Why big rigs are out in front

QUESTION Why do trucks here tend to have engines underneath the driver’s cab, while in the USA they mostly use trucks with engines at the front?

THE difference in the location of truck engines between Ireland and the rest of Europe and the US is all down to regulation, or in the case of the US, lack of regulation.

Here in Ireland as in the rest of Europe, trucks are generally made with the driver’s cab placed directly over the engine. European regulation on truck design is very strict, which means that any deviations from this basic design, to put engines in the front of cabs, simply wouldn’t be allowed.

Trucks being used in Europe often have to navigate narrow city streets and deliver goods to retail outlets that often have only limited docking space for trucks. European legislation means that truck manufacturers have to be very innovative in designing and making trucks.

But these innovations mean that European trucks can fit in much more stock within a limited truck length. Putting the cab directly above the engine gives the driver much visibility, with a 180-degree view of the road he or she is driving along, even if it’s noisier for the driver. This type of truck has much more manoeuverability than USstyle trucks, because they are far easier to turn on a smaller axis.

The innovation in making European trucks is such that some manufacturers are now making trucks that if they’re in a crash, the engine becomes detached from beneath the cab, so that other vehicles in that collision are collapsed rather than crushed.

If the design of European trucks is so tightly regulated, in the US, much more relaxed regulation has allowed trucks with their engines in front of their cabs to dominate in the vast spaces of the US, where, for example, the state of Texas is the same size as France.

In the US in the early 1980s, the laws on vehicle lengths were relaxed, so that while the length of each individual trailer towed by a truck is controlled, there are no restrictions on the number of trailers a truck can tow or on the total vehicle length.

As a result, trucks with the engine in front of the cab became much more popular, so much so that nowadays, most major truck manufacturers in the US no longer make cab-over-engine designs.

John Healy, by email.

QUESTION Why are police stations known as ‘barracks’ in Ireland?

UP until the early 19th century, when the first proper police force was formed in Ireland, the country was mainly policed by military, stationed in barracks. The use of that word has stuck ever since. Even today, when people talk about the local Garda station, they often refer to it as ‘the barracks’. Until the late 18th century, policing was almost exclusively the work of local units of the British Army, stationed in barracks around the country.

Then in 1775, the Irish Militia was formed, mainly to try to put down agitation in rural towns throughout the country. Militia groups formed included the Athlone Rangers, the Kilkenny Rangers, the Naas Light Dragoons and Engine difference: A US-style truck and, inset, a European lorry the Tullamore Rangers. These militia groups were basically an auxiliary military force tasked with policing duties.

They superseded various groups that tried to maintain law and order. Night watchmen, employed by town councils, were complemented by constables paid by local Anglican rectors, but the main policing work had been done by local soldiers, including regiments of the regular Army. So the bulk of policing work was done by the Army and after the Irish Militia groups were formed, that military element continued strongly.

All those military personnel were based in barracks and even into the start of the 19th century, the military presence was very conspicuous. In the early years of the 19th century, about 50,000 military personnel were based in Ireland, of whom 20,000 were in local units of the Irish Militia.

About half of the permanent soldiers in Ireland were British, while the other half were Irish.

Towards the end of the 18th century, limited policing had been set up, but it was still dominated by the military. The Dublin Police Act of 1786 set up a limited form of constabulary in Dublin and this continued until 1836, when local police were renamed as the Dublin Metropolitan Police. They, too, had begun with strong military overtones, since originally, the police in Dublin were composed of a mounted troop of officers, just like soldiers on horseback. The Dublin Metropolitan Police lasted until 1925, when they were incorporated into An Garda Síochána.

But throughout the early 19th century, there was a threat of rebellion and agitation throughout Ireland, so finally, in 1822, the then British government, ruling through Dublin Castle, decided to set up a nationwide constabulary. In 1867, this was renamed the Royal Irish Constabulary, as a ‘reward’ for its efforts in putting down the Fenian uprising in 1867.

This new constabulary had a strong militaristic background. There was a marked class distinction between officers and men, just as there was in the British army, and the ranks in the new force were based on ranks in the British army. A district inspector, first class, was equivalent to a major in the army.

The dark green uniforms RIC members wore were very similar to the uniforms worn by members of British Army rifle regiments.

But the RIC represented the first large-scale, nationwide policing service in Ireland and the numbers who joined were considerable. Between 1822 and 1922, when it was disbanded, around 85,000 men served in the RIC, 80% of them Catholics. Since the RIC had such a strong military background, it was inevitable that their police stations would be called barracks by local people, even when the Garda force was set up in 1922.

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