The new mandatory 30 minute break...

If a ''mandatory'' 30 minute is gonna hurt drivers,than they are working for the WRONG PEOPLE and they are just STUPID....I work 5-8 hrs a day and make a killing on the road...This week bring home $3,900.00

 

Yep they are way smarter making there 500.00 a week paycheck living out of a Colemen Cooler for weeks on end...Yep,thats SMART...LMAO...Sounds more like a DOG...

 

And the Polaris Snowmobile.Not to mention i am buying a Jeep Wrangler soon...My first one and i am a Jeep Virgin....It's a wonderful feeling to have LIFE PAID FOR....All on a O/O's pay...

 

Was talking to a driver parked in the penalty zone at a POE. He said weighmaster told him he went between to scales too quickly, hence forth he was speeding. Two hours they made him wait. Makes you wonder if two scales were about eight hours apart, your log would have to show your 30 minute break.

 

I am home every night so the 30 minute break bothers me, I do one trip a day... However whenever I am getting unloaded I usually back to the dock, hand my paperwork to the unloader, and go take a nap in the sleeper between 45 minutes to an hour and a half anyway. I know you are not supposed to combine unloading time with a break however I deliver to the satellite warehouses for the company I work for so I can stay in the dock for as long as I like. Whenever I wake up I go get my signed bills and head back home. Sometimes the guys in the warehouse are busy so they unload my truck in less than 30 minutes, in that case I have to stop at a truck stop. Rest areas are too bothersome and why would I stop somewhere unproductive just to use the bathroom and sit there? Ill stop at a truck stop and go to the restroom and get something to eat. By the time I get back to my truck and get everything situated 30 minutes to 45 minutes have passed by. I have been driving for almost 6 years 5 of which were OTR and I hate hearing everyone whining on the CB about the break because what they fail to realize is when they used to stop to get some lunch or go to the toilet it probably took them more than 30 min anyway. As for SWIFT drivers quitting because of the 30 minute break... I doubt it, probably tired of the $500-$700 weekly paychecks killing yourself OTR. I was with SWIFT for the first 2 years OTR. Get your experience in and move on, there are plenty of local and regional runs out there, keep your MVR, DAC, and CSA rating clean and you can go anywhere you want. Im working for a private company, I'm home every night off weekends... run 2500-3500 miles a week 1 stop a day, Empty backhauls. I bring home $900-$1500 a week. Sounds crazy but I prefer the $900 weeks because its less work.

Oh and I run Loose Leaf paper log books and to the people who want to call me a cheater. If im running a 740 mile round and I get stuck in 1 hour traffic or get stuck behind another truck being unloaded in the dock for a couple hours, do you seriously think I am going to stop for the night 40-60 miles from my family? I used to have my wife come pick me up from the truck stops in those situations and take me home in the car but the reality is I was alot more tired the next day than if I just completed the run.

 

Whomever told you that you can't take your break while in the dock is misinformed. If you're in the sleeper that is absolutely allowed. Read some of the other threads, other circumstances are legal for a break as well.

 

One thing I've found is that when I'm running more than 8 continuous days I often start a day with far less than 11 hours available drive time. Today was an excellent example, I started with a total of 9 hours on my 70. That means I have 14 hours to use 9 hours, leaving 5 hours available for rest breaks, picture taking breaks, long naps, or anything else I want to do in the middle of a multi-day run. I got a nice 2 hour break in the middle of the day, several breaks to take pictures of the rising sun on the Grand Staircase of the Escalante, "leg shaker" stops, and a fuel stop thrown in to save time tomorrow during a 2 stop live unload and onward for final unload.

Running with less than 11 available on a given day makes for a relaxing and enjoyable day of driving. Nothing like watching the sun light up the sandstone cliffs and turning them all shades of warm colors.

Now... on for some poker in Vegas. Life is good.