Horse Trailer Towing Complicates Blackpool Road Works

Blackpool Council and local residents are working hard to resolve differences involving a recent road project that has been delayed. The first phase of the project was completed when Division Lane was resurfaced recently. However, council officials do not know how to proceed from here. They are looking to install pinch point safety measures on the road between St Anne’s and Blackpool, but those measures do not sit well with local residents.

The plans include speed bumps and ripple speed humps to keep vehicle speeds down. Nevertheless, local residents are concerned that such measures will make it difficult for those towing horse trailers. They’ve asked the council to forgo the speed bumps and humps in favour of simply reducing the area speed limit to 20 mph. Council officials are not so sure that a simple speed limit reduction will help. Thus, the two sides are trying to work out an amenable compromise.

Ultimately, the best solution is to build a new link road to alleviate the traffic now being absorbed by smaller country lanes such as Division Lane. Nonetheless, such a link road could cost some $20 million, an amount the local council just does not have to spend. For now, they will have to content themselves with resurfacing local lanes and installing pinch point and speed control measures.

Why It’s a Problem

Under normal conditions, speed bumps and humps are easily navigable with a passenger vehicle without risking equipment or passengers. However, horse trailer towing is different. Having to tow a trailer over a series of speed humps or bumps could damage axles, suspension, wheels and frame. It can also cause problems with the animals themselves.

To understand this, one need only go through a training course designed to teach people how to tow horse trailers safely. Drivers are taught to keep sharp turns and jolts to a minimum for the sake of their horses. They are also instructed about weight issues and how certain shocks to a trailer can harm equipment. Everything drivers are taught in training classes runs counter to having to deal with speed bumps and humps.

Train with Us

As they try to work out a solution in Blackpool, the HGV Training Centre wants to invite you to train with us. If your horse trailer and tow vehicle exceed a certain weight limit, you may need a B+E licence to carry on certain kinds of business activities involving horses. Yet even if you do not need a special licence, training is always a good idea when transporting live animals.

Carrying animals as cargo is very different from towing a camping trailer or a utility trailer. It requires some additional knowledge and skills enabling drivers to transport the animals safely and with as little anxiety as possible. At the HGV Training Centre, we teach drivers everything they need to know in this regard. We offer training classes at more than 45 facilities around the UK, making training both convenient and affordable. Call us for details.

Sources:

1. Blackpool Gazette – https://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/news/fresh-twist-in-road-saga-1-6966203