The new Qualcomm update

i was woundering how they got that stupied footage. The guy eatting a bowl of noodles while driving. Lol. I can only imagine the messed up stuff they seen.

 

When I went through trainer orientation the safety guy talked about debriefing a Swift driver that was involved in an accident. Turns out the guy was making a sandwich at the time of the accident!!??? Couldn't think to make the sandwich before he started driving.

 

That 14 hour clock is a b-word, and the e-log will rat you out in a heartbeat if you go over by even a minute. Dispatch is pressuring you to "get the load there", so you do what you feel you have to do to make it work. Sometimes it doesn't work.

Used to be you had 15 WORK hours, and off duty time didn't count against that. If you wanted to stop & eat, you could do so without it affecting your ability to get the load delivered. If you came across a broke down truck, you could offer assistance because you didn't have that ticking clock in the back of your mind pushing you to keep going.

A lot of what people complain about goes back to the changes in the rules, and the strict enforcement of those rules with e-logs. The more technology a company puts in to supervise the driver, the less ability the driver feels he has to be the captain of his ship. When the company is there looking over your shoulder watching your every move, you're going to think twice about doing the "right" thing and consider instead what the company wants to see the truck doing. If there are no cameras, making that sandwich to keep the truck rolling might sound easier than explaining to dispatch why the truck is stopped...and that leads to bad decisions being made by drivers.

 

I turned sound all the way up and sped today on purpose. 42 in a 35 and didn't get a scolding. I'm a little disappointed.

 

Excellent points!

The only addition I have is that situation where the driver was making a sandwich while driving. I don't know about other folks, but BEFORE I log on for my pre trip inspection I have EVERYTHING prepared and ready in my work area. My coffee is there, my snacks are there, my sunglasses are in reach, and I've already planned my day including at LEAST my next stop for a restroom break. There's really no excuse to not get up early enough after a 10 to get that done before doing your pre trip.

This goes DOUBLE for anyone that is team driving. Once that curtain is closed and I'm in the "office" I do everything possible to make sure that curtain stays closed and my teammate has every opportunity to have uninterrupted sleep. On long hauls I like to wake up 30 minutes prior to a changeover and prepare everything for the day so when the truck stops I'm BUSY getting my things organized in the work area and get the wheels turning ASAP. That may include planning my day to use a 30 minute break to take a shower while my teammate is in the sleeper, in which case I have my small duffle bag with my shower kit and change of clothes prepared and sitting in the passenger's seat.

If you KNOW you will get hungry at some point, then PREPARE your food ahead of time. Eat food that you can hold in one hand.

 

A shower on a 30? I could never manage that. It takes a minimum of 45.
30 minutes before I drive I've been up for 45-60 minutes, because I need to REALLY wake up before I drive.

And a short 10 hour break to do everything?
Nope.
12 is my minimum. (Well, most days. I'll sometimes do less if really needed. That is not very often!)

I work on a 24 hour clock. 12 for work and 12 for myself.
That allows for 600 miles per day, minus live loading and unloading. And that is plenty for me.

I know, I'm lazy.
But I can still maintain Platinum doing it that way.
And I don't push myself hard enough to fall asleep at the wheel, or otherwise get burned out.


Which gets back to the topics of trip planning and understanding both how the System and Mac 9 works.
Topics which many mentors fail to educate new drivers in.
Because if the trip is planned correctly there is no need to feel the need to make a ham-n-cheese while one is driving!

There is also no need to view the DOT mandated rest breaks as a maximum - they are the MINIMUM!!!!

Personally, I need more than 10 hours.
I like to relax after work, and have enough time to get fully awake before driving.
If I can get a 14 in, I really like it.

Tonight it is a 15, even though I had to stop 3 hours ahead of schedule because of weather. I'll just have to start a bit earlier.
I'll still be on time for delivery, and my next pick up - because I planned ahead. I included some extra time with Mac 9 before accepting the load.
Come Monday I'll have 2400 miles for this week, and still 2 more days to make a killer paycheck.
And by that time I will have used up my 70 to within a few hours of the next day, so I'll keep running and not have to sit for a day and a half.

 

Why is when a driver does something wrong your name and trk number is all over like a journalists reporting the news but they never acknowledge anything good a driver does?

 

A few points :

If you don't want the speed alerts go to the Navigation home page , select Settings on the far right and turn off Speed Alerts .

Dashcams and in cab driver facing cameras : This was a pilot test program at a few terminals with extremely high crash rates . The drivers were informed of the test although its unclear if they consented other than by not quitting . Also the cameras shut off when the brakes are set .

Bulldog , your comments about additional pressures due to the nanny computer may apply to some companies but not to Swift . In the years I've been with the company I've NEVER been pressured to operate any way other than a safe and controlled manner . I determine how my truck is operated and I have from day one .

Scottie , I noticed the disposable aluminum cookware section in the grocery store now has tin foil hats .

 

they were not "secret" cams they were actually quite big and the drivers knew they were there. The drivers in that vid were just a special kind a morons.

 

I've since heard, yea it only makes them even bigger idiots.