Moreton Cullimore is calling on fellow haulage firm owners and their drivers to back a petition to make HGV driver facilities a mandatory part of the planning application process for major infrastructure projects.
As well as being the managing director of his family’s Gloucestershire, west England firm, The Cullimore Group, Cullimore is a member of The Road Haulage Association (RHA) ‘s national board and chair of its Bristol and Gloucestershire sub-group.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, several drivers and the RHA took to social media illustrating the poor rest facilities currently available, with incidents of drivers being refused access to bathrooms at their drop-off points also common.
Cullimore, who has posted a video about the petition on LinkedIn, said: “The lack of adequate, safe facilities for drivers has been a problem for far too long. Many drivers are either forced to park in unsafe locations such as laybys because there is nowhere else for them to rest, putting themselves and their loads at risk. Truck drivers have kept the country stocked and supplied during the Covid-19 pandemic, and are the unsung heroes of our economy. This is why I am reaching out to the wider haulage sector to show its support for this petition and improve conditions for our drivers.“
In addition to its HGV Heroes programme, where drivers are recognised for their efforts during Covid-19, this November will see the RHA’s annual National Lorry Week campaign, which encourages people to consider a career in haulage.
The Moreton Cullimore-backed petition, ‘Review planning legislation to include facilities for HGV drivers’, had received more than 5,000 signatures as of Monday 7 September 2020.The full petition can be accessed at https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/323286.
