Delivery service - almost ANYWHERE!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE DELIVERY OF RAILWAY SLEEPERS
*What delivery options do I have for railway sleepers?
*Is there a minimum order of railway sleepers?
*How do we work out the delivery cost of railway sleepers?
*Where do we deliver railway sleepers to?
*What vehicles do we use?
*Do I have to offload my order?
*Can I collect from you? How much can I overhang my vehicle? 
*Can you deliver to Europe or Worldwide?
*Can you deliver to Outer Space?
*Can you deliver into the past?

WHAT DELIVERY OPTIONS DO I HAVE?
You have TWO options, depending on which delivery option you choose at the checkout stage online, or when you telephone the office.

1) STANDARD DELIVERY - CUSTOMER TO OFFLOAD RAILWAY SLEEPERS
This is normally a quicker & cheaper means of delivery that generally covers 100% of the UK, providing you have a forklift or sufficient strong people to offload your railway sleepers. 
* DELIVERY TIMESCALE: You can choose any delivery day you want in advance within 2- 4 working days, Monday - Friday. Delivery will be between 9am & 5pm. You can choose, for a surcharge, a Saturday delivery.
* YOU are responsible for offloading the railway sleepers from the vehicle. The vehicle does NOT have a crane offload. If you do not have a forklift, you MUST have at least 2 or more strong people to manually offload. These timbers are too heavy for one person. The driver is NOT able to help you offload or carry materials into your house or garden. One exception! If the railway sleepers are 1.2m or less in length, the lorry driver CAN place the railway sleepers onto the pavement or road using the lorry tail lift and hand pallet truck.
* ACCESS: You must ensure that there is sufficient space for the lorry to access your road and property, and that there is sufficient area for you to safely offload. The vehicle is normally a rigid lorry which is about 10 metres long and about 2.6m wide (Imagine a full size bin lorry) It is crucial to tell us, when we contact you to arrange delivery, whether there are any delivery problems - e.g. a narrow road, cul de sac, cars parked in front of the property etc... An unsuccessful delivery will incur a further charge, often equal to the original haulage cost.

2) PREMIUM DELIVERY - THE RAILWAY SLEEPERS WILL BE OFFLOADED FOR YOU
This delivery charge is normally more expensive than the Standard delivery, but is essential if you order some heavy railway sleepers, and you haven't got a forklift, or sufficient strong people to help you offload. Having your railway sleepers placed on your drive is a perfect way of protecting your back and keeping your friends happy!
* DELIVERY TIMESCALE is generally within 1- 2 weeks, Monday - Friday, and between 8am & 6pm. Unfortunately you can't normally choose your own delivery day in advance, as the haulier will need to efficiently piece together a set of deliveries, according to which part of the UK they are driving to. Please let us know in advance if there are any delivery days you can't make. We will normally confirm the exact date a few days before.
* ACCESS: You must ensure that there is sufficient space for the lorry to access your road and property, and that there is enough area for the lorry to be safely offloaded. The vehicle is normally a rigid lorry which is about 10 metres long and about 2.6m wide (Imagine a full size bin lorry) It is crucial to tell us, when we contact you to arrange delivery, whether there are any access problems - e.g. a narrow road, cul de sac, cars parked in front of the property etc... An unsuccessful delivery will incur a further charge, often equal to the original haulage cost.

IS THERE A MINIMUM ORDER OF RAILWAY SLEEPERS?
No. It makes no difference. The cost to you is the same whether we deliver 1 railway sleeper or 10 railway sleepers... e.g. if the delivery cost to somewhere in the UK for 20 railway sleepers was for example £99 + Vat, then the delivery for 1 railway sleeper would cost the same. That's because our hauliers charge us according to how much lorry space the order takes up, so whether there is 1 railway sleeper on a pallet, or 20 railway sleepers on it, it makes no difference!

HOW DO WE WORK OUT THE DELIVERY COST OF RAILWAY SLEEPERS?
The delivery charge depends on what type of railway sleeper you chose and where you live. If you go online and place the number of railway sleepers you are interested in into the shopping basket, and input your postcode, the website will calculate the delivery cost according to the number and length of the railway sleepers. If you play around with different lengths of railway sleepers, you will discover that 1.2m ones are the cheapest to have delivered, followed then by any sleeper up to 2.4m in length, and then finally the longer 2.6m, 3m and 3.6m ones. It's all about what space the railway sleepers take up on a lorry, and what the haulage companies then charge us.  Lots of different variables ! So, if you order online, the delivery cost will be worked out automatically by a computer brain. If you order by telephone, the delivery cost will be calculated by a mere human being, who will chat with you whilst working it all out!

WHERE DO WE DELIVER RAILWAY SLEEPERS TO?
We can generally deliver railway sleepers, poles and landscaping materials anywhere in the UK, including most islands and isolated boggy bits. Occasionally we deliver to Europe and even further afield on rare occasions. We currently have a small intergalactic haulage service covering most of the Solar System. 

