Plus One

Received a pplan this morning for tomorrow morning, pu at 1000 and deliver, "No Appt Yet", but it says drop load. The PTA shows 0300 on the 4th. According to Plus 1, it should be a delivery at 1400 on the 3rd. That is figuring 47MPH and 868 miles. When loaded, I am going to show that as my ETA and see what happens. I know that I can be there lots earlier.

 

Dropped at a Target DC that didn't have any empties a while back. The empty trailer solution they sent me was a JIT.

Seems like if there isn't a phone number in the JIT notice that it isn't really a JIT load. Just my observations so far.

 

Your bringing up JIT just gave me an idea. I'm no corporate guru, but it seems to me an easier and far less costly approach to Plus One would have been to mark more loads as JIT, even if they weren't. As for those drivers who automatically turn down JIT loads, they'd find themselves forced to earn a bigger paycheck or none at all.

 

I just ignore the JIT messages. Since they've started the Plus 1 program, 90% of the loads being offered include the JIT message, but if you look at the miles of the load and the time given to run it, most of the time there is plenty of time to do it. At least that has been my observation. Of course, there has been some loads that have been really tight on time. Oddly enough, those weren't JIT.

IMO, every load should be treated as JIT. Get that load there as quickly and safely as you can. It only benefits you. The sooner you deliver that load, the sooner you can move on to the next one and be making more money. The drivers you hear complaining about not making any money are the ones who take their sweet time in delivering their loads. That's just common sense.

 

I wrote somewhere on here that I no longer worry about pickup and delivery times too much, just how many miles does the load pay. What I'm looking at at the pu/del times is just common sense stuff like if it's Super(man)Trucker possible with a 0900 appointment, I see that as a slam dunk for all day delivery-- 90% of the time if I sent in Mac22 they'd just say deliver any time til midnight or something.

I think I like Plus One in the sense that it is virtually impossible to get a service failure with it as long as you are working (driving) towards the target a significant amount of your available hours and not stopping at every rest area and truckstop along the way to walk your dog lol.

My current load is a stop in Charlotte NC and final in Atlanta GA. Charlotte 0900 tomorrow morning delivery and Atlanta 1330. Those two cites are 275 miles apart. So right away I knew Atlanta would be good til at least 1730 or maybe even 24 hour operation.

This story has a nice twist though, my GPS couldn't find the Charlotte stop, the shipper said it was Concord NC not Harrisburg too so that plays in. Well I got down here with 45 minutes to spare using Swift's directions and lo and behold, I found the place. They are even open and working on a Sunday! They said they would unload me but I couldn't stay over night. I replied that I would leave and go down to the little truck stop up the street. Honestly didn't want to do that because it's 'pay to park'. Evidently they are pretty desperate for their product because they said I could stay now; the guard turned me around at the get out gate lol. This works out great because now I can get a full 10 on and be at the final early in the morning and maybe they will offload quickly as well and I might be able to get another load before everyone (shippers) go on holiday.

 

And this is why we have Plus 1 in addition to the truckstop/terminal queens who complain as they turn down every load except the sweet ones.
Frank

 

Was offered a load (twice) that makes no sense at all for someone who has to pay for his truck.
Pickup in El Paso Monday, 2 drops in Albuquerque on Tuesday, the the final drop in Denver on Thursday. Truck (and driver) are tied up for a bit over 72 hours for only $70 in drop pay and 684 miles. Are you kidding me?

 

So you think that loads are assigned based on... what?
That you have a payment to be made?

They are assigned to the driver in the area that can do it on time, if at all possible.
I doubt the planners always have days to plan a load, much less to find a driver in the right place at the right time.

And who knows? Maybe that crap load will keep you running.
Or, you could turn it down and wait a couple days.

How will that work with your truck payment?

 

JIT - Just In Time.

That usually means 'just in time' for the receiver - not the shipper.

In my experience JIT loads have a bit more time on them.
They ship a bit early to make sure they can be delivered 'just in time' to the receiver.

That is really to my advantage, unless it adds way too much time, since I like to have a bit of extra time to deal with road construction and traffic and the need for more than 5 hours of sleep and more than a 15 minute break in a 14 hour day.

But then, I am not one to run balls to the wall and petal to the metal for every extra mile every day to make a few extra cents per hour each day.

I guess I am just a lazy kinda guy.

And I have seen no increase in JIT loads since Plus-1.

 

Not near as well as the 1460 mile load I'm currently on, same number of days on the road.

I'm running a small business. If I were still a company driver I would have gladly taken it and sat out the 4th in Denver with family. Drivers who are not smart with their trucks are the ones complaining about how Swift is screwing them and that they cannot make any money.

P.S. even my DM told me not to take it.