Swift's new trip planning messages

Amen brother to that.

 

Start pressing your DM and/or the planners (if you can talk directly with the planners) to stack you with longer loads if they want you to run a short haul. That's how I do it, although I must say my DM is absolutely golden.

You have to remember that your DM is bonused based on average fleet performance, including average miles per week. In fact average miles per week is one of their top priorities, so he should be in line with your needs.

Where do you normally run? If you are running a lot in the NE there's a lot of shorter hauls. If you run out west there's a lot of longer hauls. If you find yourself getting stuck in the NE and can't seem to get a dispatch west, then Mac-8 for home time and put in a zip code out in California. Usually Jurupa Valley planning area has a glut of available freight because the Long Beach port is THE major port of entry for Asia products. Plenty of long hauls out of there back to Texas, Denver, Seattle, Memphis, etc. etc.

 

I'll follow up my comment to say the ONLY time I've ever had anything approaching a DM getting over the line was when I called the night crew after sending a Mac-22 on a JIT Hyper Focus Load to explain the situation. IIRC I'd run into some heavy rain squalls that brought traffic to a standstill in Tennessee.

The DM said, "You HAVE to make that delivery on time you know!?"... or something to that effect.

It was the closest to jumping down the throat of a DM since I've been with Swift. I told him in no uncertain terms that the moment we get a video on the Qualcomm that requires us to forego safety AND that getting a load delivered on time is the top and only priority then I'll allow his statement to stand. I then told him that if he wanted to put what he said in writing on the Qualcomm I'd be delighted to forward it to Safety.

There wasn't another peep out of him.

 

Just like the coors light beer loads where per my swift DM says " if you don't make it on time you'll shut down the whole plant costing swift THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS PER HOUR'

sure....in a regulated 62 mph truck....gotcha

 

I told Terminal Manager and he said they have no way of knowing your on a ten and it would be no different at any other Terminal because they are here to move freight etc. I am new but have a uncle who has been driving for over thirty years with most if that time at Pilgrims Pride and now TEAM plus another uncle who drove local for Pilgrims Pride and a dad who drives Pump Truck in Oilfield so I'm not completely dumb and when I told him that he started shutting up and told me that if I wanted to change Terminals he would approve it and that was the end of the conversation. I am not going to sit here and act like I know everything because I don't and I love to pick others brains at the Terminals, I just can't believe they would expect you to just be a robot, I mean my uncles did tell me it was some like that and to CYA but I never knew it would be to where you feel like you can't take a breathe without them .

 

And, honestly I have thought about turning truck in but I don't want to give up that easy, but they want me to accept while I'm trying to rest or shower? How is it with you guys, I mean how do you accept loads if you are sleeping do you jump up to look and accept or wait and if so why are they trying to make me feel like I have gone A.W.O.L ?

 

DMs and whatnot are supposed to look at your duty status before sending you stuff or calling you. They are NEVER supposed to call you when you are listed in sleeper birth. They also are not so stupid as to not know when you are on your 10h break.

 

When I'm taking a 10 I take my responsibility seriously, to sleep. Qualcomm volume is turned off. I use my cell phone as my alarm clock and if I do hear an incoming text message I MIGHT see if it's a load offer and I MIGHT get up to check it out, but no guarantees. Under no circumstances will I answer a phone call during my 10. Even my wife knows better than to pester me on a 10. It's a safety issue.

If your conversation with your terminal manager was as described I'd document it in writing to the head of Safety in Phoenix and cc to your terminal manager. There's absolutely no excuse for interrupting a 10 by asking another driver to wake you up, not unless there's far more to the story than you are telling (like for instance not being available for load offers on a regular basis).

If you get a load offer by text and you are away from your truck you can call your DM to accept the load for you.

Regarding loads to Laredo, last I looked a couple weeks ago they had the "big green bubble" (far more loads than available drivers) while Jurupa Valley had the big red bubble (far more drivers than available loads). Whenever I'm in a terminal I try to find the "bubble map" and study it. As a platinum driver I can use Mac-30 and have choices where I can go, and it makes a difference if I can get somewhere that has a lot of green bubbles.

If you want to game the system with a home time request I'd make it to LA area in most cases. There's almost always a big green bubble there and the hauls are usually longer distance.

 

^^^^^ THIS ^^^^^

DM's, Planners, or anyone in management can look at your duty status and location at any time. If your terminal manager told you they can't he's lying.