6+ Axles.... Why Not??

I can't really complain because I get paid my the hour and I get paid well..... I realize the more weight doesn't mean you will get more money which I think it BS but it's not the only thing you get screwed for anyhow.. IE hauling wide loads and not getting much more then a guy opening and slamming doors all day long... I pull either a 5 axle trailer (8 total) or tri axe trailer... We all get paid the same no matter how much (or little) weight you haul.. I also get paid the same to be on the dump trailer as well.. My trucking job is a little different then OTR tho because I am local and considered a Heavy Equipment Operator and Unionized so whatever the job pays is what you get..

We gross out at 130,000 we could be licence for more with the 8 axles but they choose not too... I am not saying all jobs need to be hauling this much weight (or more) BUT with some loads they are just naturally heavy and if you only could gross 80,000 you wouldn't be taking much material.. Like Garbage for instance it's heavy if you didn't have 7+ axle the trailer wouldn't be anywhere close to full... Take me for example... My 5 axle aluminum trailer and truck tare in around 54,000lbs that means I can only take 26,000lbs of material, this is a far way away from the from the 76,000lbs of material I could leave with... So this is more efficient like Bikerboy said, sure it requires more experience and a little more street when cars cut you off but it's like anything else you get used to it... We have more weight but we also have more axles so the stopping distance shouldn't really be increased....

I would really say everyone doesn't get paid to haul the extra weight... I am sure some aren't but I also am sure lots of people are making more money to haul weight.. My net income is every 2 weeks is $2400 (not including overtime) based on 40hrs/week.. This doesn't include benefits, pension etc...

We have "LCV - Long Combination Vehicles" in Ontario now, they are 2 53ft trailers (NY hauls them in Buffalo and area)... I have talked to some drivers and they are not getting compensated very good for this... I mean they are cutting out a driver and saving on fuel the drivers should be getting paid double the mileage.. Not to mention they are limited to 90km/hr.. This kind of stuff here is what needs to change.

Michigan muti axle trucks aren't just Canadian trucks, Michigan runs heavy as well it's just they require more axles then us for the same weight like I said before... We have 6 axle trailers for 140,000lbs and MI is 7 axles... Who knows maybe the rates suck because your NOT as efficient as you would be with more axles therefore the shipper would be paying you less because they have to have more trucks.... If you think about my example above you would need 3 trucks to haul what I can with one truck... So wouldn't it make sense to pay more for that 1 truck rather then pay for 3 trucks... I'm all for keeping trucking jobs but at the same time the more it cost a shipper the less your going to get because they would be paying 3 trucks rather then just 1.... I guess I have always been around mutli axle setups that my opinion is different then someone who isn't around it day in and day out...

I will agree tho, I would not be hauling heavy for the same amount of money that someone who is grossing 80,000.. When I worked for this one company I spoke up because I was on a flatbed getting paid the same as the door slammers... I was also hauling wide/long/heavy loads bit getting paid anymore and I complained because of the extra responsibilities that come with specialized loads....