Stevens Transport A year in review

I went from dumb and dumber, something they no longer do, now you go out with a finish trainer, into pre-alliance fleet. After 60 days I had proven that I could handle myself and the truck, and went to alliance, and signed the contract. Started with Stevens March 3, signed lease agreement, July 25.

I paid less than 10% total tax for the last 2 years...business deductions rule. That includes all taxes that I pay, including the self employment tax.

I only answer quickly when I am having a bad week...plenty of time to spend on the internet. When I am running normally, (hard) then I only check in every couple of days. This week my miles have been terrible.

 

Many are disqualified due to medical, or not reporting something on their application. My orientation class loss about 1/3 during the first 3 days. By the end of the 5 weeks out with the first trainer, it was down to 22 from 70+. After 2 1/2 years I know of 3 of us still with Stevens.

 

Sept 20 to 26

Miles ran 2363, still down on miles

Miles paid, 1854

Miles transflowed yet to be paid...0

Spent Monday setting at the Pilot in fort Worth TX, waiting for my 4 deliveries spread across 14 1/2 hours. 1st appt Target at 21:00, arrive ar 20:00, get checked in and assigned a door right away. Back in, high a lumper, and stand around talking with some drivers that deliver there every week. Find out it is a good thing I am in a door, as the parking lot is full, and like most targets, they are slow. Get called at 21:30 for my paperwork, I am 1 case long that they kept, so I report it to Stevens, and head the 2 miles over to Assoiciated grocers for my 00:30 appointment. At 23:00 I am put in a door, and before midnight I am done. Pull back into the staging area, and catch me a nap, as my next delivery is at 09:00 at Costco.

Nobody disturbed me while i hid out in the staging area for associated. Head for Costco, a 20 mile drive and arrive with no problem at 0800. Assigned a door, and by 0900 I am headed off to Safeway, (tom Thumb) for an 11:30 appt. This has gone smooth....Get to safeway, park, and they make me wait until my appt...oh well, I am done there at 12:30 and head the 3 miles back to the Pilot I started at to transflo my trips, and hope to get a dispatch with my hours.

Get a load that picks up at Pepsi, on Big town, right behind the yard. Drop my trailer, grab my loaded trailer and head to Fort Smith AR, for a morning Delivery. A whopping 270 miles, but I have a pre-plan to pick up 30 miles south, and delivery to connecticut.

Run up to FT Smith, park, make my 0700 delivery, send in my empty call and get the message back, can not verify destination...try calling, send QC message...Need this fixed to be dispatched. Get sent a different pre-plan picking up in Rogers, and delivers in Westfield MA...that works...wait to be dispatched...send another QC message, try calling, leave voice mail for meat, and head up the road to Walmart to do some quick shopping. It is now 1130 and no dispatch, and I need to be rolling to make the delivery appointment. Another phone call, and QC message. take a nap. Eat some lunch, and now I have given up...At 1700 the QC beeps with the load assignment, the same one from this morning that there is no way I can now make the delivery. I let meat know, and they say they did not know I was empty since my empty call was rejected. I then pointed out the QC messages and Phone messages I had left all day long.

Head the 80 miles up to Rogers, drop my trailer, pickup the loaded trailer, and run up to my Fuel stop at Mt Vernon MO. I was going to take a nap and then keep running but my nap turned into 8 hours. Hand the load off in Edwardsville IL, Flying J to a team. Get an empty, and set all day. This is being the week from hell...gremlins, lack of communication.... Friday Morning and I have 840 miles for the week.

I send my DM this information, and he is shocked...Get a phone call, they need my help again!!!! Better get the KY out. Go and drop my empty at Hershey. Go to Thermo King in St Louis and pick up Trl 7855, take it over to Kraft in Granite city to be loaded with a heavy load, to be delivered on MONDAY in Garland TX Kraft, and then bring the trailer to the yard. going to give me a whopping 1500 miles for the week...At this point I really don't care. This trailer is be put out of service, TK is unfixable. I pick up my 45,500 lb load of capri sun, and head for garland TX.

Saturday I decide to take a chance and deliver my load to Kraft. Receiving is closed, but the guard signs the bills, tells me where to drop the trailer, I send in my empty call, no empty trailers available, and before I can call I am sent a load picking up in Ft Worth Kraft Dry, going to engelwood CO. Delivery on Tuesday, a whole 800 miles, but I can run it all by sunday night. So I ended up with 2300 miles by Sunday night.

will make for a bad start to next week, as I will be setting twiddling my thumbs all day in Denver on Monday. But I can fit a 34 hour reset in.

The Good the BAD and the UGLY as it happens.

 

Starmushrroms,

if you truely value your home time, Stevens is NOT the place to go.. average time out is 5 to 7 weeks, and then you get 5 days off...They will tell you different. You will beg to get home, and then they want you back quickly.

Glad to see you are getting your CDL first, that way you are NOT indentured to a company for 1 to 3 years. Florida is a tuff market for truck drivers, too many drivers, too many trucks, a lot of freight in, very little out.

Do your research, and remember that a recruiter tells you what they think you want to hear. Same goes for the owner, former stevens employee, as He gets paid for each student he sends to Stevens.