# Road Trains in Oz.



## prof20 (Jan 11, 2007)

Glad we don't have these leviathans on our roads!

http://www.liveleak.com/ll_embed?f=ee81b4364a62

Roger


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## ukgreynomads (Jan 19, 2008)

Passed one on the Barkley Highway in the Northern Terriitories took ages and it was carrying cattle, the stink! :roll: 
Regards Alan


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## Glandwr (Jun 12, 2006)

Saw quite a few in the 70s. There were then exclusion areas for them. NT fine most of Queensland OK nearest that they could get to Sydney was Dubbo (250 miles into the bush) they then had to transfer to ordinary semi trailers.

When you met them on an unpaved road and most of them were then beyond the black stump :lol: You could see them approaching for miles from the dust cloud. Come up behind them and you might as well pull over and have a rest. No chance of overtaking, visibility wouldn't allow it even if you braved the flying stones.

The greatest danger though was the fact that nearly all the drivers were hopped up to the eyeballs with speed and would drive 24/7. Scary place, thanks for the memory.

Dick


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

Wouldn't like to have to do a three point turn in one of those if TomTom took me into a cul-de-sac!


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## 113016 (Jun 5, 2008)

A bit of a pain to do the coupling up  
Don't know if anybody has seen them, but they run units with two trailers loaded with containers out of Rouen


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

_A bit of a pain to do the coupling up_

Are boasting or complaining? :lol:


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## Spiritofherald (May 18, 2012)

I bet the GPM is impressive too!


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## scouter (Dec 14, 2007)

We saw quite a few in August and September in the Kimberely and the Top End in West and North Australia. The scary bit is the speed they can and will do, there doesn't appear to be any lower speed limit for trucks!

They are really scary on the single lane blacktop roads, the roads are maybe 3 lanes wide but only the middle lane is blacktop, they expect everything else to move over onto the gravel whilst they thunder past. Its safer to pull well over and stop.

However on the uphills they are definitely rather slow carrying 200 tonnes of ore, or having 3 and a 1/2 full of cattle. In Broome they were mainly cattle but near Wyndam and Kunnanurra they were ore carrying to the port on a continuous loop run.

We lost our windscreen to one on the Stuart Highway near Katherine, a stone thrown up as one went the other way.

cheers alan


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

pippin said:


> Wouldn't like to have to do a three point turn in one of those if TomTom took me into a cul-de-sac!


This chap could probably manage it :wink:


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## scouter (Dec 14, 2007)

Hi 

One other thing, nobody in the north or the outback does much reversing, there's generally enough space to turn around going forwards even in the towns, they seem to have been laid out wide enough in the old towns to turn a wagon pulled by about 12 oxen.

Even campsites advertise drive through sites and most caravans seem to be left attached overnight!

The best 30 mins entertainment we had was watching the loading of the Fraser island Ferry off the Queensland Coast, everyone had to reverse on down the slope onto the ferry. They were all 4x4s some with camping trailers.

Some with trailers were excellent, some 4x4s had to had 5 or 6 goes just to reverse in a straight line! 

The island is all sand, most of the tracks through the forest are quite rough, plenty of the tourists get stuck on the roads and even 75 mile beach is rough in places. Our driver in a 24 seat MAN based 4x4 "coach" declared at one point that all 4 wheels were slipping with all diffs locked up, but we got up the hill!

cheers alan


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

Never mind the road trains - what about the (railway) trains.

Just watched Chris Tarrant do the Ghan run up to Darwin.

That ore train was something else!


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

scouter said:


> Our driver in a 24 seat MAN based 4x4 "coach" declared at one point that all 4 wheels were slipping with all diffs locked up, but we got up the hill!
> 
> cheers alan


They need a driver like this one then - he wouldn't let a little bit of sand wouldn't stop him.






He also wouldn't worry which pitch a Caravan Club warden gave him either. :wink:


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## vicdicdoc (May 14, 2005)

pippin said:


> Never mind the road trains - what about the (railway) trains
> Just watched Chris Tarrant do the Ghan run up to Darwin!


Yep, I watched it too- brought back a few memories ( I took the "Greyhound" coach from Adelaide up to Alice springs . . . I was going to do it on my motorcycle but the heat was just OTT . . it took another 18hrs up to Darwin, everyone seems to get off the road when those road trains come through !


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Stanner said:


> This chap could probably manage it :wink:


Now that was impressive, he must have known the maneuver was possible though, but I'd have thought twice before turning the van around there.


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## Christine600 (Jan 20, 2011)

prof20 said:


> Glad we don't have these leviathans on our roads!


Would have made a great motorhome though - room for all my friends and family. :lol:

...on second thought perhaps not the best group to travel with


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

We do have them on our roads but they travel mostly at night, usaully only 3 trailers though.

There are moves afford to make tandem trailers more popular as they can move twice the goods for 1.5 times the fuel, which is better for the planet.

Eddie will be in the vanguard of that too no doubt.


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## prof20 (Jan 11, 2007)

How about this then?

I count TEN trailers! (Not loaded though).

www.wimp.com/truckdriving/#

Roger


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## prof20 (Jan 11, 2007)

And how about this for manoeuvring in a tight space!

http://www.liveleak.com/ll_embed?f=e8d11ce869f1

Roger


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

Must be like driving a Cinema down the road !!!

(Holding an HGV 1 I would LOVE to give one a go though :lol: )


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