Company installing driver cams. Now what?

Well youre just reinforcing my point to be honest. We HAVE outward facing cameras, has it slowed the increase in accidents...probably slightly, but I don't have numbers. Is it enough? NO
Will inward facing cameras help? Maybe, but there's not enough data yet to tell. In my honest oppinion, if there's a likelyhood that a bad driver is going to get caught and prosecuted for illegal activities (distracted driving being #1) in the event of an accident, that SHOULD be enough to at least make people think twice about texting or doing whatever nonsense is on tik tok at the time, while driving.

It IS NOT right that we've gotten so ignorant and entitled that we only care about ourselves and our stupid ####### phones.

It IS NOT right that people are ignoring laws in place to keep EVERYBODY safe.

It IS NOT right that simple minds are encouraging unsafe practices on the roads.

Where's the line? When is there going to be a breaking point? How many deaths and how much does insurance have to rise before people pull thier heads out of thier ##### and have a look around you. Have some courtesy for other people, stop following so closely, get the f*** out of the hammer lane and just get where you have to go without acting like an animal.
You live in a 1st world country, we used to have manners and consideration for others and in the last 40 years this country has turned into a bunch of chimps slinging thier crap at eachother. We all know about the stain that's infecting our highways and indeed our country but fighting amongst ourselves about it is exactly what these globalist scumbags want.
WE are better people than them. Stop giving in to thier nonsense.

 

Your posts read to me you think it's possible to regulate our way to perfection. If we could just find that magic string of words and make that the law then everything would be perfect... It is never going to be perfect. Let's pretend for one second we did manage to regulate our way to 0 crashes, 0 injury, 0 death on our roadways. What do you think happens then? I'll bet you the government finds new "problems" to attack and get even bigger to find solutions to yet more manufactured problems. They are pretty good at it if you haven't noticed.

Have I texted while driving? I'm not going to pretend I am a saint and say I never have. Do I pick times that are less dangerous than others? You bet. Going along 90 in SD by yourself on a perfect weather day nobody around you and a short duration of not even total inattention is that really who we are trying to prosecute here? It is a whole other story going along 94 in MI during a white out. Yet that camera watching my every move will hang me just the same. I am not advocating for or against text/drive, what I am saying is there are less dangerous times than others. This requires using the brain a bit. However using the brain seems to be the issue when it comes to just about everything in the truck driver's day. The elog keeps you "compliant". Didn't sleep well? It says you are legal, so go. The speed governor says this is the best maximum speed to drive. Okay, I will pin it everywhere I legally can perhaps even when conditions are less than ideal *subject to everyone's definition of what 'ideal' is*.

It is not politically popular to say what we need is a measure of the crash rate and fatality rate and measure it somehow, perhaps by 100,000,000 miles travelled, collectively. Not by time, because under covid nobody was on the road so we can't point to whatever regulation came into affect at the time and say that fixed us good. Get the raw data. Come up with a way to see, are we improving, or are we not? All these directors making the laws for us who have never driven a truck seem to know what's best. Any politician who gets up there and says 0 deaths/injuries/crashes is just not a realistic goal will shortly be out of a job. Not to say we shouldn't be trying to forever improve, it's just, at what cost? On that note, why don't we just have perpetual lockdown, considering the injury/death rate declined so much. What nobody wants to say is we will accept the extra injury and death risk that comes with us all going out and not being confined to our homes.

I must not be on the correct program in how I operate. My truck isn't *really* governed, but it shows it is. It will do 85 mph. I like to cruise down the 401 at a whopping 62 and let everyone slowly pass. I am just a young pup though, with only 17 years in now, but there have been a few times when crap unfolds in front of me and I am very glad I had that stopping room! It is not soon forgotten. I will also admit say I come up on a truck doing just a bit slower, I will step it up and get around and get by. If they want to play the speed up when I get out to pass usually I'll fall back again but do it twice and I am going to use 85 if I need to. If a cop were to see me in that moment I'd be ticketed heavily and labeled by society as a lunatic. Right lane, single file, 55, you maniacs! Sound like anywhere else?

I am exiting the industry for other reasons. It has been a long time coming making this decision, but I my mind is clear now. The ever increasing regulation is just more fuel on the fire why I will exit and never look back. I am sure another set of crap-slinging-chimps is chomping at the bit to take my place. It is a real shame because I think I'm about as good as one can get doing this, specifically hauling reefer, but the future just isn't bright and there is more opportunity elsewhere for me. I have enjoyed trucking, but with ~30 more working years, yeah, no thanks. Get out now while I'm still young enough. I can only imagine there are scores of folks just like me who have simply thrown their hands up only to say to heck with this.

