JCT

I need to be schooled on this subject then. I have always been taught that miles=money. I know that big mpg's=big fsc=JCT pays for fuel. If you can get 8.6mpg's at a .42cpm fsc, you, in essence, get your fuel paid for, but even running at a 8.0mpg will require you to pay for some fuel...and at 2300 miles/wk, I don't see how I could pay all my bills and still net a healthy paycheck.

I also have yet to pass one truck going that slow (except for Prime, but that's because they have no choice...) much less a JCT truck. Even when I'm riding my 68mph governor, JCT trucks are passing me like a scalded dog. I would also be very nervous to drive that slow on an interstate (especially out West.) At 53mph, you are going 22mph (or more) slower than the speed limit. To me, that is unsafe and you are creating an unnecessary hazard to the motoring public...fsc be ######. Even when I drive 58mph, I get quite nervous about being rear ended.

 

The vehicles going faster then you are equiped with both brakes and steering wheels. As long as you are going above them min. required it IS NOT UNSAFE. Rear end accidents almost always happen during heavy traffic times when there is a constant speed up slow down pulse to the traffic. Some one misses the slow down part and bang. When's the last time you've see a shift/knight/etc. rear ended on an rural interstate?

 

Getting rear-ended on rural interstates while driving legal speeds is so incredibly rare, you may as well say it simply doesn't happen. Many states have a 30 mph difference between posted maximum and posted minimum speed limits. If it was a safety issue, those minimums would be raised.

My average weekly miles are 2400. That means weeks where I have zero miles are figured in. This week, for instance, I have run 3000 miles with a 34 at the house. At my previous company, of all the solo drivers with trucks spec-ed like mine (around 30) I earned the second highest revenue of the group, and had the lowest fuel cost for the same group. The truck I currently drive gets a full MPG better than that one did.

 

Ok, lets do the math..... 2300 miles @ 7mpg = 328.6 gallons. Fuel @ $3.648 (this week's national average) x 328.6 gallons = $1198.73. FSC @ $0.40/mile x 2300 miles = $920.00. Buying fuel for $1198.73 and getting paid $920 leaves me with $278.73 out of pocket. Now take 2300 miles @$0.90 = $2070.00. Subtract out of pocket fuel cost of $278.73 leaves me $1791.27. From there I subtract my fixed expenses (lease payment, insurances, etc.) of approx $700.00 leaves me a net of $1091.27.
You can't pay your bills with that per week? That's not a income problem, that's an over spending problem. Keep in mind that if I buy fuel at less than the national average, that is that much more money I'm saving. In addition, if I get over 7.0 mpg that particular week, its even more money in my pocket.

Of course everybody's financial needs differ tremendously. I'm just saying it works for me.....

 

No arguement here, but apparently you've never come across MY truck. You'll see me doing 58-62 mph. I get passed by other JCT trucks all the time. These are the same trucks that get turned in after several months because the driver was "losing money, not making it, whine, whine, whine, blah, blah, blah." Frankly not my problem nor my concern. I run my business to make a profit and I don't kill, stress, or worry about it in the process.

 

If you're on e-logs, you're sitting at least 10 hours/day. Without an apu means you're idling just as long (unless you like to sweat, cuz this heat wave is absurd.) You may be getting 6.5-7.0 mpg driving, but your overall mpg is much lower. Take a reading off your ECM and take another in 30 days. You will be disappointed. Getting an apu is definately a plus. Instead of idling 70+ hours/week burning 70+ gallons, you'll only burn about 9 gallons w/the a/c on.

 

Why do you say Prime has no choice? They most certainly do! Their trucks are governed only 3mph below yours (65MPH.) When you see a Prime driver driving very slow, it's because he or she CHOOSES to do so, for the very same reason I choose to do it. You see so many Prime drivers doing it because they PREACH it in Springfield.

 

I appreciate all the responses. I wasn't saying that it doesn't work, but I was always taught the run run run method. Starting yesterday, I slowed down to 58mph, so we'll see how that does. I will say that it is uncomfortable for me to go that slow. As you know, Steel Tiger, the average speed in the Tampa Bay area is 55 mph on city roads, so to go 58 on an interstate is a rather uncomfortable change for me.

My dm and I have been trying to get a hold of Sheila about my apu for over a week now. She is refusing to return our calls/emails. Right now, I am sitting at a 59.51% over idle on the Qualcomm. I NEED my apu. It really sucks to get decent mpg's from driving only to watch it wash away from a night of idling. Luckily, This next run will be taking me over I80 into Utah, so my engine will be able to have a break.

 

According to drivers I've talked to and the Prime thread, they're governed at 58 on the pedal and 62 on cruise.

 

Hey guys ans specially to LMB thank you very much for this post I spent several time reading it and would like to ask if someone has the JTC contact info? a web page or a link in which I can apply for a job?
Thanks