Any company drivers getting midnight loads lately forcing you to drive all night?

i deliver to 3 places every night, all the same for 5 nights.

only two of those places really, really scare me...

why...??

well NOT ONLY the darkness.....

but the "wild life" that seem to wanna be out there as well, and i am talking about the skunks and bats that are flying about.....

no amount of headlights sweeping or carrying of a flashlight will ever pick up on a skunk, when it darts out from behind the dumpster or the woods or bat...!!!

guess i am SAFER in downtown Boston after all....at least there, the "other wild life" can be seen (or smelled) from a greater distance..!!!

 

I can relate to what the OP is saying.Happen to me many times.Companies figure you have hrs then you need to runno matter when load has to be picked up.There way of thinken is get some sleep so you can pick up load.I just tell the dispatcher to find me a load to pick up the next day if im sitting all day waiting for a load and most the time they're pretty good about working with me.If you feel you can't sleep and well be too tired then tell your dispatcher right away.If I have to sit all day after getting a good night sleep then I won't do them a favor by picking up a late load anymore.It's not fair to the drivers having to sit all day then the company exspects you to pick up load.

 

What kind of trailer do you pull ? If its a Reefer yes 0dark thirty p/u's are common. If its a Dry Van its uncommon,but it does happen. Either way it could last a week or 3 months. Best thing to do id sleep when you get the chance and don't worry about the late night P/U's. They'll probably change anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. Welcome to the wonderful world of trucking.

 

so true about grabbing sleep time when ever we can. forget about watching tv or a movie. get a meal, and a shower, then get some sleep.

 

NewNashGuy I've been to quite a few shipper/receivers that don't let drivers camp out on their property. Usually its one of two reasons. The first is they don't have the space. The second is if they have the space one or two drivers ruined for those who like to do as you do.

 

Most trucking company's are in biz to move freight , not to make drivers happy! It's the same all over.

 

Guess you better tell this to all my fellow firefighters/medics! We learned to sleep when we could, up and moving when the alarm sounded, and finish the call back to sleep......

Ya know what....none of those "sleep study" investigations ever dealt with EMS people....just white collar office types and factory shift workers.....wonder why?

 

Central Ref has some dedicated meat loads where it is almost all overnight runs to keep you on a decent schedule

 

No shippers won't but that's when you strap on the big boy pants and tell them that you can not safely move the load without adequate sleep. If they don't like that then too bad. You need to look out for yourself and the other drivers on the road, the company sure won't.