Derby's trunk roads and where vehicles stop
Derby sits inside a web of trunk roads that carry a large share of the region's freight. The A38 forms nearly four miles of the city's outer ring road, with roundabouts at Kingsway for the A5111, Markeaton for the A52 and Little Eaton for the A61. Below the city, the A50 Derby Southern Bypass runs for 14.9 miles, much of it laid in concrete, between the A38 at Burnaston and the stretch it shares with the M1 near Kegworth. Brian Clough Way takes the A52 out towards Nottingham, and the A6 comes in through Alvaston. When a lorry, coach or van fails on any of them, the number is 01332 916028, and it is answered whatever the hour.
Describing the spot
On a network this busy, a junction name is worth more than a postcode. A driver who can say the vehicle is on the urban section of the A38 between Kingsway and Markeaton, where the limit is 40 mph, or eastbound on the A50 short of the A6 junction for Alvaston and Shardlow, gives our technician a clear target. The three-level stacked roundabout where the A38 and A50 meet near Burnaston, with Derby with Burton services on it, is another useful landmark. Even the last road sign the driver passed narrows it down.
A repair in the lay-by beats a tow
We set out intending to get the vehicle going where it has stopped, because a load that moves again from the verge or the lay-by usually still makes its drop. Air leaks, failed lighting, flat batteries, tyre damage and fuel faults are the sort of problems a prepared technician can often clear without a tow. When the fault, or the position of the vehicle, makes that unsafe, recovery is the sensible answer, with equipment rated for an artic, a loaded rigid or a coach rather than kit built for cars.
Recovered vehicles come to our workshop at Calke Mill Farm on Ashby Road in Melbourne, south of the city. If your own fitters would rather take it from there, we can deliver it to your yard instead, whether that is in Sinfin, Spondon or another part of Derby.
While the driver waits
Safety comes first: hazard lights on, out of the cab on the side away from traffic, and behind the barrier if there is one. Keep the phone switched on and the registration handy. Once we know where the vehicle is and what it is doing, we will tell you plainly what we can do and what happens next.
