When a vehicle stops on the A38 around Burton upon Trent
The A38 takes through traffic around Burton rather than into it, linking the town with Derby one way and Birmingham the other. The bypass section between Branston and Clay Mills opened in June 1967, and many of its old at-grade junctions have since been upgraded or stopped up, which is worth bearing in mind when a driver is trying to describe where they are. Beyond Clay Mills the road passes into South Derbyshire, past the Willington junction, to the three-level stacked roundabout where it meets the A50 near Burnaston. Further south, around Barton Turn, the carriageway runs right alongside the railway for about a mile.
If one of your vehicles stops anywhere on that stretch, the driver's first job is to get out on the side away from the traffic and behind the barrier if there is one. Then ring 01332 916028 with the carriageway, the nearest junction and whether the vehicle is loaded.
Breakdowns inside the town
Not every breakdown happens on the trunk road. The A5121 carries traffic through the middle of Burton, joining the A38, the A5189 and the A511, and the Trent crossings are where a stopped vehicle causes the most disruption. Tell us whether you are on St Peter's Bridge, which carries the A5189, on the old Burton bridge that takes the A511 over the river, or out in Horninglow, Shobnall or Stretton. A brewery gate or a warehouse yard is a very different job from a live lane, and knowing which tells us what to bring.
Fix it there if we can
Our technicians set out expecting to repair the fault where the vehicle stands, carrying the tools and common parts that deal with most air, electrical, tyre and fuel faults. For a warehouse or drinks load booked into a delivery slot, a trailer repaired at the kerb can still make it, while a recovered one rarely does.
When a repair there would not be safe, or simply is not possible, we recover the vehicle with equipment rated for heavy commercials. From Burton that normally means up the A38 to the A50 and on to our workshop at Calke Mill Farm, Melbourne, although we will take it to your own yard instead if your fitters would rather finish the job.
Never used us before?
You don't need an account to call us out. We take emergency calls from operators we have never worked with, card payment is accepted on the day, and fleets that want their breakdowns handled alongside servicing can be set up on account afterwards. Whatever the hour, the number is the same: 01332 916028.
