Sticking to the speed-limit,

I would not recommend holding your breath.

I noticed I forgot some states:


California, Oregon.

 

Ok sure. California has had split speed limits as far as I can remember back into the 60's and I'm sure they were set up before then. Rumors like this have been going around ever since the split speed limit went into force so I would advise not holding your breath.

It's your call on how fast you want to drive. You always have to be aware of what you're hauling and what the company rules are. I hauled gasoline and for years the company had the policy of 55mph. If you were in an accident and you were traveling faster then 55mph you got charged no matter who was at fault. My company did not rule every accident as the drivers fault because they always did a very intensive investigation so you had something to lose there.

I tried to keep my speed within range for and couple of reasons. One, I was paid by the hour so it would be stupid for me to break the law and company policy. Two, I protected my record because I was taught by the old timers that a clean record helped speak for my driving abilities. And three, if I was involved in an accident I sure wanted to be legal. However, when I first started driving out of Jacksonville Fl in the
70's we drove those trucks as fast as they would go. We depended on radar detectors (only Whistlers) and once in awhile the CB radio. I have been pulled over and then the Hyw patrol would just go on, I've been talked to by the LEO's on the CB to slow down, and even had one in GA tell me my bird dog was bad and it was because I dropped it. I never got a ticket. But it was a different time back then and you could get away with this type of driving. Not now.

It seems to me that alot of schools do not teach defensive driving and how a driver can move up in his or her career. You'll want to gain all the experience you can but it won't do you much good if your record is cloudy with tickets. I believe after 10 years of driving if you're a company driver you should be making atleast a $1000 a week even in times like these. You can do that with a clean record and becoming experienced in a field that is always in demand. For example a skilled explosive driver, a trained chemical driver, gasoline, heavy loads or oversize loads, drivers that are trained in unusual or sensitive loads, smart O/O, and O/O that are specialized. There's many more but the point here is to make yourself in-demand and you need a spotless record to start off with.

 

You've got a good attitude going in. I hope that you get a good driver trainer and not one that wants to take advantage of you. You'll have to stand your ground. I also think you'd be a good student for denfensive driving school like the Smith System so you'll know the time proven tricks of the trade. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

I say denfensive driving but it's different in a truck. You can get an idea by looking at their website. Basically it's program that was put together by a few old time drivers and they put down what worked for them for many years. They brought the system in to us and I thought oh here we go another waste of time but really it wasn't. I drove with drivers that all had many years behind them and we all liked it.

After you put it to work you can know what the other guy is going to do before they do. The numbers have proven that the system works because fleet wide the incidents and accidents have dropped. So if you are asked to go you would be very smart to go and get it on your record. Plus sometimes they come to your site so you may want to ask when looking for a company to work for.

 

Yes i was referring to Ohio and Illinois. I had hoped that most states would follow suite, just wishful thinking I guess.. Why those two and not California, i wonder? Didn't the fed force them to change it? And if so, why would they ignore California?

Here in Michigan they uppped the big truck speed limit because of the safety issues.. It's still split but it's faster than it used to be.

And yes, SMITH is great..