Something came up in conversation...

[Windwalker]

I went to the bar last night. I don't do line 5 like Golfhobo, I'm generally soaking up Root Beer. But, there was another driver there that was really crying in his beer.

He picked up a load here in FL that was headed to St Louis. He ran with it and got there is record time. While he was looking for the address, his dispatcher called him and asked how close he was to delivery. "I'm here, just can't find the address."

They gave him detailed instructions, and he spent a couple of hours trying to find the roads on his map. No luck. Dispatch called him again and asked if he was there yet. During the second conversation, he found out that his destination was not St Louis, MO, but St Louis, VA.

Now, they're charging him for the fuel for 915 miles out of route. Roughly, 150 gallons worth.

Then, I started thinking about other mistakes I've seen in the past too. I took a load of paper from Wausau, WI to a plant near Knoxville, TN. They receive rolls of paper and process them into sheets. I parked the truck out of the way in case someone needed to get by me. On my way into the receiving office, J B Hunt came by my truck, opened his doors, and backed into the dock. I was not happy about him jumping in ahead of me since I was there first, but while I was checking in, the laughing started.

JB had the right paperwork, but the trailer number on his bills did not match the number on the trailer. His trailer was filled with 50# bags of RICE. Labels on the pallets of rice said the customer was in Chicago.

First of all, make sure where you are going. Start off by getting the State correct, then worry about the town. Second, make sure you have the right trailer. When you're hooked up and ready to leave, check the trailer number against the BOL one more time and make sure it's right. Those of us that know just how someone else's face can get by this, tend to protect our own from the same thing.

[Jumbo]

Duluth, Minnesota Duluth, Georgia what's the difference?

[dobry4u]

Hmmmm..Trip Planning Error

I don't understand how the driver (St. Louis) could have made a mistake like that. One thing, don't routes for the trip come over the Qualcomm? ... just sayin'

[cdswans]

Now, they're charging him for the fuel for 915 miles out of route. Roughly, 150 gallons worth.

Throw in a public flogging and I'd feel justice had been served.

My training went 6 weeks with a trainer then 6 weeks with another student who had just finished training. Our second trip was to undo an error created when an earlier driver picked up a '500012' instead of '500021'. It was a good long pull . . like Missoula, MT to somewhere south of Dallas and the other driver was already in TX before the problem was discovered.

[Windwalker]

Hmmmm..Trip Planning Error

I don't understand how the driver (St. Louis) could have made a mistake like that. One thing, don't routes for the trip come over the Qualcomm? ... just sayin'

Not all companies use "SUGGESTED ROUTING", and not all companies have qualcomm or Aithernet, or even Peoplenet. There are still some companies that rely on cell phones between drivers and dispatch.

And, back when I pulled for Burlington, they got a couple of pretty stiff fines with their "SUGGESTED ROUTING". Somewhere in Chicago, there is a bridge that three trucks cost Burlington over $4,000 when they crossed it. To this day, I have no idea which one it is, but I know that the drivers that crossed it were following the suggested routing.

I went off of suggested routing in VT when they suggested following US-4 from White River Junction to Rutland. At the time, you could not take a 53' through Woodstock. I didn't know if the driver or the company would get the fine.

We all got a message over the qualcomm that "UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, WERE WE TO CROSS THAT BRIDGE", but they did not identify the bridge. They also stopped giving us suggested routing after that.

[Windwalker]

Guess that would be something else to bring up...

Let's say your company wants you to pick up a load in VT, and gives you a suggested routing. But, you check your permits and find that the roads they suggest you take are not listed on your permits.

Or in VA, and you already know that the roads they suggest you take do not allow 102" wide trailers on them.

Do you run the roads and take a chance that the officer will write the ticket out to the company rather than the driver?

I'll bet there are a lot of new drivers that have no idea they need to know about any of this.

[dobry4u]

Guess that would be something else to bring up...

Let's say your company wants you to pick up a load in VT, and gives you a suggested routing. But, you check your permits and find that the roads they suggest you take are not listed on your permits.

