traffic jam question

When I was running OTR and running ELOGS i would put myself on the off duty line if I came to a stop. Now as long as I dont go over 15 MPH i will stay on the Off Duty line and help save on my 11 for the day and help me out on my recap too. I got a good 45 mins some times this way. There were times the back up would move faster than 15 but I knew it would be stopping again so I would just creep along around 10 mph. sometimes I would get a few hundred yards of open space in front of me.

 

I think the good reason is that is how that particular driver likes to drive,leaving some space between him and the next vehicle lessons his chance of a rearending some one and leaves some escape room , just in case.

 

I do it all the time for 3 reasons.

1. It leaves a gap for 4 wheelers to zip in and out of so you don't get brake checked every 5 secs as they cut in with 5 inches to spare.

2. You can find a speed that you can creep at without having to constantly stop and go. Figure for instance traffic in front of you picks up to 20 then stops up to 20 and stops but you just keep cruising at 10-15mph with your buffer gap. About the time you get up on the car in front of you they start moving again.

3. Elogs. Stay slow enough and it never kicks you to line 3.

 

Another thing is if you ride someones ##### and they brake,you brake but the truck behind you is screwing with radio,making a sammich,playing with his/herself and they dont stop. Now he hits you and you hit the guy in front. Even though he hit you and pushed you in to another truck you are now at fault of hitting the guy in front because according to law enforcement you were not maintaining a safe following distance and it is a PREVENTABLE in the eyes of law and the company. Why chance it?

 

A frustrated safety man once told me that he has tried everything to get drivers to think "SAFETY" and it doesn't seem to be working. He asked me what do I do to promote safety to the drivers that are new to the oversized game. I told him that it's real simple: the absolute safest thing to do is to AVOID BAD SITUATIONS all together. The main reason why there's a backup is because everyone is cramming together homo-driving, hugging the butt of the vehicle in front of them. How many times do we see an accident that happened during a backup? Right lane is closed up ahead but a nitwit and a moron had a bender in the left lane.

Someone said that it makes no difference, and while true, it's a lot less stressful (which is safer for everyone) to just flow. Like Bruce Lee said, "Be water." Getting all worked up, trying to stay inches off the rear of another vehicle is not safe

4 wheelers left home pissed off. They go to work pissed off. They go home pissed off. As long as there's a truck in front of them, they're going to be pissed off. And no matter where you are in a backup, there's a truck in front of you. So I am cruising along and some idiot driven 4 wheeler is pissed at me? That puts a smile on my face.

If you are in a big rig and trying to cater to 4 wheelers who are impatiently waiting to die in the next traffic accident, perhaps trucking isn't the job for you.

 

I'm surprised your safety department hasn't nailed you on this . Tour GPS location is recrded constantly . They should notice you went on duty at a different location than you went off duty .
It would be noticed at an inspection of your e-logs at a scale also .

 

If you are in a spot where there is construction and they have closed off a lane - or if there is an accident that has closed a lane - and traffic is merging, a lot of trucks will leave the space in front of them open and ride alongside a vehicle in the next lane to prevent cars from bottle - necking.

I'm not sure if that is what you mean but I see it done a lot and it does alleviate the wait time getting up to the merge point, at least a little.

 

Best done with 4big trucks side by side.

 

When somebody rides my bumper I slam the brakes gets em everytime

 

Even our safety dept told us if we run out of time at a shipper or receiver and we are close to a truck stop or a place to park that we are to creep to that stop go prevent from going onto the drive line and having an hos violation.