Need input from fellow Roehl-ers on advice please

I have a couple of questions for you more seasoned veterans out there, and am posting them in the Roehl forum because they are specific to the company.

First, what is the deal with Service Exceptions? I may or may not have received one yesterday because I didn't send my arrival call until 0815 for an 8:00 appointment, even though I was in the area at 0800, but couldn't send the call until the truck was stopped. I had already called the consignee and let them know that I was running a little behind and they said no worries because they didn't even have a door for me to unload in yet. The reason I was running late was not entirely my fault, as it stemmed from truck problems at the previous consignee, which resulted in my picking up of this load later than originally planned (it was a preload). Then, I had to stop by Gary to get the truck looked at, and stayed in a bunk room overnight. Got up at 0300 to get the truck and maintenance was gone and shop was locked. They did not put my truck where they normally put the trucks that come out of the shop, so I had to look all over the terminal for it, then finally found it at the far end of the bobtail row (northeast corner of terminal). By this time, it was 0330 and I had to be in Green Bay in 4.5 hours, while still needing to fuel and PTI before I could get on the road. I also hadn't sent my directions request because of rushing to get to Gary the previous night before my hours ran out. This meant that I had to stop at a truck stop on the way so I could operate the QC to get my directions, which added another 20 minutes to the trip (was a crappy, small, crowded Pilot).

Now, I could have called and told night dispatch I was running late but thought I would have enough time to make it, and being a new driver I didn't want to get the reputation of always calling to complain about my problems. So, I thought I could at least get in the Green Bay area so I could send my #12 before 0800 and not get the late. Turns out I didn't make it. Even though, like I said, the consignee did not consider me late, of course I get a message from my DSR 15 minutes later: "Hey, I am showing a service exception on this load, any info on delays?" I told her the situation, told her I thought I could still make it even after the curveballs, but miscalculated a little bit. I also told her that the consignee did not say I was late. She replied saying that they were "there to help and to always let us know of any delays." Well I didn't know the previous day that I wouldn't be able to find my truck in the morning, plus if I indicated that I would be running behind, I didn't want them to have to reschedule the whole thing, since I knew that most receivers give at least half an hour leeway on appointments, especially if you call them first to give them a heads up. I kept inquiring about it, and she finally said that it would actually count as an "extended break," since they said that it took me over 4 hours to get to the shipper after getting my load assignment. I said yes that's correct because I was on the phone with maintenance trying to diagnose and fix my engine problem. When I replied with that, I got a message from her lunch-break fill-in who said she would forward the info. Haven't heard anything about it since, and am afraid to ask.

If the previous paragraph was too wordy for you, in a nutshell I was a few minutes late to an appointment through little fault of my own. The consignee did not consider me late, but I was technically late on the QC. Was told by my DSR that it would count as an "extended break." Basically, what is that and what does it mean for my service record? I have been spotless up to now and really didn't want to see something minor like this go on my record. I'd rather save it for when I really screw up.


Second question (long winded, I know, sorry): After that fiasco, I went to pick up my next load and the trailer had a broken taillight. I was coming back through Gary anyway, so they told me to drive down there and they would fix it. I had about 4 hours left on my clock, so I knew I would be cutting it really close but thought I could make it since the weather wasn't too bad, plus I didn't want to stay at a truck stop in the Chicago area and likely pay for parking in a crappy neighborhood when the terminal was so close. Well, I completely forgot to consider the fact that I would be driving through Chicago at 1600 on a Friday, which has to be the worst time of all to do so. To make a long story short biggrin_2552, I find myself stuck on 294 at a 10mph crawl for almost an hour. End up going over the 14 hour rule by an hour. Now my question is, what do I do about this? I haven't scanned in the log yet. The thing that has got me pegged is I swiped my Comdata card at 0330, and went through a toll booth (EZ Pass) at 1755. My log has to show me off duty at 1730 or I'll get an obvious violation. I really want to just be honest and tell them I messed up, but they are going to say that I shouldn't have even attempted the drive in the first place with only 4 hours left. The DRG says their computer checks your logs against your fuel and toll times. Does anyone know if they do this in absolutely every case? I just need to know what to put on my logs to not draw attention to this and give them a reason to always keep an eye on me. I don't have a habit of running illegal, that was the first time it has ever happened, and certainly want to stay under the radar of the safety dept. Has anyone ever been nabbed by this before?

Thanks in advance and sorry for the long winded post, seems to happen whenever I try to explain situations.

 

Thanks for the input everybody. I just showed my driving :30 over and noted in the remarks that there was accident and traffic jam on 294 and was seeking the safe haven. I still feel like a moron because I thought I could make it there during Friday afternoon traffic, and I'm afraid they're going to ask me why I thought I could make it knowing traffic would be bad, but I really didn't even consider that when I got on 294. What sucks is that I already have one log violation from when I was in EVO 1 because I came on duty :15 before I should have. Hopefully they won't weigh that one very much because it was like my 5th day of training and at that point I was just logging what my trainer told me to, though I should have checked to make sure it was accurate. What's worse, I feel sheepish telling my DSR about it now when it happened 4 days ago ("oh by the way...") She is really cute though, maybe I'll get more than a verbal warning

 

Umm, yes Doc you are 100% correct on the initials. I definitely wouldn't say anything to piss her off. I do wonder if she's single, though, she's about my age. I bet every driver she's ever had has hit on her.

I scanned in the offending page today. About an hour later I had a missed call on my cell phone, checked my voicemail and it was her...my heart dropped because I was sure she was going to call me on it. Turns out it was just her telling me they hadn't found a preplan today and I might have to wait until Monday. Never more happy to hear those words in my life!

I'm cringing getting that call though. I know it's minor but I hate having anything on my records of any type. Got 100% clean criminal history and MVR, so hated to see something like this go on my permanent record. Does anyone know if these violations (and service exceptions for that matter) disappear after a certain amount of time? Like end of calendar year, or one year from the violation/exception?

 

Thanks CMoore. I haven't done the early arrival call thing yet on my own. I only thought about doing it as a last resort. Every other delivery I've had I've been over an hour early. I also know I screwed up by pulling into that TS, right after I pulled in. My thinking was a little clouded by the 3 hours of sleep, interrupted twice by the maintenance guy.

Actually, consignee was Woodman's, which is a really cool place. Did some shopping while they were unloading me. Did pick up at GP after that, though.