There's many people in my life tell me I need to watch my tongue. I don't believe anyone is "better" than anyone else. The issue we have is a culture clash. I'll never understand why we take in so many from places with far different cultures. I am sure there are plenty of Americans, Australians, Europeans in general, who'd love to come live and work here and live pretty much the same way. It is a joke if we think we are actually helping people by taking the .001% we can from places bombs are coming out of the sky. Want to really help them? Figure out how they can not have bombs coming out of the sky anymore. Or if you have to leave then go to neighbouring countries. What is happening is they are shopping for the best welfare state. Why you think we keep sending food to Africa rather than sending tractors and combines and teaching them how to sustain themselves. It is all about CONTROL.

 

I can't really argue with you, we ALL are basically on the same page as drivers here I think...I think we all want the same things and I think we all have good as well as not so good ideas on how we would fix things and I'm glad to see that, right or wrong at least we are thinking and trying to find compromise.
You'll never STOP accidents, until the robots take over lol, if you have a human element, you'll have errors and mistakes. I can accept that. #### happens. But the quantity and severity of the mistakes and accidents is too high. Anyone driving on our highways for more than 10 mins can very clearly see there's a major problem. If you were to actually sit down and tally up the accidents annually or even quarterly, first of all record the time cost, secondly the monetary cost, you'd have a staggering number I'm sure.
If you cut down on all these stupid little wrecks due to following too close or distracted driving, whatever it happens to be, you keep the traffic moving. This is a huge issue....slow moving traffic sucks but at least it's moving. That cuts down on those losses i mentioned earlier. One of the contributing factors to keeping traffic moving is to not have a bunch of vehicles on the "shoulder" of the express because they were 6" from eachothers ### end doing 140 and had to stop. If that's not bad enough, you then get 8 friggin cop cars, 2 fire trucks and umpteen vultures hanging around looking for a hook blocking 2 of 3 lanes for absolutely no reason. It's an aggregate of stupidity slowing down our highways.

Fix the attitudes and you fix half the accidents I guarantee it, id put my life on it.
Put the phones down and you'll have even less. And if there's a device around constantly reminding you to put your phone down and pay attention, I don't think it's a bad thing......annoying definately, but in the society we live in, people are so completely wrapped up in whatever crap is on thier phones that they can't or wont pay attention. Not only is it unsafe, it's also ILLEGAL.

If the driver facing camera was there as a constant reminder to keep your eyes on the road it might work to cut down on these accidents....and isn't that the goal? Safer roads mean traffic flows and we all get home. The cameras aren't likely the end all solution, im sure something else will come along but for the short term, cameras are what's availible for a reasonable cost and little hassle to install....outward facing cameras should be mandatory IMO, inward facing I could live without but as I've stated they don't bother me...if it's recording while I'm driving, I consider that company time anyway...it'd be no different to me than working at hydro or a gas station ect, the company has the right to install cameras to make sure you're not dog f****** all day. If it's that big of a concern, stick your underwear over the camera while you're off duty, that's your personal time and they can eat my ### if they think theyre going to spy on me on my own time.
I don't think the inward facing cameras are the long term solution, here's MY personal suggestion...the cell phone companies need to figure out a way to have the phone go into an "automobile mode" of sorts. There must be some sort of technology that makes the phone inaccessible to anything other than hands free and GPS, THATS IT! You wouldn't be able to text anymore although i think being able to see the texts is important just not able to respond, no access to YouTube or any other social media and the only thing you'd be able to see is your GPS and whatever phone call you're on or text that comes through. I'm sure the technology exists and I'm sure through Bluetooth or whatever it can be easily integrated into most Eld systems as well....and im not saying that would stop the traffic issues and accidents but it would absolutely help.

To address the comment I made about us being better than them, I meant morally not racially...I KNOW a couple brown drivers that are better than I am and know more about the trucking industry than I do. I didn't mean for my comment to be interpreted in a racial way.
It occurred to me also that sometimes when I get on a roll and my anger for the government starts coming out, that I can be brash and come off as a dick. If I've offended anyone, it was not my intention. And when I said "great attitude to have genius" I didn't mean to call YOU a genius sarcastically, I meant that the attitude was genius.
Please don't take what I say personally or as a personal attack, that's another huge problem in society these days. I take the time to read and understand everything we discuss. It's important to use empathy in these discussions, look at things from ALL sides and points of view. You may not agree with my point of view but rest assured that I have read yours, considered it and respect it...even if I don't agree!

