PAM drivers

Hire just out of school drivers and put with trainer for 2 weeks. Do the math.

 

All companies seem to have "rookie super truckers". They think the, move over for emergency vehicles law, doesn't apply to them. What I do is move over and keep the right wheels on the center line, not leaving enough room for the idiot drivers to squeeze in between. Even then some of them scream profanities over the CB with stupid remarks like, "you're holding me up, I have a truck payment to make, and can't slow down." I've even had them call me a rookie driver, saying things like,"no driver that has much time behind the wheel pays that law any attention, why don't you just park that truck instead of blocking the hammer lane." A lot of drivers would be out of work if the laws required some type of IQ test to get a CDL.

 

I don't even get that far over. I'll stay half and half, until I'm just about on the cop, wrecker, etc, before moving a full lane over.

 

that emergency vehicle thing is what rooky drivers do. anyone with any sense or common courtesy move over. doesnt matter what vehicle your in. hell i move over in my car.

 

Yes I have encountered non-driving PAM drivers and one was my 2nd co-driver. Oh Lord had a scary thought he's still my teammate when I get off medical leave damnmit to hell. My co-driver, has no sense of direction what so ever, qualcomm skills were bottom of the barrel, tried to tell me how to run things and that I didn't know nothing because I have only been driving for 7 months. Well he had to eat those words, because that's when my liver and gallbladder had a fight and I had to sit out of the truck for a few months...call him the Monday I got admitted to the Hospital and let him know..he calls me later that day asking question after question. and he blew two loads, one going to Laredo and the other going to South Carolina.

He was stuck in Chicago for two days, because he didn't know where to go. When I was in the truck with him he was about to turn in the auto entrance so many times at truckstops, missing the signs, getting lost 4 or 5 times in one day. I call him a few weeks ago to see how he was doing (when I got sick, I got a call everyday from him asking me stuff, I had to ignore calls) he tells me oh I was ready to go back out and they still had me sitting at home until Wednesday (this was after Christmas) and he was complaining that he was not getting miles and that he was ready for me to come back.

The next thing he told me, made me want to jump into the phone and choke him....He calls dispatch (mistake #1) tells them that he is out of hours and needs to shut down. Whoever was in dispatch told him to drive to the Irving yard and yes he got yelled at by logs...never ever take office for they word, get it in writing if they tell you to move. So yeah I think it's a lot of this going around PAM, lack of common sense and know it allness.

 

I always move over. I spent several years fixing trucks and changing tires on the side of the freeway and I've had to dive under the trailer more than once to avoid being run over. Always drives me nuts when I see cars doing 75+ driving 2 feet away from a guy on the shoulder.

 

Pam drivers are not the only one holding the wheel of stupidity. But, yes had a Pam driver argue with me that I needed to move out of a spot I was parked in because she could NOT get her 53 footer into a bobtail spot!

 

LOL Hey!!! We aren't all bad! Well this is what I've noticed firsthand; I think that maybe the problem might be the pay, every PAM driver I encounter has this comment. They teach you how to do things right (though I wasnt one of those 2 weekers) so I wouldn't blame the training department ... At least they taught me right... safety is really up to the individual, that's why I say the pay cause a lot of these guys are behind on there Bills which makes em rush like madmen, that and I would say the sometimes imposible loads they give you. There are good dispatchers in that office but I'm beginning to believe that one bad apple can ruin the whole farm... It just takes one of them to mess up the master plan or not take care of an emergency in a timely manner. AND communication is the key to any successful relationship, I've had dms call me with a very angry and condascending tone, usually I just take a deep breath and speak in an almost whisper back to them, calms them down 99% of the time. So for the most part I guess what I'm saying is that many PAM drivers out there are stressed out and stress causes accidents. Add stress to inexperience and you get a disaster waiting to happen. New drivers out there, please be safe before all else. The money will come in its due time. The Bill collector can wait, dispatch can wait, the 4 wheeler with road rage tailgating u can wait... Don't make a mistake where u will be waiting in court for the judge to decide if you were negligent or not, especially if it involves another life. Stay safe PAM rookies!