This is the TDMST Weekly Round-Up of news affecting professional truck drivers, written by Vicki Simons for the week ending September 18, 2021.
We welcome your comments, thoughts and feedback on the items of your choice below.
1. Regarding COVID-19:
Article II of The Constitution of the United States clearly describes that “executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America” and exactly what that entails.
Nowhere does the Constitution grant the President power to make Executive Orders that demand compliance of states and the people regarding their medical decisions!
In fact, in the “Bill of Rights,” here’s what the Fourth Amendment states:
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
You may also want to read:
- 18 U.S. Code § 242 – Deprivation of rights under color of law
- 42 U.S. Code § 2000a – Prohibition against discrimination or segregation in places of public accommodation
- 42 U.S. Code § 2000a–1 – Prohibition against discrimination or segregation required by any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, rule or order of a State or State agency
If you want proof of some of the devastating effects of what the CV jab is doing to people (adverse events and deaths), I suggest you look at:
- What is happening in Israel, the most vaccinated country in the world;
- The very limited information that is being published on the passive Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), which is made easier to understand, courtesy of OpenVaers.com; and
- Information posted by mRNA Death Toll on Telegram.
Once a poison death shot is injected in your body, some of the effects may be irreversible, including stroke, heart damage, what follows the formation of blood clots (including micro-blood clots), etc.
Before you take the jab, consider very carefully if your health and your life are more important to you than a job or income.
Here are some of the most recent articles on this topic:
- ATA warns vaccine mandate could do ‘harm’
- ATA: Biden’s vaccination mandate will disrupt supply chain
- Congress, Illegal Migrants Exempt From Biden’s Vaccine Mandates BUT Truckers Are NOT
- Congress, Illegal Migrants Exempt From Biden’s Vaccine Mandates BUT Truckers Are NOT
- Iowa 80 hosts COVID vaccination clinics Sept. 16 and 17
- Largest Trucking Group Blasts President Biden’s ‘Discriminatory’ Vaccine Mandates
- Questions remain over feasibility of White House testing goals
- TCA ask members to contact lawmakers over Biden vax mandate
- TCA chair asks members to tell lawmakers about impact of vaccination plan
- The day after: Trucking ponders what vaccination mandate means for industry
- Trucking org pushes back on ‘discriminatory’ vaccine mandate
- Truckload Carriers warns of vaccine mandate’s ‘far-reaching implications’
- Union Pacific CEO Sees Strong Economy Coming Out of Pandemic
- Vaccine mandate for truckers? It’s still not clear
- Vaccine mandates and big companies
- Vaccine mandates are here — This is how truck drivers and trucking companies are responding
- White House Won’t Rule Out Requiring COVID-19 Vaccination For Interstate Travel
- Will you get the COVID vaccine if your company requires it?
One other thing: If you would like to learn more about what The Constitution of the United States says and means, I highly recommend the 6-part series: “The Constitution is the Solution.”
2. Regarding NTDAW, CPAP, and accidents:
National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (NTDAW)
Please bear in mind that some of the ways in which businesses and people “appreciate” truckers may be going on all month, not just for one week.
- 2021 National Truck Driver Appreciation Week
- Almost all truckers say they feel appreciated, according to survey
- C.H. Robinson extends cash giveaways for truck drivers through Sept. 24
- Drivers, get ready to be appreciated more than usual in coming week
- FMCSA’s Joshi adds her appreciation of truckers
- Idaho firefighters send out major thanks to professional drivers for help at crash scene
- National Truck Driver Appreciation Week gets in gear
- National Truck Driver Appreciation Week gets started
- North Dakota troopers surprised truckers at a weigh station — in a good way
- Parade Honors Truck Drivers’ Role [Photos]
- Showing true driver appreciation
- The Log Book: 4 creative ways companies honored truck drivers
- USDOT Officials Praise Truckers’ Contributions
CPAP
- FMCSA Medical Board to Review Recalled CPAP Machines
- FMCSA tasks medical board to help truckers with recalled CPAPs
- Medical Review Board to discuss CPAP concerns
Accidents
Please seek to understand what may have led up to these accidents, so that you do not get into the same set-up.
