why do drivers stand for governed trucks?

I'm glad some of these people can't drive 75-80.

 

I drive for GTI, which is limited to 60mph. That said, even if they opened up to 80, I doubt I'd put it up that high. No matter what the limiter is set to, I'm not driving faster than conditions allow including my skill. For the most part I'm quite comfortable at 60-65. I DO wish it was opened up more so I could build speed for climbing a hill since my rig is a 4 axle truck. I'd much rather they let ME be the limiter and just have the qualcom tattle on me if I break the states speed limits. But that would assume that all drivers use commons sense, which we know isn't true....

 

After driving 1yr9mths governed at 67, I now drive an ungoverned truck and love the fact I can actually drive the speed limit where ever I go, even TX!...I rarely drive much under gross and appreciate being able to hit uphills at a faster speed...

 

It's bad enough they drive 55-60!

 

Driving 75 is such a waste of fuel, and what does it get you anyway? 10 miles an hour in an 11 hour day (yeah..) , 110 miles, or about an hour and a half's worth of driving. take your fuel mileage down by about 1.5 mpg for the extra speed and you cost yourself a pretty penny in fuel, definitely not worth the speed.

 

Due to HOS limitations and other factors, being able to run at the posted speed limit means that I am able to haul 5 loads this week instead of 3. A 66% increase in revenue more than makes up for the 15% reduction in fuel economy.

 

WOW>I got to see the math and miles on this one.

 

Keep in mind that I'm speaking from an O/O perspective running spot market loads, not a company driver perspective.

I've found that most spot market loads will only be shipped or received between 7am and 3pm Monday through Friday with few exceptions. Couple that window with the 11/14 rules, add detention time at shippers / receivers, and you'll quickly see how losing an extra hour or two in each drive cycle can make a big difference in the number of loads one would be able to haul in a week's time (legally).

450 miles at 55 = 8 hours 15 minutes.
450 miles at 60 = 7 hours 30 minutes.
450 miles at 65 = 7 hours.


Even that extra 30 minutes that you gain between 60 and 65mph can mean the difference between bumping the dock today at 2:45pm, getting loaded and on your way to the delivery point vs. pulling up to a locked gate at 3:15pm and having to sit and wait until 8am the next morning to get loaded. That 30 minutes you lost to the governor has now put you a day behind.

At 1mpg difference between 60 and 65, you've saved a whopping $60, but you've lost $900 - $1200 in revenue on that 'extra' load that you couldn't take this week.

Also keep in mind that miles are largely irrelevant; miles cost you money and don't pay the bills. Dollars do.

edit: Do governors make sense for some companies? I'd say yes they do. Companies that do a lot of drop and hook can benefit. Since they don't have to worry so much about appointment times, they can maximize their profits by limiting speed to save on fuel, and also save on driver pay since a driver will get less miles out of their 11 hour driving day. For those that do have live load / unload appointments on contract freight, companies can simply adjust the appointment times to account for the slower speed. It lowers productivity, but since it's the mileage pay based (lease or company) driver that takes the hit, the company couldn't care less.

 

And all of this translated into two additional loads and a 66% increase in revenue? Call me sceptical, I just don't see it BUT it's your story.

And as far as getting to the dock on time, in most cases it's a matter of time management, not driving 75 mph.

 

55 what a traffic hazard you must be.