Do you run illegal on your logs?

Again, most of the illegal logging isn't the mind numbing 36-48 hour violations of the past. And most Americans get behind the wheel of a car everyday with less than 8 hours sleep in the past 24. They get behind the wheel every afternoon, after spending almost 14 hours on duty...everyday.

Many of us actually understand the split. And still fudge. Case in point. I was in a split just yesterday. I had 2 hours to get to our yard, I was 3 hours away. And coming to the 8 side of the split again. I came home.

I trust my life, and my family's life to people EVERYDAY who have less than 6 hours sleep, in the past 36 hours. We commonly refer to them as Police Offficers, Surgeons, and the local crackhead who is coming down off his 3 day high..... Yet none of them will do the jail time that I will for 5 minutes over on my logs in a fatality accident. And none of them are ever forced to spend a single minute at work and without pay because someone thinks they have overworked themselves.

Again...hourly pay for every hour out will resolve all these issues. I'll call the wife, even if I'm 5 minutes from the house. Guess what the company will be paying me to do then, in their truck. But at least I'll be 100% legal.

We can pound this issue into the ground with debate. But the truth is, it is like the "cheap freight" debate. It will never be fully resolved. You'll never get full compliance, until you provide the means and the will to eliminate all companies who would take their pound of flesh out of the driver who refused to fudge even a little bit on their logs.

Even the electronic onboard recorders can be munipulated via satellite. Just ask the guys in those purty blue trucks.

 

According to this thread's very unofficail poll, only 53% of professional truck drivers log legally. This leaves a whopping 47% who willfully disregard the regulations. This is scary.

Drivers who run illegally do not realize the amount of trouble that you will be in when you severely injure or kill an innocent person. One of the first things that you will hear is....."Turn around, face the car and place your hands behind your back." "you have the right to remain silent" Then you'll feel cold steel wrapped around your wrists as the police officer locks the handcuffs. Dramatic? Nope. Reality? Yes!

What will your defense be? "I did it because I couldn't make a decent living running legally"? "I did it because I wasn't getting paid for everything that I do"? How about this one..... "I did it because I needed to make it home for the big game or a wedding or _____(you fill in the space)"? How's this one...."I did it because I'd lose my place in line while at the consignee"?

If you kill someone then the only money you'll need to be worried about making is the .47 cents per hour making license plates in prision (McDonalds doesn't look so bad now).

You'll not have to worry too much about money because you and your familty won't have any. You'll have to sell everything you have to pay for your attorneys and the civil judgements against you.

You'll not be home for any big games or wedding or ......anything. No birthdays. No "first steps". No nothing. In your new world the biggest problem you'll have is...."how in the heck are you going to keep that big bubba off your backside?"

Don't risk it. Don't become a statstic. Run legally!

 

i couldn't if i wanted too! the squallcom keeps tabs on us at all times and our company log dept. monitors it closely.

 

Big Brother!! Yeah, my Safety Dept uses computers to track our times (11 drive/14 on) and beats us up regularly!! They still have a hard time 'tying me down!!' I'm a good 'round-offer'...ha ha

 

Not from what I been reading!

 

..You cant yell at me, cause I do everything RIGHT!!! ha ha
(was out 10 days doing a lot of 'sitting'---Portland, Seattle, Reno, L.A.!!)

 

See you flying off the handle got me silenced. I wasn't done typing yet!