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.
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.
- Biden to call on truckers, ships, planes if freight railroad strike happens
- Class I railroads to suspend security-sensitive shipments ahead of potential strike
- Class I railroads work to quickly resume operations
- Expect ‘immediate’ impact on freight volume, rates if rail strikes
- EXPLAINER: Rail strike would impact consumers, businesses
- From Carmakers to Refiners, Industries Brace for Rail Strike
- Here’s what you need to know about a potential rail shutdown
- How Congress could avoid a disastrous rail shutdown
- How rail got derailed, Haul Stars and surviving CDL school
- Potential US Rail Strike Risks Stoking Inflation
- Rail shutdown looms large even as Congress steps in
- Rail strike would disrupt cross-border supplies of cars, auto parts, beer
- Rail unions agree to deal to prevent strike
- Railroads wind down some operations; White House eyes options to move freight
- Trucking industry leaders warning of dire consequences if freight railroads strike
- Trucking warns of supply chain issues if freight rail strike occurs
- Unions Blast Rail Move to Delay Shipments
- Viewpoint: Resolving commercial rail negotiations a national security priority
- What a Rail Strike Could Mean for Trucking
- What happens if Congress blocks the railroad strike?
- What rail workers say about the tentative agreement, strike
- White House Weighs Emergency Decree for Rails if There’s a Strike
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.
- 3 more unions reach tentative agreements with freight railroads
- Agreement reached, no rail strike — for now
- Another union accepts tentative deal with railroads
- Biden: Tentative railway labor deal reached, averting strike
- Congressional Leaders Praise Tentative Rail Labor Agreement
- Rail labor unions agree to tentative deal
- Rail machinists and mechanics reject tentative labor agreement, but two others ratify theirs
- Rail Strike Averted as Unions Agree to Deal
- Rail strike averted by tentative deal
- Railroads and unions have tentative agreement on 5-year contract
- Tentative labor deal averts threat of nationwide rail strike
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
Meanwhile, here are some of the most recent articles on this topic:
- Bill requiring overtime for truckers introduced in Senate; joins one in House
- OOIDA: Guaranteeing Overtime for Truckers Act deserves support
- Second bill takes aim at truckers’ overtime exemption
- Senators follow House to overtime pay for drivers bill
- Truckers’ overtime bill introduced in Senate
- Truckers would earn overtime pay under new bill introduced in Senate
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.
- ACT Research: Despite likely inbound recession, factors continue to dull a sharper downturn
- Bad moon rising? Inflation’s total toll on US economy, trucking industry remains to be seen
- Carriers try to make sense of unusual economic conditions
- China COVID Lockdown Threatens US Trucking Sector
- Manufacturing Output Increases
- Retail Sales Unexpectedly Rise After Drop in Prior Month
- Trucking fleets ramping up acquisitions in 2022
- US Inflation Falls for 2nd Straight Month on Lower Gas Costs
- What Economic, Trucking Numbers Tell Us About Recession Likelihood
- What’s going on with the trailer market?
3. Regarding fuel: hydrogen, LNG, card, efficiency, prices, and tax:
Fuel: hydrogen
- Cummins signs up Werner for 500 hydrogen internal combustion engines
- Werner Enterprises to buy 500 hydrogen-powered engines from Cummins
- Werner to buy 500 Cummins hydrogen-powered engines
- Western State Coalition Seeks Partners in Heated Hydrogen Hub Race
Fuel: LNG
Fuel: card
Fuel: efficiency
Fuel: prices
- Benchmark DOE/EIA diesel price down 5.1 cents, 10th decline in 11 weeks
- Cutting Fleet Fuel Costs in the Purchasing Process
- Daily Infographic: Pre-Labor Day retail gasoline prices are the highest in the US since 2014
- Diesel dropping rapidly in futures market, outstripping declines in crude
- Diesel Drops 5.1¢ to $5.033 in Second Straight Decline
- Largest diesel price decline in Central Atlantic Fuel prices
- US Producer Prices Fall for a Second Month as Fuel Costs Retreat
- Weekly Fuel Report: September 13, 2022
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!
- Warning lights failed before log truck’s collision with train, driver says
- WATCH: Car hauler gets stuck on railroad tracks in Texas. Twenty seconds later, a train barrels through.
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.
- 1 dead in crash between RV, tractor-trailer on I-66
- Authorities find truck driver in single-vehicle crash died of heart attack
- Driver dies after ‘leaping’ from truck in Pennsylvania
- Driver killed after rear-ending another parked tractor-trailer
- Driver killed in aftermath of tire blowout
- NHTSA Needs a New Chief With Road Deaths at 20-Year High
- Parents sue driver, Colorado towing company over fatal bridge strike
- Pennsylvania police say truck driver died after jumping out of runaway semi truck
- Tractor-trailer driver accused of causing deadly wrong-way crash
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.
- 7,912 trucks and 2,051 drivers placed out of service in U.S. during 3-day Roadcheck
- Brakes, tires account for most Roadcheck OOS vehicle violations
- Brakes, tires account for most Roadcheck OOS vehicle violations
- Canadian Roadcheck inspections ground 22.6% of vehicles
- CVSA Releases 2022 International Roadcheck Results
- CVSA Roadcheck: Wheel Ends Account for Nearly 23% of OOS Violations
- Inspectors Remove 12,456 CMVs, 3,714 Drivers During Roadcheck
- More than 12K commercial motor vehicles placed out of service during CVSA’s road check
- Over 16,000 CMVs and drivers taken out-of-service during nation’s biggest trucker blitz
- Roadcheck 2022 passed over 90% of drivers
Insurance
- Transparency, technology help secure best insurance rates
- $2.3 million worth of meth seized from truck at Texas border crossing
- Canadian man charged in international scheme using big rigs to transport narcotics
- More data needed on drug-impaired driving, report says
Drugs
Never ever haul illegal drugs, no matter how much you are promised!