Or in VA, and you already know that the roads they suggest you take do not allow 102" wide trailers on them.

Do you run the roads and take a chance that the officer will write the ticket out to the company rather than the driver?

I'll bet there are a lot of new drivers that have no idea they need to know about any of this.

As you know, I am new driver. I am in the habit now of getting the suggested route over the Qualcomm, and varifying it with the Trucker's Atlas. I also have a GPS that I use to give me an idea of miles to go and traveled and such and will look at that suggested route as well. If the directions are super involved, I write them down on paper to have close or even write them on the windshield (in a non-obstructive place).

I would go the best route given the constraints, .... tolls,,, restrictions, miles, etc.,. I have deviated a little but not significantly without problems.

Ridge Runner gave me fantastic advice as far as destination location directions. He said to call the shipper/receiver and get their directions as they should know the area best and want you to get there on time.

[heavyhaulerss]

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation then by deflation, the banks and the corporations will grow up around them, will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." Thomas Jefferson







stop trying to scare people with the truth. lol..

[Jumbo]

We get our permits and we follow them to a "T". If we are caught off route and get a ticket we pay it. That is why you check your permits against your route BEFORE you start. That is when you see what is what and if we have a problem we are supposed to call in and get it resolved.

[Windwalker]

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation then by deflation, the banks and the corporations will grow up around them, will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." Thomas Jefferson







stop trying to scare people with the truth. lol..

Don't know what was in your coffee this morning, but I hope you get over it soon....

[mike3fan]

These mistakes are not limited to newbie drivers either,my Dad works for WalMart and they get the wrong trailer delivered to the wrong store frequently......

[Fredog]

whenever I go to a new place, I always call and verify the delivery time and address, it only takes a few minutes and can save you hours.

[Windwalker]

We get our permits and we follow them to a "T". If we are caught off route and get a ticket we pay it. That is why you check your permits against your route BEFORE you start. That is when you see what is what and if we have a problem we are supposed to call in and get it resolved.

Flatbed with an oversized load is a bit different than a 53' in VT, or a 102" wide in VA. With oversize, you're allowed 5 miles off your route to get fuel, but then, you must get back to your route. I also know that that 5 miles is distance travelled to get to the point you are at, not the distance from there to your route. If you have travelled 7 miles from your route, but are only 1/2 mile away from it, it does not count. You're still 7 miles off your route. You also get a new permit for each trip you make.

With a 53' van or reeffer, or even a 53' flatbed, in VT, the company gets a blanket permit that is good for the year. It also lists the roads you are allowed to run on. If the road is not listed, you're not allowed on it. In VT, you also have to worry about the overall length too. A rig that would normally be fine can be too long by adding those extra bumpers (Moose Guards) on the front.

[TomB985]

Both companies I've worked for have a very explicit policy concerning "suggested" routing.

Roehl had a policy where it was the driver's responsibility to check the route against a motor carriers' atlas and ensure it was a legal route; if it was legal, the driver is expected to follow it.

Con-way TL/CFI sends "suggested" routing, but right under the routing, is the statement "ROUTES ARE SUGGESTIONS ONLY. DECISION TO FOLLOW ROUTES AND STOPS ARE THE SOLE DISCRETION OF THE DRIVER. SUGGESTED ROUTES MAY NOT BE LEGAL FOR CFI TRUCKS AND TRAILERS. VERIFY WITH OTHER SOURCE MATERIALS BEFORE PROCEEDING"

Here, they don't expect you to follow any route but your own; they provide "suggested" routing to use as a guide as to what they are figuring for paid miles. The official line is to use whatever route you want, without going over 8% out of route.

[devildice]

We get our permits and we follow them to a "T". If we are caught off route and get a ticket we pay it. That is why you check your permits against your route BEFORE you start. That is when you see what is what and if we have a problem we are supposed to call in and get it resolved.

That is 100% correct......only time I EVER deviated from a permitted route is when there was road construction sign that said all loads over 8 1/2' wide to follow a detour.

