Is there a "BUFFER" to get to the next truck stop when the driving as no more hours ?

Despite all the sarcasm from the ol' timers, you would need to be pulled over or get in an accident while in violation or have a level 1 inspection by a DOT officer that really doesn't like you before you took a 34 hour reset or within 8 days of the violation. My last level 1 inspection the guy looked at the current time left on the clock, didn't even check the past days or anything, he leaned in my window, looked at the screen and said "thanks"... I could have had a violation everyday until then and it never would have been noticed... Also, DOT has said that they would be lenient the first 6 months after the ELD Mandate. Just like any confrontation with an officer, being polite and honest will go a long way. The company you work for will complain, but that is because the records can be checked in an audit.

Basically, you are more likely to get struck by lightening, a lot of these ol' timers have their panties in a bunch and think the DOT has ELD Drones flying around tasing people in violation of HOS.

 

I'm not an old timer, but I think I saw the drones....and those dudes hiding in the bushes with binoculars...I'm just glad I was all square on my logs....shudder to think of what could have happened otherwise...

 

If your luck is anything like mine, you could go 364 days without going 1 minute over, but the 365th day, you go over 5 minutes, the next day you get a Level 1 and they catch it...seems like I am always the bug and never the windshield.

 

Never mind the stupid glass for them bugs, with my luck hornets got me in the spine one or two times. I hate those, think I got shot right then. Sheesh.

 

So how about when you have one pallet of product and you’re delivering to Food Lion in Dunn, NC. They are your last stop and you have six hours left on your clock. They pull the pallet off in a timely fashion which takes 15 minutes. Then they take 6 hours to check it in and give you back your paperwork.

You know what I’m doing? Yep, that’s right, driving to the ####ing truck stop.

 

That's just a little bit different from driving past a truck stop because you have 15 minutes left on your clock and trying to get some pity because you drove half an hour over your time.

 

Well, the easy answer is, I don't take anything to food lion for exactly the reason you stated.
Again, the problem isn't the ELD. The problem is the HOS and the way the system has worked for so long. A receiver should NOT be holding your truck for 6 hours without compensation to the truck. But they have gotten away with doing this for so many years, people just think that is the way it is supposed to be.
If you allow it, the ELD will eventually spotlight these lousy shippers and receivers, and they WILL have to change their ways, and that will benefit every single driver in this industry.

 

I've been paper free for years now and it's great! Don't believe anything you hear until you verify it for yourself. Companies have a bad habit of creating a "policy" and selling it like it's the law. Know the law and then follow the policy if it complies.
1. Never exceed hours of service rules. Stuff happens to all of us. Communicate! Communicate! Communicate! Don't allow yourself to be put in a position to make a bad choice. Drivers are at the bottom of the food chain and you will go to prison if things go bad.
2. Always allow more time than you think you will need. Unless I know parking is available, I usually plan to have additional time 30-40 minutes driving time after I'm shut down. I've tried a lot of apps and TruckerPath works best. If you don't have it yet download it now and start using it.
3. Call ahead and see if you can park at shipper/receiver. Check in and log it as load/unload before you go off duty. I usually show 10-15 minutes on duty for my post trip inspection and docking time then go in sleeper berth. You can take your break and start your clock when you are ready to leave.
4. Don't show driving time when you are not driving. Pull into the place you are going and stop (in a safe place). Change your duty status ASAP, as this will save your driving clock.
5. Check your company policy on unladen. If you are unladen you do not have to use your hours of service. While I am unloading I do my post trip and then show "empty" in my log for the pro number and bill of lading. Having an empty trailer does not automatically mean you are laden.
6. For most commercial pumps refueling should only take 7-10 minutes. Pull ahead and go off duty to take care of your personal needs. If you are in line go off duty and take care of personal needs the on duty to fuel.
7. Be consistent. This is more important than people realize. Everyone has a normal routine or pattern. A break in routine is a RED FLAG that will draw attention. If you use the same truck, you should be able to do a PTI in about 9 minutes. I usually do my pti then go wash up before getting back inside my truck. I then edit my on duty time to show actual on duty then the balance to off duty.
8. ALWAYS have current BOL, trailer and Pro number shown. When you are empty show empty. When you are loaded show loaded. Never show gaps in the data.
9. Don't make promises you can't keep. Better to say no upfront than suffer the consequences of a bad decision.
One last thing. I've been using google maps with satellite view to drop a pin on the driveway I want to go to. I then enter the coordinates in my GPS and drive right to the spot I want to go. This technique is better then using the address because it puts you where you want to be....which saves clock time.

 

I do get compensation. Those kind of places can really pad the rate. However, sometimes they get a little ridiculous and run me out of hours or cause me to miss a stop or a pick.

ELD isn’t going to change the way Food Lion does things. You’ll just see a lot more CR England (or similar) triple teams at the dock.

 

They'll have to pay those rates.