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TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2022.09.17

This is the TDMST Weekly Round-Up of news affecting professional truck drivers, written by Vicki Simons for the week ending September 17, 2022.

We welcome your comments, thoughts and feedback on the items of your choice below.

TDMST Weekly Round-Up

1. Regarding rail strike: threat and agreement:

Rail strike threat

These articles indicate how a strike of the railroads and trains in the USA could have run the economy into the ground.

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Rail strike agreement

As of this writing, it appears as though there is a tentative agreement for the railroads and trains not to strike.

We’ll see what happens.

 

2. Regarding pay and economy:

Pay

I wrote the following on my Facebook profile:

How would you like to work on your job — up to 30 hours extra and every week — for free???

Did you know that many professional truck drivers can and do?

It’s past time to:

Repeal the Fair Labor Standards Act Overtime Exemption for Truckers

Additional information:

https://fightingfortruckers.com/trucking-legislation/

https://www.padilla.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/WIL22345.pdf

Fair Labor Standards Act: Hours Truckers Can Work Weekly

Meanwhile, here are some of the most recent articles on this topic:

Economy

There are some ups and downs in the economy in the USA, while things are more dire in other places around the world.

Seek to become debt-free and make good investment decisions.

 

3. Regarding fuel: hydrogen, LNG, card, efficiency, prices, and tax:

Fuel: hydrogen

Fuel: LNG

Fuel: card

Fuel: efficiency

Fuel: prices

Fuel: tax

 

4. Regarding accidents: brake check entry, brakes, chain reaction swerve, drugs, low clearance, school bus, securement, and train:

Accidents: brake check entry

Watch out for people merging onto highways.

If possible, move to the lane to the left of the one being merged into.

Still, this maneuver would not have prevented at least one of the braking situations described in the article below.

Accidents: brakes

Truck drivers are responsible for the rigs that they drive, including making sure that their trucks’ brakes are properly adjusted.

Sometimes, trucks give clues that the brakes need to be adjusted, so be alert to those clues.

If you suspect that your truck’s brakes are going to fail, don’t drive past a runaway ramp.

Yes, there have been reports of truckers getting fired for running a truck into a runaway ramp.

But in the process of doing that, you may save the truck, the trailer, and your life!

Accidents: chain reaction swerve

One thing that my husband Mike and I do is watch traffic and mentally predict — and sometimes out loud — what is going to follow based on a driver’s behavior.

See if you can develop this “sixth trucker sense” regarding the traffic around you so that you can avoid being involved in an accident.

Accidents: drugs

Never ever drive a commercial motor vehicle — or any vehicle — after taking drugs.

Accidents: low clearance

Many commercial motor vehicles in the USA are 13′ 6″ tall.

If a bridge or tunnel is shorter than your rig, you won’t be able to clear it.

Don’t kid yourself into thinking that you will squeeze under just because some GPS unit says you can (especially one that is not geared for commercial motor vehicles).

Accidents: school bus

While you should always pay attention to the traffic around you, be ultra-careful around school buses.

Accidents: securement

On this page of our website — Cut Off Trucker Slams On Truck Brakes; Load Shifts — we describe with photos and words what happened to the trailer and load that was driven by a trucker who was cut off by another motorist.

Had it not been for the headerboard [or header board] on the front of the flatbed trailer, it is possible that the momentum of the load would have crushed the trucker.

Make sure that you’re hauling the right kind of trailer before you haul certain kinds of loads.

Based on what I gather from the article linked below, this driver was “pinned” but not impaled by the load that shifted.

Also, pay attention to make sure that you are properly securing your load before you drive.

Accidents: train

Never play “chicken” with a train!

Prevent all railroad crossing accidents!

 

5. Regarding fatalities, braking, inspections, insurance, drugs, and move over:

Fatalities

Please learn from these articles what led up to the fatalities so that you are not caught in the same circumstances.

Braking

Inspections

If you keep yourself and your truck in a perpetual state of readiness for an inspection, you’ll never be caught off-guard.

Insurance

Drugs

Never ever haul illegal drugs, no matter how much you are promised!

Move over

 

6. Regarding NTDAW, AB5, deliveries, delivery speed, and business:

NTDAW

AB5

Deliveries

Delivery speed

Don’t sacrifice safety just to speedily deliver a package or load.

Business

 

7. Regarding invasive, parking, ELDs, and technology:

Invasive

OK, neither of the articles below go into any kind of detail about the kind of technology that is being used in these “driver-focused cameras” — but I will hazard a guess that it may be along the lines of an X-ray.

Depending upon the kind of technology that is being used, not only is this invasive, but it could be detrimental to your health!

If you drive through the targeted area, please pay attention to any deterioration of your health in the hours afterwards.

Notice if you suffer from headaches, general body pain, a rash, an inability to sleep later, some other kind of physical malaise, or a combination of problems.

Just sharing.

Parking

The thought of electric-powered trucks having to compete for truck parking is interesting to me from a couple of different standpoints:

1. Will the truck stop have a recharging station?

2. How will truckers who sleep in electric trucks manage climate control?

I’m wondering if a truck will be able to haul freight wherever it needs to go after recharging during a trucker’s 10-hour rest break.

ELDs

Please review at your convenience my opposition to Electronic Logging Devices before they were made mandatory.

Truckers and others predicted the problems that have ensued since.

Technology

 

8. Regarding electric, FedEx, and holidays:

Electric

FedEx

Holidays

Regarding the “Christmas rush,” back when my husband Mike and I were a professional truck driving team, there was a period of about 9 weeks leading up to Christmas when freight was very heavy.

A lot has changed since then, but please be aware of the potential issues associated with holiday travel and freight: Surviving the Pre-Christmas Freight Season.

 

9. Regarding purchase, theft, and weather:

Purchase

Before you buy a truck, do your due diligence.

Ask lots of questions.

Have a view toward what you’ll need in the future.

From a seller’s viewpoint, look at Tips for Selling Your Truck and Saving Money.

Theft

Weather

 

10. Regarding intermodal, oil, and HOS:

Intermodal

Oil

If the restrictions placed on oil production in the USA were dropped, we wouldn’t (in my opinion) have to resort to buying any from other markets.

HOS

 

11. Regarding ports, recalls, and signs:

Ports

Recalls

Signs

 

12. Regarding awards: nominations, congratulations, and recognition:

Nominations

Congratulations

We extend our congratulations to this trucker!

Recognition

We recognize those who help their fellow human beings in a time of need.

 

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: 2022.09.17 to our TDMST Weekly Round-Up Trucking Commentary or our Truck Drivers Money Saving Tips home page.


 

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