Stevens Transport Aviary . . cont'

You will never see line 5 with Stevens. I actually learned about it from a Central Refrigerated driver.

An example of its proper use is dropping your trailer and bontailing to a restaurant for dinner, or to a Movie theater, something along those lines that has nothing to do with your load or as Emul put it, nothing that advances you to your next dispatch.

 

Alliance drivers get Line 5 - off duty driving, although it's a bit of a pain to get.
To use line 5, an Alliance driver must be bobtail.
It's allowed if you are at a meat patch with a DLD of 10+ hrs out.
You call Compliance to get authorization, they tell you to call back with the drive times.
When you're done driving, you call back and they move the drive time to line 5.
It's usually also used when bobtailing home...

We buzzards just cannot put ourselves on line 5.




Or at least this was accurate when I was alliance earlier this year.

 

Is refusing to deliver when I know I can't do it and make it safely to a truckstop considered a service failure?

 

You're in a gray area.
If you notify (via qualcom) dispatch/DM with enough advance time that you are not going to be able to deliver on time, then no it isn't. If extenuating circumstances prevail, such as a trafffic issue, snowstorm or like during the last day of transit, then no.
But if all seems well to the inside, there appears to be enough hours...then you notify an hour or two in advance of the delivery...then yes, it could be.
And you have to go by 'industry standards' in figuring it all out. So that means you arrive in advance of your appointment (enough time to check in) and allow two hours to unload or load, then the time to the nearest safe haven.
This doesn't work at some places such as Ralphs, Target, et al. But you can't allow yourself 8 hours to unload just because you're at Ralph's Compton.
If there seems to be a problem, start notifying well in advance.
The service failure isn't what you need to worry about. It's being stuck with a load for an extra day or two and missing a dispatch.
In most cases, being able to leave the receiver isn't a problem. Most loads arrive on time without problems of running out of hours. But this is where trip planning is so important. If you don't adequately trip plan, you won't know until a couple hours in advance.
Also, be proactive. Make notes of each receiver and keep a notebook of some kind. Note if there is parking.
Share it with dispatch and your DM. That's where we find out if there is overnight or staging parking or if there special notes. Everytime a driver gives me instructions, I put them in the back screen notes so the next driver will know.

 

and those back screen notes need to be updated. I don't know how many times dispatch would say yes there is parking at the receiver, to arrive, and find out NO, that policy has changed, due to the filth left behind.

Or the ones that say do not arrive early... I always called ahead, and never had a problem, except for one walmart, in Louisiana...

Stevens makes a big deal out of service failures during orientation, and your first few months. Communication prevents it being the driver's fault. But make sure that communication is in writing.. protect your assets.

Even if you discuss it on the phone, follow up with a QC message, as discussed on the phone with "name",.....

Those notes I kept where in my Garmin GPS, parking, unload/load times....

 

FYI, a 14' trailer does fit under a 13'10" bridge! Just barely. Well, at least the one I went under in Las Vegas by Outwest.

 

And just what made you try?
I thought I learned you better than that!

 

2 more days til OR2! Was on the yard this afternoon helpin himself get his truck unloaded and omg I so wanted to start her up and just run.
Stevens may be a pita, but every time I see a truck or am on the yard its nothin but happy. The self imposed home time just verified that I am nowhere near ready to stop rolling.

 

By the time I remembered I had a taller trailer, it was too late. So I just ducked as I went under it. I'm sure that helped.

 

Oh it is so gratifying to know I'm not the only one who does that LOL