- Trucker Charged in Fiery Nine-Vehicle Crash Killing Man and Four Dogs
- Trucker in steel-coil wreck was ran off road, didn’t realize someone had been killed, 911 call reveals
- WATCH: Driver doesn’t seem to notice he’s just pushing a four-wheeler down the road
3. Regarding electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles, and fuel:
Electric vehicles
Please remember that until vehicles somehow have the ability to recharge themselves, there will always be a need for them to take on additional fuel or recharge themselves.
Some people are of the opinion that electric vehicles aren’t as environmentally-friendly as folks would like to make them out to be.
Please be exceedingly careful before you put all of your “eggs” in the electric vehicle “basket” (so to speak).
- Clarience commits to enhancing energy efficiency for EV electrical systems
- Clarience Relates Transition From Electric to Electronic
- Democrats Unveil New EV Tax Credit Proposal
- DriveOhio releases freight electrification study
- Electrification Key to FedEx’s Energy Goals, Executive Says
- Embark knits BYD electric trucks with its autonomous tractors for cleaner air
- Embark, HP Combine Electric Drayage with Driverless Operations
- Embark, HP Introduce EV Drayage
- EV Tax-Credit Plan Draws Ire From Nonunion Toyota, Tesla
- Fleetmaster Express and Englander Transportation begin transition from diesel to electric trucks
- Ford Expands Electric-Truck Factory in Michigan as Demand Surges
- Getting charging infrastructure for electric vehicles
- How fleets can adapt as electric trucks become more common
- Iveco, Nikola Launch JV Plant for Electric Trucks in Germany
- Knight-Swift to test electric Kenworth at SoCal ports
- Orange EV Electric Terminal Trucks to Offer Higher Speed, Capacity
- Penske Pilots Software to Support Electric Truck Charging
- Plenty of planning needed before adopting electric trucks: Panel
- Rivian for the win: Electric-vehicle maker targets $8B IPO windfall
- Rivian Gets US Regulatory Go-Ahead to Deliver EVs
- The Realities of Electric Trucks
- Thinking About Shifting to Electric Trucks? Start Planning, Panelists Say
Autonomous vehicles
I totally oppose autonomous, driverless, and self-driving commercial motor vehicles that share roads with the motoring public, but am sharing these articles with you as a courtesy.
- Aurora showcases first U.S. commercial autonomous Volvo truck
- Driving automation
- Drone Disruptors: Volansi’s autonomous drone ecosystem
- Locomation convoy plan doubles down on autonomous trucking challenge
- Ryder partnering with self-driving startup on freight network
- Traxen Calls iQ-Cruise ‘Bridge to Autonomy’
- Walmart drives closer to autonomous delivery with Ford, Argo AI deal
- Walmart final-mile going driverless in 3 cities
- Walmart Teams With Ford, Argo to Launch Driverless Delivery Service
Fuel
- Diesel lower in the West, Midwest and Gulf Coast, up on the East Coast
- Diesel Price Barely Budges, Dips 0.1¢ to $3.372
- DOE/EIA diesel price is down, by as little as possible
- Fuel Buyers Summit: Talking about the higher diesel price and what’s driving it
- What is renewable diesel?
4. Regarding NTSB, roads, staged accidents, and insurance:
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
What U.S. National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Jennifer Homendy recently shared sounds reasonable, about considering “the whole system as the reason for highway crashes rather than placing the blame on highway travelers alone.”
But there are at least two red flags:
“If we are going to get to zero, we will have to do something different,” she said.
News flash, Ms. Homendy: We’re never going to get to “zero” crashes, ever, because vehicles are machines and sometimes machines break down.
“… manufacturers who design vehicles that can exceed 100 miles per hour or that have no speed limiters.”
News flash, Ms. Homendy: While many commercial motor vehicles are already governed, if you think that you’re going to put speed limiters on the rest of the vehicles on the road today, I think you’ll be in for a fight.
- Drivers may not be to blame for highway safety issues, officials consider
- NTSB chief: focus on road safety must shift to entire system
- NTSB’s Homendy: Road Safety Focus Must Shift to Entire System
- NTSB’s Jennifer Homendy Calls for New Safety Focus
Roads
Please be aware of road closures and detours.
- Arizona Infrastructure Project Hands Truckers 224-Mile Detour
- Daily Infographic: Highway tunnels that restrict hazardous materials transportation
- Five day closure of US 60 in Arizona starts Sunday
- Highway 1 closed “indefinitely” after car plunges off cliff
- Trucks banned from I-95 construction zone after ‘nearly two dozen crashes involving tractor trailers’
Staged accidents
I am so glad that the extent of this scam is being revealed!
