Re: Road Train: the Video
Originally Posted by
Silver Tabby
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Wow, Bruce, those things are certainly huge!! Are all the roads in Aus so straight and well maintained?
The Road trains are up to 53 metres long but they can only be used on certain areas and larger towns have restrictions on which roads they can use or whether they have to be broken up into separate trailers.
The roads in remote areas tend to be straightish (road builders always take the path of least resistance so they go round hills or creeks) and you can drive for hours without a town or settlement so cruise control is brilliant. The only side signs of life are mail boxes for the stations/farms which could be 60km away
Some of the roads are a bit bumpy BUT our roads are only an inch or so of tarmac because we don't get frosts (water expands at 4'C and breaks the surface up). Thats speaking very generally.
I don't know if you noticed but some of those roads are only single lane so when a car comes in the other direction you both have to put one side wheels in the dirt to pass however on road train routes road trains have right of way so you have to take to the dirt (as I did)
Dirt roads are a different matter the can be smooth or rutted some you can travel at 100ks on others you have to let half the air out of the tyres they are so rutted. And then there is bulldust which is like driving on loose dry, fine sand and easy to get bogged up to the axles.