C'mon drivers! What's the big deal about staying in HOS compliance anyway?

I would really like to see where you got this information! At this level there would not be a driver shortage...there would be a people shortage in 20 years. Think about it! Talk about exaggerating the facts...this is a new low..or would that be a new high?

 

I really would not have any issue staying compliant 100% of the time if the shippers, receivers and planners would let me.
They all work together to make it hard some days though.
I am a company driver. I am given a load, I check hours available, miles on trip and all appt times before I accept any load. If I can deliver on time within the hours available I accept the load. If it is close I will discuss it with dispatch.

Then you show up at shipper on time.
Many times you have to wait to be loaded, even if it was planned as a drop and hook on a preload. This eats into your time. Any time I have a live load I allow for 2 hours load time. If it takes longer it cuts into time available for delivery.

Now I am on the road. I set my hours on taking the load to average around 50 to 55 mph. This gives some time for issues on the road, traffic, snow etc. Plus if going around a major city I would have added more time to my plan. Anything holding up more than that eats into the load.

Now you get to a receiver.
You may have to sit for hours again waiting for a door, then more hours to get unloaded. If there is breakdown of the pallets involved then you will wait longer.
2 hours was planned, and I may have a pre-plan already waiting for my next load.

All these things cut into my available work time and the times I have planned for loads. Also many times your clock will run out at shippers and receivers, they may not let you park on there property, in which case you must leave. Even if you do not have the hours to move your truck.

In these cases you have several times you may have to pad your hours.
1 to get off shipper/ receiver property.
2 to get to a safe place to park in route, because the place you planned may be full.
3 to get the load delivered on time and you are behind due to the shipper wasting time, or something in route.

I never plan to go over hours. I try everything I can to not have to alter my book from facts. But sometimes you have to do things to get where you should have been, or to get to safe parking.

 

I'm always compliant. That #### steering wheel is one law breakin' SOB though.

 

Ok. And yeah, my dad used to do a split shift. Worked for "Olympic Freightways" (they deliver buns to mcdonalds within about 120 miles of chicago). 3 months days, 3 months nights, 3 months of BOTH....hahaha.... I'm guessing they dont do splits anymore. But I also noticed they use liftgates instead of ramps now. My dad dropped a loadbar that supposedly weighs 70lb on a 4 wheeler one time on that job. LOL.

Anyway, so you are right. That's probably why it exists. The teamsters probably wanted it. But it doesn't make sense whatsoever for OTR.

 

I think hes including everyone who dies at all. Afterall, why isn't there some immortality pill yet?

 

Heard it on the CB Radio of course!

Seriously though it probably came from something like

There are approximately 1.25 million annual medication errors in the U.S.

 

Just as we suspected...another steering wheel holder!

 

Most of those arent fatal.

The average steering wheel holder probably makes 1.25 million mistakes in a day.

Yesterday I was making a video of crossing the border into the US from windsor and I looked over whiel i was at a stop light and this us bound chick in a 4 wheeler had a plate balanced on her steering wheel eating pasta with a fork. what the hell? THE BEST PART is i recorded her doing it.

Of course i was holding a camera while i was driving so i shouldnt say much. But god, if i eat while im driving i pick a finger food. Like chicken nuggets and fries or something.

 

I personally don't mind the HOS rules. I make my money and can't be taken advantage of by dispatchers that want to make that monthly load bonus. If the 11/14 isn't enough hours maybe you should be looking to do something else for money.

 

The rule book is just a rule book. It doesn't know when your body needs rest. Its a set of arbitrary rules set by a bunch of people who for the most part have never been inside of a truck or had to work under the rules they made. I ran for thirty years under the old rules. I slept when I was sleepy and ran hard when I had to and made it look good on paper and never had a chargeable accident, or a log book violation. These companies only became concerned about it after DOT began using qualcomm records for HOS enforcement and it cost them money in fines.