- 7 more charged in staging of New Orleans 18-wheeler accidents
- 7 new indictments handed down in Louisiana staged accident scam
- Feds issue more indictments in ‘Operation Sideswipe’
- Louisiana staged-accident fraud scheme: More indictments, guilty pleas
- More indictments, guilty pleas announced in Louisiana staged-accident fraud scheme
- Seven More Indicted in New Orleans Staged Crash Scam
Insurance
- Daily Infographic: Your Quick & Easy Guide to Saving on Trucking Insurance with CarrierHQ
- DAT Adds Per-Load Insurance to Spot Truckload Network
- How autonomous vehicle insurance works
5. Regarding recruiting, pay, rates, taxes, tolls, and VMT:
Recruiting
Please be aware of the information shared in these articles, especially if you’re looking to make a switch as a driver.
- Tips for recruiting drivers and driver recruiters
- Why Do Truck Drivers Engage in Job-Hopping?
- Why qualified truck drivers aren’t replying to your ads
Pay
The amount of money one earns as a trucker is only part of the equation, so please do your due diligence before you hire on.
- Do you try to pick up loads on holidays for the extra holiday plus load pay?
- Drilling Deep: The good times roll for independent owner-operators
- Large fleet raises pay for independent contractors
- Owner-op average income hits record territory
Rates
- Quebec leads Canada’s spot market growth in third quarter
- Rates red-hot in August, shipments high but capacity constrained
- Spot and contract rates hit new records in August
- Spot Rates Have Peaked, Some Shipping Lines Say
- Up 5% may not be enough for truckload rates in 2022
Taxes
Tolls
Let me share with you an experience that my husband Mike and I had in Florida this past June regarding a “toll-by-plate” license plate camera system:
We traveled a little tiny section of a toll road in the greater Tampa area — and didn’t receive the toll notice in the mail for almost two months!
VMT
6. Regarding drugs, smuggling, and inspections:
Drugs
Never, ever agree to haul illegal drugs in your truck, no matter how much you are promised.
- $1.8 million in drugs seized, California trucking company accused of transporting drugs for cartel
- Undercover trucker: Hauling half-ton of pot for feds in sting
Smuggling
Never, ever agree to haul people in your trailer — treating them like animals or cargo — no matter how much of an incentive is offered.
- Border Patrol rescues 50 people trapped in 90 degree semi trailer
- CBP agents rescue nearly 50 people locked in trailer
- Driver Arrested in Big Rig Human Smuggling Bust Says He Was Promised Eye-Popping Sum of Cash
- Driver found smuggling 103 migrants “had a feeling” about what was being loaded into the trailer
- Unlicensed driver sentenced to federal prison for transporting 149 aliens in packed semi trailer
Inspections
- CVSA has already scheduled next year’s big truck inspection blitzes — here are the dates you need to know
- Goodyear Offers its CheckPoint Inspection Device on Lease
7. Regarding technology, ELDs, aerodynamics, batteries, and tires:
Technology
- 3 Easy Ways to Improve Fleet Cybersecurity
- AI and machine learning can leverage data fleets already collect
- Drones are flying into weather data deserts. Can they be stopped?
- Fleets Find Many Ways to Harness Trailer Tracking Data
- Future Looks Bright for Automated Braking
- How to Get Truck Specs Right
- Long Haul Truckers: 3 Reasons Why an ELD Can Make Your Life Easier
- Spec’ing trucks is an ever-evolving process
- VIDEO: Here’s why truckers should never blindly trust a GPS
ELDs
- Canada ELD certification ‘very rigorous,’ company says after completing vetting
- Tech Vendors Prepare for Canada’s Move to E-Logs
Aerodynamics
Batteries
- Back to Basics: Batteries
- Technical Session Explores Truck Battery Challenges
- Your truck batteries may have life left in them
Tires
This article addresses RFID sensors, Tire Pressure Management Systems (TPMS), and Digital Tire Inspection Tools.
8. Regarding capacity, Black Friday, and maintenance:
Capacity
The first part of what Greer Woodruff, senior vice-president of J.B. Hunt, added was:
“there’s lots the industry can do to improve productivity of its existing resources. Among them: expedite loading and unloading; increase drop-and-hook operations; make appointment times more flexible; and allow parking on-site at facilities.”
