Is it reasonable?

In trucking that's the way it is. Allways has been, allways will be. Get over it or get used to it, or find another line of work. I'm not trying to be a smartaxx, just telling the way it is.

 

Especially these days johnny. You have got to make money one way or another and if that means driving those long late night hours, than you just have to do it.

Most people don't like to drive through the night, just like most don't like to drive through a snow storm. There have been many times when I have driven 30 MPH for 8 or 10 straight hours through pouring snow, because my next load was already planned and I didn't want to take the chance of losing it.

When loads are a-plenty, you can be a little bit more choosy. Not today.

 

If you could document you were fired for refusing to run fatigued you'd have grounds for a lawsuit . I'd report it to FMCSA anyway and just for kicks tell Parents Against Tired Truckers about it .

 

You did the right thing . If more drivers had the guts and sense to do the same the conditions wouldn't exist . A lot of the bigger companies push it and I'd never work for any of them . Most of the companies I've worked for had owners that had spent a lot of time behind the wheel themselves . They knew what they could reasonably expect from drivers .

 

Do you really think that 12 on and 24 off is unreasonable?

 

Some people can sleep during the day , some can't . For the ones that can it's no big deal . But for those that can't you come to work with no previous sleep at 9 p.m. , run all night , and then what ? Get off at 10 or 11 a.m. , be a zombie all day and run all night again ? I worked a swing shift for a company that ran 24/7 . It wasn't a driving job . You'd work 3 12 hour days , have a day off , then come back and work 3 or 4 12 hour nights . Shifts alternated Sundays . I know how I felt the first 12 hour night shift and I would never drive that fatigued .

 

You don't need to tell me about sleep. I did drive 10 hours sleep 8 then drive 10 hours for years. And the reason for the new laws have nothing to do with safety if you ask alot of people that used the old system.

After you've been driver for a few years you'll find out that if it's legal for a company to do it they will. Plus with all the new drivers banging at the door for your job the company could care less.

 

You're talking dedicated route drivers now because you should know that OTR drivers are expected to run when they're legal. Besides that we ran day and night shifts at ARCO and you made provisions at home so you could sleep. When I was on night shift I'd start at 6pm get off when my 6 loads were finished around 5 to 6 am. I'd get something to eat, clean up and then go to bed. My wife made sure that our son would not play around the bedroom and we darkened the windows. Your body couldn't tell if it was night or day and I got plenty of rest. The only problem we had is if you had to take care of some business in town but that wasn't very often.

Also there's drivers that have problems sleeping at night so what should be done? Myself I would always be the sleepiness at dawn when the sun came up and started to warm the cab. As far as coming to work with no sleep I wouldn't do it and my company never would except it if they knew. They paid good money for you to rest and be ready for your shift.