How's Everyone Doing in LTL Right Now?

Someone else asked too, but which terminal?
The hubs that hired a ton of drivers 2-3 years ago seem to be the slow spots. The small terminals around SoCal are doing alright. Slower than last quarter, but still plenty of work. My gate time just got moved up to 8:30, so I’ve got no complaints about OD so far.
RTO has that electric Volvo that I’ve never seen move. They must use it on the very local P&D runs. They also have at least one electric yard tractor. I hate it because it’s dead quiet and can roll right behind you or out in front of you out of nowhere and you can’t hear it.

 

Yeah I'm out of RTO, I'm glad the smaller terminals still work but RTO is seriously dead.

The Volvo is kinda cool, and yes we have 1 or 2 electric yard goats

 

You should ask about any IRC Freight unless you’re on a scheduled run. They’re sorting and shipping like twice the amount of freight as RTO right now.

 

Don't know if this belongs here, any thoughts on this? It's clearly an OD truck, for sale to the public instead....

2023 FREIGHTLINER CASCADIA 126 For Sale in Canton, Ohio | TruckPaper.com

 

This truck was slightly damaged in shipment- Repaired

Maybe it’s easier to refuse delivery of a damaged truck instead of taking it and fighting with the transporters insurance to pay for repairs.

 

That doesn't make sense whatsoever. With 11 miles the only plausible explanation I can think of is that this one is a spare that was decaled by accident. Quick heatgun treatment to pull the ODFL company decals off and some lucky person ends up with a brand new green truck.

 

If I had a word for the past couple weeks it would be stressful.

On the 6th at 3am my co-driver slid on black ice over a canyon bridge just East of Flagstaff AZ and lost control. Rear box flipped but thankfully the tractor and front box stayed upright. We blocked the entire eastbound side of I-40, and needed 2 tow trucks to haul the truck, front box and rear box away.

Co-driver was given a citation, we were shuttled to our company's Flagstaff yard, and from there to our Phoenix terminal where my co-driver took a drug and alcohol test while I setup our "new-to-us" replacement truck. After they got back I hooked to a set and drove us back to our home terminal.

I've been cleared to work as normal, but my co-driver has been off since that day. Rear box is likely totaled, tractor is DEFINITELY totaled, but nobody else was involved and neither one of us were injured. The black ice was so thick it was like a skating rink. NHL-levels of ice. If I was the one driving I'm not completely sure I would have kept from sliding even if I was traveling slower.

Co-driver is likely to keep their job, because another company truck flipped their entire vehicle just a mile away on the westbound side and only an hour before us. That driver finished their safety review and is still an employee, with what I imagine is a leash tighter than a pair of spandex on a sumo wrestler. I'd expect the same leash to be slung around my co-driver's neck, but it's better than being fired.

Honestly I'm just happy to be alive. Somehow my co-driver steered away from what I estimate was a 60ft drop over the bridge into a canyon. My 2nd child is only 8 weeks old. I couldn't bear to leave her, my wife and our eldest 3yo daughter behind and I'm so grateful that I can still hug them. That I can still show them how much I love them. I still have some lingering PTSD when going to bed in the sleeper, but it's getting easier every day.

The "new" truck is a 2022 FL, 10 speed, not a hotshot but she's still got some life in her. I'd prefer the manual for more control in bad weather now and I'll gladly take it.

Please don't tempt fate by trying to keep to schedule in bad weather. Slower is safe and safe means you come home in one piece. Stay safe and keep the rubber side down.

 

I had 9 lift gate deliveries the other day. That’s a record, took me about 6 hours and drove 20 miles lol. I was in NO hurry. ( Dang should of posted this in the random LTL rant page)

 

Maybe a little but it takes time for the front office at a school to find the custodian to tell me where to deliver 3-4 pallets of books lol. For clarification there was no OT involved with the sh#t show.