Black Friday
- Daily Infographic: Don’t wait till Black Friday to shop for holidays
- Get them before they’re gone: 4 products to buy before holiday craze
Electronic appliances, toys, sneakers and consumer electronics are those listed.
Maintenance
9. Regarding parking, repairs, trailers, and emissions:
Parking
- $3.5 trillion spending bill — and not one penny for truck parking
- As Congress tackles infrastructure, truckers left circling the lot
- No truck parking funding in T&I bill; OOIDA pushes for amendment
- OOIDA: Congress Still Ignoring Truck-Parking Crisis
Image caption from article: “It’s tough to swallow the fact that in a year when Congress is authorizing hundreds of billions of dollars for infrastructure projects and highway safety programs, not a single penny was set aside for truck parking,” — Todd Spencer, OOIDA
Dear Mr. Spencer, according to the Constitution of the United States and the Tenth Amendment, truck parking is not a federal responsibility, but a matter for the states and the people to address:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
- OOIDA makes another push for truck parking funding
- Truck parking amendment failure has OOIDA lashing out on Congress
- Truck parking expansion left out of Budget Reconciliation bill
- Truck parking funding denied by House infrastructure committee
Repairs
- Fleet Breakdown Frequency Improving; Parts, Labor Costs Increasing
- Frequency of Roadside Repairs Decreases in Q2
- Trucking fleets see decrease in breakdowns, repair costs up
Trailers
- Doleco Brings New Double-Decking Option to Market
- Doleco USA Unveils New LayerLok Double-Decking Systems
- FTR reports preliminary trailer orders bounce back
- Hyundai Translead introduces new smart trailer
- Hyundai Translead Launches Smart Trailer Platform
Emissions
- Cargill to Pay Growers for Carbon-Friendly Farming Methods
- ConMet Aims to Address TRU Emissions Regs with Zero-Emission Trailer
- ConMet debuts eMobility zero-emission trailer
- ConMet Readying Zero-Emission Trailer
- Flatbed carrier confronts carbon emissions, driver shortage with autonomous convoy pilot
- Pepsi Plans to Cut Virgin Plastic by 50%, Go Carbon-Neutral
- Transtex Trailer Aero Kit Meets CARB Standards
- Transtex Trailer Aerodynamic Device Meets CARB Emissions Standards
10. Regarding AB5, truckers, shortage, supply chain, and same day delivery:
AB5
Truckers
This is a major reason why we put information on our website about food and recipes and meal preparation.
If you carry food and drinking water with you, you won’t be caught depending on others.
Shortage
There’s a very big need for the negatives in trucking to be addressed and fixed!
Supply chain
- A decade of grocery supply chain change
- Aluminum Industry Frets That Supply Snarls Have Just Begun
- Building the post-pandemic supply chain
- U.S. DOT wants to know how to improve the supply chain
- Worker Shortage Adds to Supply Chain Snags, Caterpillar CEO Says
Same day delivery
I foresee the day when this may happen in trucking, too!
11. Regarding weather and economy:
Weather
Economy
- ACT’s freight forecast: ‘Stronger for longer’
- August Class 8 Retail Sales Rise 2.8%
- August Trailer Orders Climb Past 15,000, FTR Reports
- Bankers have ‘never seen a stronger seller’s market’ for 3PLs
- Canadian used truck prices up in Q3: Ritchie Bros.
- Chevron CEO Warns of High Energy Prices, Supply Crunches
- Retail Sales Unexpectedly Jump in Sign of Resilient Demand
- Strong pricing at most recent Ritchie Bros. auction
- Sustained Economic Recovery Ahead, Transportation Economist Predicts
- Used truck market on torrid pace
12. Regarding awards and recognition:
Congratulations to everyone who was nominated for or won a trucking award!
- Company driver from Ohio wins 8th annual Trucker Talent Search
- Guy Archer named Trucker Talent Search winner
- Mohawk’s Christopher Tate Wins Second TMCSuperTech Grand Championship
- N.Y. technician wins second TMC SuperTech grand championship
My husband Mike and I wish you — and all professional truck drivers — safe travels and lots of money saving opportunities on the road.
Return from TDMST Weekly Round-Up: 2021.09.18 to our TDMST Weekly Round-Up Trucking Commentary or our Truck Drivers Money Saving Tips home page.