CSA2010 and log book form and manner violations

He has certainly passed on the information that he knows. It has to be had with a grain of salt, because it is tough to chew.

He is in a delicate position, because he catches all of the flack.

I commend him on the effort to educate us all.

 

We do not need more government involvement in business, we do not need more regulation by government, we do not need government to redistribute the wealth of this nation. We Need Less Government and More Personal Responsibility.

 

While I agree in theory with your statement 100%, the truth is most dispatchers have never been withing 100 yards of a truck, nor do they care to be. They believe all drivers, except the ones that pay them off for loads, to be less than scum liars.

Their job is to get the freight moved, and do not believe a driver when he claims the truck is unsafe. They believe that if the truck came through the yard, the company mechanics automaticially repaired any problems. The shop doen not have the time or want to, and usually not the intelliegence to repair the equipment.

The driver is sent back out on the road with a truck needing attention. If the driver makes a stand, he may wait for days at a terminal with no place to stay, with no pay. He may be put into a spare truck, leaving all his posessions for maybe weeks or longer. The dispatcher may order the driver to hit the road, NOW.

If the driver takes a stand, he may not get fired right this moment, though if the shop claims the truck is safe, he may. You can bet the driver will either be starved out, pushed out, or fired for some infraction very soon. This is a fact.

The only recourse many drivers have is to take a truck that needs attention into a scale and get it inspected in order to get repairs. Now, such an action may end up getting the driver premanently out of a job.

There needs to be a provision for such times as this. If inspection reports show continious write up of the same problems, and a driver opts as a last resort for a DOT inspection, no points should be assesed the driver.

There are many scum bag companies that will throw a driver under the wheels in a heartbeat. Maintenance cost money and time.

 

Thank you for writing what I was trying to say without being so abrasive!
Mike, I know I was very abrasive, I just couldnt put into words what I was trying to say very well. CSA 2010 JUST DOESNT SEEM VERY FAIR TO THE DRIVER! We are the smallest person in the entire foodchain,yet we stand to lose the most!
Our employers thinks we lie all the time, Law Enforcement thinks we are "outlaws", the media portrays us as killing machines, meanwhile I only want to feed my family and go home ONCE A MONTH! (Since the 1st of Sept, I have had ONLY 4 DAYS AT HOME!)
So you might say this is a sore subject with me. I had pics of a steer tire posted for me on another thread that my company refused to fix, They knew about it long before it wore down to the point of being unsafe, yet refused to fix it! Out of concern for my safety and the motoring public, I threatened to take it to a weigh station (this was after the company had me in a loaner for 15 days and had that truck in the shop, and after I tool it to a T/A service center where the company was advised to fix it!) The company wanted me to TAKE JUST 1 MORE LOAD before they would fix it. Now I cant take that tire to a weigh station to force the company to fix it without getting my rating lowered??? That is just plain wrong!!! I discovered the problem and reported it early and they refused to fix it and now what the hell am I suppossed to do??? sit WITHOUT PAY till they decide to change their mind??? or let them fire me???
That's just insane. Whatever happened to protecting the "whislte blower"? Not in this business!
I've had 27 days off this year, drove about 106,000 miles and only earned $35,000 FOR THE YEAR!!! Why am I being the target for all these laws, obviously I am not the one getting rich by pulling freight! Maybe we should target those who are making the most money out here! It sure as hell isnt me!

 

There is a whistle blower hot line. (no, i don't know the number, but it should be on fmcsa's website, I know it's in the little green book.)

and the law clearly says, if you take it with a violation (of the truck) you own it too. Your responsibility. Don't make the company's problem your problem.
If the company refuses to fix the problem, there's a whistle blower number (which I'm sure does precisely nothing but one has to have hope)

But honestly, if it's my tail on the line, I'm not taking the POS truck out.
If they fire me, they fire me. Cell phones take pictures nowadays, take a good picture of it, document everything and then call the FMCSA.

My DAC might not be perfect, but my CSA score will.
It's just a job, I really don't want to be taking pieces of junk on the road anyway. I'm sure nobody does. SO STOP DOING IT.
If all they can get is newbies or people with bad CSA scores to drive for them, it will become apparent very quickly and their CSA score (the company) will go into the "bad" categories.

I think this will push the DAC into the background. DAC is one company's word against another, but your CSA score affects both them and you. People with a perfect CSA and a bad DAC are going to be hire-able whereas currently a bad DAC makes you unemployable no matter if it's true or not.

I hate to say it, but i"m convinced, the CSA will be good for good drivers and good companies.

• DAC will get pushed into the background.
• Lots of the "junk" on the road should go away which also means less competition for the remaining. A guy won't be able to buy a $10,000 POS truck and compete for freight unless they put the money into making the truck safe. Should knock out some of the lowballers. A barrier to entry if you will.
• and drivers with good CSA scores will be wanted (although I do think it's going to initially put an over reliance on new drivers, perfect CSA score after all, but their first incident will add to the company's score too, it won't last long if they have lots of incidents)