- $2.3 million worth of meth seized from truck at Texas border crossing
- Canadian man charged in international scheme using big rigs to transport narcotics
- More data needed on drug-impaired driving, report says
Move over
6. Regarding NTDAW, AB5, deliveries, delivery speed, and business:
NTDAW
- Appreciation Week Roundup: Load board honors truckers with Guinness World Record
- CH Robinson celebrating truck drivers during Truck Driver Appreciation Week
- CHP handed out nearly 400 free lunches to truckers for Driver Appreciation
- FMCSA declares today as ‘CMV Driver Appreciation Day’
- FMCSA’s Hutcheson praises, thanks truckers at Driver Appreciation Day event
- More companies showing their appreciation during truckers’ week
- Thank you, drivers! Businesses honor truckers with rewards, discounts during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week
- TMAF campaign calls on public to #ThankATrucker
AB5
- AB5 webinar hints at how law will apply to trucking
- California trucking’s AB5 options get a hearing at IANA; brokerage on top?
- Fleets Prepare for AB 5 Enforcement as Legal Battles Continue
Deliveries
- Amazon to sweeten payment pot for its delivery contractors
- Consumers want, but don’t expect, Sunday parcel deliveries, survey finds
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.
- Kentucky targets CMVs with driver-focused cameras News
- One Kentucky weigh station has cameras that can see inside your cab — but they’ll be installed in 13 more locations soon
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.
- ELD mandate: More than four years in, how did the shift affect highway safety, if at all?
- FMCSA considering changing ELD regs around glider kits, pre-2000 engines, more
- FMCSA removes ELDorado ELD from list of approved devices
- FMCSA renews ELD exemption for truck rental group
- FMCSA revokes another ELD from registry
- FMCSA seeks feedback on potential ELD regs revisions
- FMCSA to accept public comments from truck drivers on ELDs
- FMCSA wants truckers’ feedback on ELD regulations
Technology
- Real-Time Alerts Coming to Kansas Rural Freight Corridor
- Road condition data cuts weather-related accidents by 20%, pilot project reveals
- TomTom’s GO Navigation app introduces truck navigation
- TomTom’s new truck plan feature now available via app
8. Regarding electric, FedEx, and holidays:
Electric
- 4 Gen Logistics to deploy 41 Volvo VNR electric trucks to service Port of Long Beach
- Fleet Electrification Efforts Unveiled at Port of Long Beach
- Pennsylvania Turnpike Explores Electrified Road Services for EVs
- States Get Early Green Light to Spend Federal EV Funds
FedEx
- FedEx sets earlier cutoffs for accepting holiday shipments
- FedEx Tumbles After Pulling Earnings Forecast
- FedEx withdraws full-year guidance, posts massive decline in unit’s operating income
- FedEx’s disastrous announcement raises concerns about company’s core direction
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.
- Hiring for Uncertain Holiday Season Continues
- Postal Service announces holiday delivery preparations
- Subseasonal trucking market still soft and loose
- The market shakes off its holiday hangover
- Truckers work through Labor Day as market continues to soften
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.
- 7 things to know about the commercial vehicle market
- Classes 4-7 US Retail Sales Rise in August on Class 6 Surge
- Fleets of all sizes struggling with equipment procurement
- New Class 8 big rig market accelerates to highest level of 2022 in August
- Ritchie Bros. Edmonton auction attracts 14,600 bidders
- Used-truck warranty dynamics on the move in response to criticism
- Used-truck warranty evolution toward protection improvements
- Where to find financing for that new piece of equipment
Theft
Weather
10. Regarding intermodal, oil, and HOS:
Intermodal
- Intermodal Executives Optimistic About Chassis Supply
- Intermodal Industry Continues to Adapt
- Intermodal Is Working to Increase Sustainability
- Students Learn About Intermodal Opportunities
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.
- Biden Issues Offshore Drilling Rights Under Climate Mandate
- Biden Officials Weigh Buying Oil to Refill Reserves
HOS
- FMCSA tries to clarify policy on hours-of-service exemption requests
- Truckers say emergency declaration opens door to more hours flexibility
11. Regarding ports, recalls, and signs:
Ports
- Imports to Los Angeles, America’s largest port, plunged 17% in August
- Imports to Port of L.A. Drop
- Port of Long Beach narrowly misses record August
- Port of Savannah clearing record volumes despite vessel backlog
- Strong relationships help bolster cost savings amid port crisis
- US imports keep chugging along, still up double digits vs. pre-COVID
Recalls
Signs
12. Regarding awards: nominations, congratulations, and recognition:
Nominations
- Goodyear brings back Highway Hero Award to honor truck drivers
- Goodyear Calls for Heroic Drivers
- Highway Hero nominations due by Dec. 31
- Nominations open for Goodyear Highway Hero Award
- Nominations open for Goodyear Highway Hero award
- Trucker named Highway Angel for saving toddler
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.
