The incident happened on Monday morning on Welzower Straße in Cottbus, according to a statement from German police. Several cars had been parked in a way that prevented the truck from leaving. Instead of waiting for enforcement or assistance, the driver got into a forklift and moved the vehicles himself.
Police were called to the scene and inspected the cars that had been repositioned. Officers said they found no visible signs of damage. German media reported that the driver appeared to handle the forklift confidently.
The car owners were informed and asked to check their vehicles carefully. Police did not say how many cars had been moved, nor did they confirm whether the vehicles had been parked illegally.
Although the story has an almost comic edge, it also touches on a familiar source of frustration in road transport: lost time.
For professional drivers, even a short delay can create problems. A blocked exit, a missed loading slot or a long wait at a warehouse can affect the next job, drivers’ hours and the rest of the day’s schedule.
Waiting times at loading and unloading sites remain one of the biggest complaints in the sector. In the Truckers Life Foundation’s “Professional Drivers’ Pay Report 2025”, more than 55% of surveyed drivers named long waits for loading or unloading as one of the most frustrating parts of the job.
Conditions at loading and unloading locations were also criticised. According to the same report, 67.3% of respondents complained about poor sanitary facilities at such sites.
The Cottbus incident may be an extreme example, but it reflects a wider problem repeatedly raised by drivers across Europe: tight schedules, limited control over delays and a working environment where small disruptions can quickly turn into major setbacks.
