I'm Rollin With Swift

Sure Wish I Finished Training... See What I F'd up Today? Everytime I see a nasty wreck on a dry road on a summer day, it's a Swift truck. Everytime I've had someone nearly back into me three times in a row, it's a Swift truck (with a trainer sitting on his ###). Everytime I see a truck taking up more than one parking space, it's a Swift truck. Not saying they don't have good drivers, but they sure have alot of idiots.

 

may i ask your age?

 

the REAL joy of driving!

 

greaterbaatezu:

Shows how observant you are...or what you look for.

 

Right there. To be honest, I come upon more wrecks involving everyone BUT Swift. Now I'm not saying that everyone but Swift drivers are terrible drivers, but there sure are some idiots out there that drive for other companies.

 

I'm sitting right now in the International dealership to have a warranty job finished and get some routine maintenance done. Right next to me is a red Prostar with the front wheels sitting at an odd angle and the bumper tied to the catwalk.

Strange that it does not say "Swift" anywhere on the vehicle.

 

Anybody with any time in the industry knows it's not just the driver, the real factor is your exposure level ..... and no, we're not talking clothes either. The more units you have running then the higher your exposure level to an accident.

Swift is "the largest" fleet operator in the country? Yes?

So to judge a carrier you have to use "accidents per mile driven" and when you do I think you'll be surprised.

JMO

 

That is why the BASICs numbers are valuable. That's why I use FMCSA's SMS to help me decide where to go. Size matters; Swift has 16,216 power units and their numbers are pretty good. For the 24 month period ending Aug 26, 2011, they are:

Unsafe Driving -- 37.2%
Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service) -- 43.8%
Driver Fitness -- 61.1%
Controlled Substances and Alcohol -- 24%
Vehicle Maintenance -- 50%

Number and OOS %:

Total Inspections: 38,057
Vehicle Inspections: 19,479 -- 14%
Driver Inspections: 37,581 -- 2%
Hazardous Materials Inspections: 726 -- 3%
HM Placard Inspections: 466 -- 4%

Total Crashes: 1,466
Tow-aways: 1,397
Injuries/Fatalities: 461
Power Units: 16,216
Vehicle Miles Traveled: 1,637,678,162 (That is more than 1.6 BILLION miles!)

 

I started my career with Swift 20 yrs ago. At that time they offered free training in Phoenix, free hotel and free food. I stayed with them for 3 years. I made money and did ok and ran flatbed, vans and reefers and like the flats the best.