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TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2022.12.17

TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2022.12.17 is the trucking commentary on news affecting professional truck drivers for the week ending December 17, 2022, written by Vicki Simons.

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

TDMST Weekly Round-Up

1. Regarding weather, inspections, brakes, and tires:

Weather

Every winter, some truckers run into foul weather, including weather that is so bad that they literally have to park to wait it out.

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Examples of this include hurricanes, blizzards, and black ice situations.

No one can compel you to drive when it is unsafe to do so.

You will need to connect with your driver manager or dispatcher in order to let him/her know that you feel that it is dangerous to drive.

Even if the load you’re under is timed or if there is an associated financial penalty attached to a dispatch, it is better to be safe than risk being involved in an accident or — God forbid — a fatality.

Please feel free to look through some of these pages on our website for details:

Meanwhile, here are some of the most recent weather-related articles from this week.

Inspections

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

Brakes

Tires

 

2. Regarding fuel, fuel cell, and fuel economy:

Fuel

Fuel cell

Fuel economy

Watch out for leftist-leaning elected officials and unelected bureaucrats to start blaming consumers for their choices when it comes to fuel economy not improving as much as the former groups personally desire.

Just because some fanciful idea or unlikely-to-be-achieved “policy” has been dreamed up regarding fuel economy does not mean that it is reasonable, feasible, or frugal.

In keeping with what is right in the sight of God, you must do what is right for you.

In the words of our Founding Fathers in The Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness….”

 

3. Regarding autonomous vehicles, electric vehicles, emissions, and environment:

Autonomous vehicles

I most emphatically disagree with self-driving, driverless, or autonomous commercial motor vehicles being driven on the same public roads as other motorists.

However, I share these articles as a courtesy to help you stay current on the topic:

Electric vehicles

If you are considering purchasing or leasing an electric truck, please do your due diligence — especially in light of articles about cold temperatures adversely affecting the driving range of electric vehicles (the following articles specifically regarding cars, but which may be applicable to commercial motor vehicles):

Meanwhile, here are some of the most recent articles about electric vehicles:

Emissions

Environment

On Tuesday, December 13, 2022, I presented a speech before the Aiken County (SC) Council, part of which was as follows:

At the 1992 Earth Summit, the UN [United Nations] unveiled its comprehensive plan for “sustainable development” known as Agenda 21, which stands for agenda for the 21st century and was renamed Agenda 2030.

UN bureaucrats and all world leaders who signed on to it, agree that the UN must regulate every aspect of every person’s life on this planet because — they say — every one of us affects the entire planet.
link 4

In a 1987 report, the concept of sustainable development was described as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

Touted as a solution to everything from poverty to global warming, the 2030 Agenda is nothing more than a scheme to empower a global governing body and severely curtail the individual liberties of all citizens to live our own lives and run our own communities through our elected officials.
link 5

Following the objective of “sustainable development,” the proposed global regime would monitor, oversee, and strictly regulate all land, all bodies of water, and the atmosphere of planet Earth and would cover every person on the planet with global programs for healthcare, nutrition, agriculture, education, labor, energy, production, consumption — in short, everything.
link 6

So, if you followed that, you’ll now know from where the words “sustainable” and “sustainable development” come and what the instigators are trying to do.

 

4. Regarding accidents, low clearance, and drugs:

Accidents

Please review the following articles about trucks being involved in accidents and see if there is anything you can do to avoid being involved in one that is similar.

Low clearance

Please remember that you are a human being with a brain and that you’re not to blindly trust in any GPS system when it comes to operating a truck.

Also, never use a non-CMV-specific GPS unit when you’re driving a Commercial Motor Vehicle.

Drugs

Never, ever haul illegal drugs, no matter how large of an incentive you’ve been offered.

 

5. Regarding theft, violations, and violence:

Theft

It is never worth it to steal something from another entity (including someone else).

Violations

Make sure that every part of every load is loaded legally and securely.

Violence

 

6. Regarding economy, dwell time, supply chain, and containers:

Economy

The following are some articles having to do with the economy from the trucking industry’s perspective.

Dwell time

Quote from article:

“Drivers are leaving reviews on Google maps for the facilities they visit. They’re not getting all the information they need before they arrive at a facility for the first time. So they are finding ways to share that information,” Correll said.

Good!

Supply chain

Containers

 

7. Regarding ELDs, technology, productivity, smart, and events:

ELDs

If you live in or drive in Canada, please pay attention to these articles:

Technology

Productivity

Smart?

Was the trucker driving the bobtail (tractor only) to be applauded or condemned for this maneuver?

Please comment through the form below.

Thanks.

Events

 

8. Regarding restroom, parking, truck stops, and health:

Restroom

We understand that not all Commercial Motor Vehicles have a sleeper berth in which to put a portable toilet — and we know that some trucking companies forbid the use of a portable toilet in their trucks — but we share these articles anyway:

Meanwhile, here are some of the most recent articles about bills regarding bathroom or restroom use for truckers.

Parking

Truck stops

These articles about new truck stops or the addition of truck parking spaces:

Health

 

9. Regarding AB5, legal, operations, ports, and politics:

AB5

Legal

Operations

Ports

Politics

 

10. Regarding employment, retention, shortage, and pensions:

Employment

Retention

Please be aware of the fact that even though truck driver pay is critical, different things motivate different truckers.

Shortage

Pensions

I disagree with the federal government intervening in this matter because none of the three branches — legislative, executive, or judicial — has the constitutional authority to do so.

If there’s a problem with pensions — for truckers or others — the root(s) of the problem needs to be found and fixed.

 

11. Regarding concerns, predictions, year end, and survey:

Concerns

Predictions

Year end

You may want to review the information on these pages before the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023:

Meanwhile, enjoy these other articles:

Survey

 

12. Regarding recognition and award:

Recognition

We recognize those who had compassion on their fellow human beings in a time of need:

Award

We congratulate those who have achieved a milestone in their trucking careers:

 

My husband Mike and I wish you — and all professional truck drivers — safe travels and lots of money saving opportunities on the road.






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