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TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2023.04.22

TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2023.04.22 is the trucking commentary on news affecting professional truck drivers for the week ending April 22, 2023, written by Vicki Simons.

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

TDMST Weekly Round-Up

1. Regarding inspections, safety, distracted driving, and load securement:

Inspections

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

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Professional truck drivers in the USA know that there are certain regular nationwide inspections that occur throughout the course of a year.

There are also pop-up inspections that can occur at any time — perhaps for a limited time (such as over a weekend) — and in a limited geographical location (such as statewide or over a number of states).

In my opinion, any time that you can take advantage of getting a free truck inspection, it is best to do so.

Please bear in mind that businesses offering free truck inspections may be doing so in the hopes of finding problems that need to be repaired, so that they can then provide the service.

Again, in my opinion, that is only fair — as long as the need for the repair is legitimate.

Let the buyer beware.

You may wish to read these resources on our website:

Safety

Distracted driving

You may read more about distracted driving on this page of our site:

Distracted Driving: Beware of Attention Diverters That Can Be Fatal

Load securement

I’m seeing in trucking publications more and more reports of trucks involved in inertia-related accidents, particularly tractors hauling flatbeds where the load has shifted forward into or through part of the tractor.

According to Wikipedia:

Inertia is the idea that an object will continue its current motion until some force causes its speed or direction to change. The term is properly understood as shorthand for “the principle of inertia” as described by Newton in his first law of motion.

Also, according to this resource:

Newton’s First Law of Motion states that an object in motion tends to stay in motion unless an external force acts upon it. Similarly, if the object is at rest, it will remain at rest unless an unbalanced force acts upon it. Newton’s First Law of Motion is also known as the Law of Inertia.

Consider what happens when a trucker slams on his/her brakes under these conditions:

  • a load on his/her trailer is not properly secured;
  • the trailer does not have a headerboard; and
  • the tractor does not have a headache rack.

The load will keep traveling at the same rate of speed until it is stopped.

If the part of the load that shifts is directly behind the trucker, he or she can be badly injured or killed.

No matter what kind of truck you drive, please be aware of Newton’s First Law of Motion!

Always make sure that your load is properly secured, especially if you haul flatbed trailers.

2. Regarding electric vehicles, emissions, and autonomous vehicles, Tesla:

Electric vehicles

If you’re considering buying or leasing an electric commercial motor vehicle, please do your due diligence ahead of time.

Emissions

GHG is an acronym that stands for “Greenhouse gases.”

Autonomous vehicles

I absolutely oppose the operation of self-driving, driverless, or autonomous commercial motor vehicles on the same roads as the motoring public, but share these articles to help you stay current on the topic.

Tesla

3. Regarding drugs, accidents, and fatalities:

Drugs

Never, ever haul illegal drugs, no matter how much of an incentive is offered to you.

Accidents

Many types of truck accidents are completely preventable.

Based on what I’ve read, every one of these was preventable.

Fatalities

We express our deep sympathy and extend our condolences to the families of those who passed away in a truck-related accident.

Please do everything you can to avoid being involved in a fatal accident.

4. Regarding economy, taxes, and rates:

Economy

Taxes

Rates

5. Regarding fuel, CNG, diesel, hydrogen, and natural gas:

Fuel

CNG (Compressed Natural Gas)

Diesel

Hydrogen

Natural gas

6. Regarding fraud and thrown from overpass:

Fraud

Thrown from overpass

Please also see on our website:

Items Thrown From Overpasses Smash Windshields and Hurt Truckers

7. Regarding AB5, HOS, legal, and justice:

AB5

HOS

Legal

Justice

8. Regarding recalls and parts – underride guards:

Recalls

Parts – underride guards

9. Regarding technology, cybersecurity, dash cams, fuel payment, platooning, speed limiters, and weigh stations:

Technology

“ChatGPT” has been defined as:

a chatbot/Generative Pre-trained Transformer model developed by OpenAI.

Please be aware that there are limits to artificial intelligence.

For example, a GPS unit is only as good as the information programmed into the device or service.

Same thing here.

Cybersecurity

Dash cams

Fuel payment

Platooning

Speed limiters

Weigh stations

10. Regarding truckers, parking:

Truckers

As of the time that I am writing this trucking commentary, the results of 374 votes showed that the top thing about which 48.4% of respondents (181 votes) were concerned is: Inflation.

For more on this topic, you may wish to look at these pages on our website:

Parking

According to the first article listed in the section just above:

By some estimates, as noted in the previous part of this series, the search for a place to park costs operators on average about an hour each day and around $5,500 annually. And despite billions in funding from the 2021 infrastructure law meant to improve supply chains and roadway safety, every day many hardworking drivers simply won’t find a place to park they’d call safe.

How are you dealing with this issue?

Please comment through the form below.

11. Regarding ports, roads, and supply chain:

Ports

Roads

Supply chain

12. Regarding awards:

Awards and Recognition

We are recognizing and congratulating truckers who have been named in the following articles:

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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