WHAT VEHICLES DO WE USE?
We use a collection of vehicles, ranging from large artic lorries, to smaller 'curtain side' rigid pallet lorries, and a small 4WD vehicle with trailer for local deliveries. Some options require the customer to offload, whereas others have cranes or forklifts attached.

DO I HAVE TO OFFLOAD MY ORDER?
It depends on whether you choose STANDARD delivery which you have to offload yourself, or PREMIUM delivery which will be offloaded for you. 

CAN I COLLECT FROM YOU?
YES! Please ring us first to confirm a time to visit us or collect something. 0115 9890445. 
Several people have made the journey to us, out of opening hours & have been disappointed to find nobody here to help them. Please contact us first, to confirm a visiting time. We're flexible, MON - FRI (9.00 - 4.30) & SAT AM (9.00 - 12.00) 

​HOW MUCH CAN I OVERHANG MY VEHICLE?
If you plan to collect a railway sleeper that is longer than your car, trailer, roof rack or lorry, you may need to overhang the back of the vehicle. Is this legal?
The rules are fairly simple:
1) For railway sleepers that stick out no more than 1 metre either to the front or back of a vehicle, there are no specific requirements.
2) If the railway sleepers project between 1-2 metres at the back, the end must be made clearly visible and marked with something bright like a red cloth or a high vis jacket. See photo!
3) If the railway sleepers overhang by more than 2 metres, official projection marker boards must be fitted. This must be illuminated at night.
4) If the railway sleepers overhang more than 3.05 metres, the police must be informed two days before the journey, and an attendant must be present. 
5) If the railway sleepers overhang more than 10 metres, you've either misread your tape measure, or you are attempting some kind of Guinness World Record! Good luck on roundabouts!

Of course, it helps to be REALISTIC about the size and carrying capacity of your car or vehicle. Some have chosen their faithful two wheeled bike to collect their railway sleepers whilst others have put their trust in their four wheeled vehicles! Here are some pictures of a few optimistic drivers:  SEE OVERLOAD!   

CAN YOU DELIVER TO EUROPE OR WORLDWIDE?
We DO supply railway sleepers and telegraph poles to European and worldwide destinations, however:
* All responsibilty for arranging international haulage, shipping, ordering & filling containers, customs & paperwork etc.. lies with the customer.
* We do not load or stuff containers. We can arrange delivery of railway sleepers to any UK destination or port. Alternatively customers can arrange collection from our central yard in Nottingham, providing your order can be loaded by forklift. 

CAN YOU DELIVER TO OUTER SPACE?
DELIVERIES TO OUTER SPACE
* All responsibilty for arranging intergalactic haulage, ordering & filling cargo spacecraft, and international space federation permits etc.. lies with the customer. Destination site to offload.
* Deliveries to our own solar system can often be arranged with the European Space Agency
* Deliveries to the rest of the universe will normally be shipped with the International Space Federation.
* We can arrange delivery of railway sleepers to most launch pad sites. Alternatively customers can arrange collection from our headquarters in the UK. Your order will be loaded by forklift.
* We do not load / stuff cargo spacecraft (with the exception of our Houston branch).

25.08.20
Dear Sirs
I have been trying to calculate the cost to the dark side of the moon, however you haven’t been specific as to delivery charges to that region. On reflection I have considered that the delivery costs to my COVID free holiday home on the moon to be somewhat excessive, so instead I have opted for a delivery to my back garden in central London.
David Cummin 

Dear David,
Apologies for the lack of clarity. If you could furnish us with the exact number of railway sleeper you require shipping, together with the exact location of your lunar settlement, we will be able to quote more exactly, using NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Unfortunately, there have been recent price increases for commercial cargo from SpaceX and Orbital ATK, which have inflated space delivery costs.
Railway Sleepers Ltd

CAN YOU DELIVER INTO THE PAST?
DELIVERIES INTO THE PAST:
We offer a bespoke service ranging from deliveries to the 20th century and back as far as neolithic Britain. Each consignment will include a gift card or message of your choosing. We are confident in delivering to any period in the past, providing
* you can specify the exact time and year 
* you have a precise destination, with exact location.  
* you have the name of the site contact.
Unfortunately in the event of an incorrect timescale, an inaccurate location or refused delivery, you will be liable for any fees incurred. 
Unwanted items can only be returned to the present within 30 days of purchase providing they are molecularly unaltered by time transportation. We are unable to arrange collection.
We are currently only able to transport railway sleepers and poles. We are unable to transport livestock or people.
WARNING:
Sending items into the past can irreversibly change the future. In no event will Railway Sleepers Ltd be liable for any physical, emotional or financial loss or damage of any kind, arising out of a delivery to the past.

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