E-logs and Reality

The price of things is gonna go up if everyone has e-logs an when your 15 miles from your deliver an have to take a 10 break the customer is gonna complain

 

Should have planned better - or if you were on paper logs would you just drive illegally those last 15 miles?

 

Of course, that's why he said the cost of everything will go up. Heaven forbid that this industry search for ways to improve utilization.

 

Agreed. Should have planned better. And should have made calls when you had any idea that things were getting tight. Customers really appreciate those drivers that wait till they are almost out of hours to call and say they can't make it. Every driver, when they get loaded, should be able to tell when they can get to the other end. I know the miles, divide by 50 mph, include any breaks, and tell them when I will be there. If they want it before that, I will tell customer to have their favorite airline meet me at the airport and I will off load it to them.

Why you guys even play bend over billy for those customers that want it yesterday, I will never know. I plan the entire run from the beginning, modify the plan as needed, keep everyone in the loop on what is going on, and do my best to make the best time I can safely do so. They will not adjust their life for me, I will not adjust my life for them. We can either work as business entities and act accordingly, or they can call someone else. I have never been fired, as a company driver, or lost a customer because of this way of doing things..... in over 30 years at this. Man up, act like a professional, and you will be treated like one.

 

very good post cowpie, thats the way i did things too, i take a bit in the morning to call my dispacther, letting him know about the load or truck with any problems and he like that, then i get permission from boss too call the rec too, okay were kellog iowa at , just wondering

 

Just east of Newton.... Iowa Speedway territory. 11.5 miles from my front door to the track.

 

I've always been the same way. Even if you humanly fail, such as being sick or just plain being exhausted, as long as people are kept in the loop, you can adjust.

Quite a few times I have been at a shipper or on the phone with a broker and said, "That's not going to happen." And I did ops management as well, and many times have told my customer, "I'm sorry, I have people driving these trucks, not robots. We'll get it there in one piece."

Any driver with at least 3 marbles rattling around in that orb perched on his shoulders can look at a run and figure out whether or not it's going to make it there legally. The rest is just having the stones to say "No" and risk losing the business to the next superstar cowboy in line.

 

That is a heck of picture in your signature, SmothShifter! Got a good chuckle out of that one!

 

After reading this entire blog i thought I'd throw in my .02 worth.I've been on e-log before and they had some good points and bad.the good was they simplified keeping up with your 11,14 and 70hr.clocks.They made it easier to do split breaks.The problem I had with them is that on several occasions the computer changed my status from line 3 to line 4 when stopped in heavy traffic.I also had it change my status from line 1 to line 3 after I had been shut down for a couple of hrs.I am now on paper logs and the only time my duty status changes is when I change it.I run it legal and still make good miles.

 

Hahaha. If you know my story, you'll see the dripping sarcasm in it.

I think I'll leave it for a while.