the vehicle and almost 1,200 for speeding. Among the incidents witnessed during Operation Tramline, was a driver steering a lorry with his knees while eating lunch on his lap and also using his phone. Officers saw a driver eating lasagne with a knife and fork while driving along a motorway. Surrey Police spotted a HGV driver boiling a kettle on the dashboard and another eating pickled gherkins from a jar with his elbows on the steering wheel. One driver was caught twice in one day – in the morning and afternoon - using their mobile phone while driving along the A38 in Derbyshire. When we think of things that can cause distractions while driving, we think of things like the mobile phone but what about the impact of something as simple as not giving our brain the TLC it deserves? You don’t need to be a scientist to know that what we eat and drink can have a huge impact on brain function. The human brain may only take up to 2% of our body weight but it uses a mahoosive 20% of our energy which is more than any other organ in our body. Our bodies are made up of 60% water and recent studies* have shown that even if we are just 1% dehydrated, it negatively affects our cognitive performance - brain fug when behind the wheel can have devastating consequences. The thing is we often mistake thirst for hunger; instead of reaching for a drink we grab whatever we can. I don’t know about you, but the high sugar drinks and snacks seem to win out more than the more nutritious options every time, and too many of these zap energy levels further and induce drowsiness. Sleep studies have shown time and time again that not getting enough sleep impacts on mood and concentration and in worstcase scenarios, is akin to driving under the influence of alcohol.

RUNNING ON EMPTY O Yeah, concentration thieves come in many guises and are just waiting to turn that good day to bad. We have no say in what’s going on outside the cab, but there are a couple of simple things we can do when inside the cab to help us have a safe and relatively stressfree day. Firstly, get familiar and confident in using the truck’s features. Not only does this give an easier time behind the wheel, it will give the best chance of successfully dealing with ever-changing road and traffic conditions. Secondly, take better care of ourselves and check our brain gauge more often, before turning that key. After all, we wouldn’t take a truck out that was running in the red would we? Safe and well now. Mandy x