 

I feel everyone has their own opinion. My personal opinion is I don't care about the outward facing drive cameras. I feel that I drive cautiously every single time I'm on the road. I want to get home safely, and to all other destinations safely, as well as everyone I share the road with. My issues came when I worked for Johnson Feed Inc out of South Dakota. This was about 4 years ago. They had both outward and driver facing cameras, but didn't inform me that I could cover the driver facing camera. After a week I ran into other drivers who told me they had covers at the shop made for the Lytx cameras they had specifically to block them from watching you inside their trucks. Okay fine I go get one, install it. After awhile I get the feeling they've been listening to me.... One example.. I was on the phone with my girlfriend telling her how the safety guy keeps calling me once a month saying I was randomly selected for a drug test. Wow again? 3 times in 3 months lucky me. Pass all 3, so I'm on the phone again telling her every time I go to the terminal where he worked he's mean mugging me etc. Very next day I'm headed to deliver dog food to their storage that's directly across from one of their terminals and he calls me and says you have a random tomorrow. When I got there I went inside, and Matt ( I believe is his name) says hey since you're hear we can do your review. The entire time he's talking to me he's trying his hardest not to laugh. This was my 2nd time working for this company. 1st time they didn't have cameras, and both times in orientation they never mentioned having any type of reviews....So, I say review? what review? We walk over to his computer, and I see a list of all their trucks and a play button on each trucks screen...he clicks my truck number and I see that I'm clearly at a stop light, but I could see my right hand, right leg, and I could hear myself singing the music that's playing on the radio clear as day. Matt hurries up and stops the clip. Then says "never mind that's the wrong clip I was trying to play". I say wow, so why was it recording me?? He says you must've hit a hard bump on the road. BS! That's when I realized this company, and I'm sure many others illegally listen to their drivers 24/7 when they want to. They also hide the fact that they do so, because I doubt anyone would drive over the road, and live in their vehicles knowing they were being secretly watched/listened to. I put in my two weeks. About three days later I called my gf to tell her I was done with them because of what I found out on top of their low pay. Less than a minute after we hung up good ole' Troy (recruiter) called me, and said " I hear you're quitting.... umm is it because of your pay per mile"? I replied " it's the pay, and the fact that you guys are sitting in your office secretly watching me everyday to get your giggles etc. Good riddens"

 

Wow, that is a very disturbing story. I'd give one of those 30 mins free human rights lawyers a shout and see if theres anything you could do. I'm sure since you don't have any real proof there's not much you can do but I, personally, WOULD call. That's a violation of your basic human rights, you've been belittled and made to feel embarrassed and uncomfortable in the workplace and that's not ok. There's a line of privacy being violated in that situation. It's one thing to record and have it inaccessible except in the event of an accident, to ONLY be used for legal purposes. This company or the people working there could theoretically exploit that footage and even profit from it. I'd be VERY enraged if I'm in your shoes. I'm sorry that you endured that, it's a very uncomfortable feeling when something like that happens. It's another example of how evil people pervert things that are meant to be used for good and use then to harm and rape the common man.
How long before we march up the steps of parliament and kick the door down and put an end to this ####? Does NOBODY else see what's going on in Europe right now? THERES MORE OF US THAN THERE IS OF THEM!!!

 

Appreciate it. Yes, it still bothers me even though it has been a good time ago. I contacted a few lawyers back them, but didn't get far. Wish I never gave up. I do remember contacting one in South Dakota back then, and was told they can put whatever they want in their trucks it's their property. Which is true, but it's also illegal which is why there's been others who've sued and won over similar cases with trucking companies. I'm sure that lawyer worked for them. I hate seeing their trucks on the road now.

 

I know in my motive eld it shows camera if you look in diagnostics you can see if voice is enabled.

 

Well I'm sure they've had cameras in them company trucks for a long time. And I KNOW they could see if I had a lizard, cause the only time I'd pick one up was if there was a big old pothole like dirt road... Then I'd have her on my lap! Wondering now if that contributed to my E.D. LoL

 

I'm sure they got microphones as well as cameras. The eye ball nanny thing? I'm an a-hole joker so I'd probably tape up an AI pic of my baby blues in front of the camera? Hidden you might say? Those are easy to find with the infrared on your camera phone. And if the picture didn't work, sounds terrible but I'd find some eyeballs on the black market to put up there and water them three times a day-but that's just me. WTF, do they expect the driver to be a machine? Heck I had to keep telling dispatch back in the mid 90's that I was just one man, not a machine! (Pretty soon they gonna have machines driving them trucks, so time to have a plan drivers!)

 

It only bends like that so many times before it stops working! Lmao