With the snow expected to last until the end of this month, this might be the traffic solution for us!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoZrqTbW_zg]

The Department of Transport has recently declared that any haulage companies operating for hire and reward under normal licenses must now have 30% more cash reserves compared to former requirement. This is to comply with EU requirements.

Road Haulage Association Chief Executive Geoff Dunning commented: “This increase represents one of the biggest bombshells ever to hit UK transport operators. In the current economic climate, an increase of any kind will have a detrimental effect; this substantial hike could have a catastrophic effect on our industry.”

On New Year’s Day of 2010, Shiply achieved a new milestone: 100,000 shipments listed on our site since launch in just June 2008.

We want to extend our gratitude to our members, both transport providers and users for helping us reach this milestone. A Very Happy New Year To You All!

Christmas is normally the time of year when family members gather together.

Christmas is traditionally a family occasion

However, we believe many very dedicated couriers and delivery drivers on Shiply worked through Christmas Day, delivering those last minute Christmas items – making lots of people very happy (just like Santa Claus).

We are really interested to know how you spent your Christmas. So please share your stories with us below!

The heavy snow over the last few days has created huge delays for lorry drivers trying to leave the UK.

Lorries, trucks and HGVs wanting to cross the English Channel from the Port of Dover were asked to park on the coast bound carriageway due to the bad weather. This has turned the M20 into a giant lorry park.

Heavy snow has caused substantial delays on the M20

Andy Pearson shared his thoughts: “What a way to start the Christmas week – I have to go all the way to Hungary and I thought I would be back to my family in Rochdale for Christmas. Now it doesn’t look as though I’ll leave England by then.”

In early hours of Monday the M20 was re-opened after the backlog of traffic was cleared. Ferry services from Dover also resumed but were still subject to delays.

We hope that not so many couriers & haulage companies on Shiply were affected by this but if you were, please share your stories, we believe everybody is interested to know.

As the weather throughout the UK is becoming more and more extreme, we believe the following tips will be helpful for couriers and haulage firms using Shiply.

Drivers have to be very careful whilst driving in harsh winter conditions

Make sure your vehicle is in good condition before getting on the road

• Clean all snow and ice from your vehicle
• Do a visual check of tyres, wiper blades, fluids and lights
• Keep at least half tank of fuel at all times

Drive, brake and accelerate slower

As the roads become very slippery with snow and ice, driving slowly will mean a safer trip. The same rule applies to braking and accelerating.

Give yourself extra space in front and behind

You may need those extra few seconds when needing to brake.

Be extra careful while driving in mountains

In winter, high altitude weather can change very suddenly, so be extra cautious in such terrain. Watch for melting or hard-packed snow and strong side winds as these can cause a loss of control.

Keep your lights on

So other vehicles can see you.

Prepare an emergency kit

Make sure you are prepared in case you get stuck in the snow. The kit might include:

• Proper clothing, and lots of it for layers
• A flashlight and batteries
• First aid kit
• Tool kit
• Blanket or sleeping bag
• A fully charged mobile phone and charger
• Other items that you may consider necessary

For a long time, The Victoria Annual Lighted Truck Parade has been amongst the most famous truck parades in the world.

This year, the Parade was hosted on 5/12/2009 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Below is the video footage of this year’s parade. Hope you will enjoy it and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIJVZE4PXPU]

Alton Edwards, former haulage driver, probably holds the world record (if there is any) for the distance he has logged up during the years working as a trucker.

Now 76 years old, Alton has driven about 2.5 million miles on the road. That’s about 100 times around the world!

Alton Edwards has logged up more than 2.5 million miles on the road.

Furthermore, as sometimes he held two or three jobs, if we calculate his jobs separately, Alton has worked for more than 105 years.

Not only was Alton famous for his time and distance spent on the road, he was also known for being a safe driver and always keeping extra-clean trucks.

Although Alton has retired from several jobs, he still works as a fire and rescue consultant for the 911 Oversight Committee appointed by the Columbus County Commissioners.

We believe Alton’s wheels will be rolling for a long time to come…

Probably all of us are familiar with the “Sorry You Were Out” cards from Royal Mail. However, recent research conducted by Consumer Focus, the official postal watchdog has revealed that 55% of Royal Mail customers believe they have been misled by their postmen who left the “Sorry you were out” cards when they were actually at home.

Royal Mail famous “Sorry You Were Out” card

To make the matter worse, the research also found out that some postmen, in order to cut down the time to finish their rounds, were leaving parcels at their sorting office and taking out “Sorry, you were out cards” instead.

Heena Kankali, a student in Aston University, had to travel across Birmingham to the city’s Newtown depot to pickup a crucial textbook after it was not delivered to her home.

Heena said:”The postmen don’t even have the parcels with them. They just come to our halls and post the ‘Sorry’ slips through our letter boxes.’

Consumer Focus suggested that Royal Mail and other courier companies should make it easier for people to collect their parcels. This could include extending the delivery offices’ opening hours or setting up banks of secure lockers, a successful system used in Germany.

Despite various complaints as well as the postal strike, the watchdog’s research found that three quarters customers felt they had received a good delivery service from Royal Mail.