Drowsy Driving, Zero Options

I have pulled over and slept 30 minutes to an hour many,many times, still do and more if I am not feeling refreshed when I wake up. I do not recall ever pulling over on the interstate, but have taken a nap or two on ramps. I am not saying the OP should have parked on the interstate, I would hope I could have made it to a safer place, but I wasn't driving his truck, nor was I in his shoes.
As far as rules, well lets just say I would hate to know I went all through life following every rule, life would be boring. lol

 

There was one place I recall stopping a couple of times out of necessity.

If you get out of Armarillo towards Dumas which is a true BF small meat plant town and a place to shift agricultural money around you will find a small ridge about halfway there.

Dip into that ridge tucking into the ground pad there. Pull up so 20 more can get in there.

Everyone else roll by on the pavement without knowing all of you are there sleeping until they hit that uphill.

Easy.

New Mexico was even more easy, if I roll pass a small town that has been dead 70 years and a pop of 30, I'll see that there is no rain and the dirt is solid. Roll off pavement and hook, set parking lights and sleep. You will get moving soon enough. No one will bother you. (And never did. Things are maybe different in parts of that state I think.)

 

Tmc stressed during training that under no circumstances were we to ever sleep on a shoulder or ramp.

They were serious. I remember a fleetwide message from Todd (Vp of safety) that a week prior to the message he had instructed dispatch to begin locating drivers that were off duty on a ramp or shoulder via gps. If you were found to be off duty on either you would be OOS for 34 after you dropped the load. And having to do a 34 in the middle of the week in M-F work like flat bedding kills your paycheck, even more so with the points based percentage program.

The couple times I had my rookie trip plans get torched ended up costing me paid parking at a truck stop, simply because I had no other option, and I wasn’t going to try the make a spot stuff.

 

I got switched to day shift today and I'm getting ready to go to work. I'm tired because my internal clock says I should be in bed right now. The whole trucking industry sucks, all truckers suck, and America hates me lol.

 

I laid on a flightline deck ontop my gear for a few days waiting to deploy but our unit wasnt sent.

 

As far as parking on ramps is concerned, I’ve done it a couple of times early in my time as a truck driver, before I got the hang of trip planning. I consider it a last resort, and I’ll never park on an exit ramp, either for an actual exit or for a rest area. It’s just too dangerous, you’ve got folks in trucks and cars coming off the highway at speed, the consequences of a collision are totally unacceptable. At least folks are moving slow while starting up on ramps.

 

Do you do much east coast? I get sent for day and night runs all around major south east cities. After dark you cant even buy a parking spot. Trooper in pulaski va last month gave me ticket then made me get off the ramp, and following behind, made drive into a truckstop that you couldnt even get TO the pumps. The entrance lane is where i was escorted to sleep, a sea of trucks in front of me and one on each side. No one could leave until morning and the business cant even do any business.

VA sure isnt solving any problems there IMO. Theres land everywhere and plenty of ifta coming into the coffers. No shortage of ticket revenue either.

 

I don’t do a lot of East Coast, thank goodness, and I was able to park at the receivers the few times I did. I know it isn’t always an option, nor is my other strategy of getting off the road early enough to get a good parking spot.

 

and people that DO NOT OBEY the laws and get a ticket or towed, HAVE NO RIGHT to gripe about it when they do..

all i ever used to hear at the truck stop restaurants was...

"i got a ticket i didn't deserve".....i always said....horse pucky

if one GOT a ticket, then ONE DESERVED that ticket.

 

have a piece of EXPENSIVE lemon cake...lol