[golfhobo]

MAN, I am glad I didn't start my career with some of these companies! In fact, recently when I was "between jobs" I didn't even CALL some of these companies because of the horror stories I read here on CAD!

I was given "verbal" suggested routes. Of course, they were all pretty simple since I was going coast to coast. If there was a route that got me there within something like 100 miles or so (over a 2500-3000 mile route) I was okay to go! I once went 250 miles out of route and pizzed off my dispatcher. Big deal! I had been told the load HAD to get there on time, (which is WHY they gave it to ME) and there was a major snowstorm in the Wyoming area. Anyone who drives through there KNOWS that they close the roads instead of clearing them! So, I went around the storm! (I-40 to Gallup, NM, then up through Utah.)

When I got to Salt Lake City, I called the Wyoming road closure line and, sure enough, the roads were closed! I delivered my load ON TIME, and never heard another word about it!

This is why I'm dismayed at the number of posters who come on here wanting to get into trucking asking WHICH of these "mega carriers" they should go with. There are (or were) over 365,000 trucking companies in America! MANY of them actually treat you like a HUMAN!

The Bible says something about separating the wheat from the chaff. I'm not sure which I am... or which company is which.... but, I absolutely will NOT fall in line behind thousands of others and then wonder WHY I am treated like chattel!

My Dad keeps reminding me that my CDL is like a meal ticket. I believe he is right. My CDL put me IN the driver's seat... and I intend to STAY there!

It is not a CDL or a college education that puts people IN a job, or OUT of a job. It is the PLAN that one makes for their own lives, and the WAY that one goes looking FOR that job.

There are no stupid people here on CAD! Nearly every ONE of you has expressed how you did your research before getting into trucking. So... WHY do so many ask WHICH of these "loser" companies you should go to work for?

I just don't get it. I guess I'm lost. My post, therefore, must be irrelevant! I'm .....well...... I guess I'm...... um..... SPEECHLESS!

[TomB985]

So... WHY do so many ask WHICH of these "loser" companies you should go to work for?

For the simple reason that many of them AREN'T "loser" companies. This is the second "McMega" OTR carrer I've driven for, and I'd hardly call either of them "loser" companies. From what I've heard, I do have a list of companies I'd stay away from, as well...but from experience...many times the problem is the DRIVER, not the COMPANY.

[BigDiesel]

My post, therefore, must be irrelevant!

They all are....................................

[Orangetxguy]

Hmmmmmm.


April 1988. I went in to work, fighting the flu. I was working extra, and was given 3 Shell deliveries to make. First one was easy. The Shell station located on Ravenna Ave. in North Seattle. Out of gas so the load would fit. Next load was to Renton. Again...easy and quick. The third delivery was easy enough as well. Full load of regular to the Shell station in Ellensburg WA.

I loaded up the truck with a full load of regular, had a cup of coffee with some of the real "Shell" drivers, then headed out to I-5. Instead of going north to hit I-90 east, without even thinking about it, I turned south on I-5 and beat feet....to Centralia WA !! Pulled into the Shell station, spotted to the regular tanks, unlocked the tanks and stuck for fit. The tanks were both full. Scratched my head..hacked out my lungs..cussed dispatch...kicked some rocks. Then I took my paperwork inside and asked the clerk to use the phone...Told her the tanks were already full, and the load wouldn't fit. Before calling dispatch, I asked to use the facilities.

When I came back from the restroom...the clerk asked me were I was supposed to be. She had the damnest look on her face. I said...Ellensburg...then it hit me like a sack of bricks. I should have been 100 miles east of the terminal...instead I was 90 miles south.

Yeah..I paid for the fuel out of my own pocket. The Boss, his wife...and both dispatchers were rolling on the floor in the morning, when I told them why I was out so late. This was my second day solo. They paid me for the entire night..even though I told them they didn't need to.

Sam the owner figured it was a good training night. I learned two things...READ the paperwork as often as possible. DO NOT go to work sick.

[Rev.Vassago]

Sam the owner figured it was a good training night. I learned two things...READ the paperwork as often as possible. DO NOT go to work sick.

That's why the FMCSA has regs regarding driving while sick.