Even experienced drivers might react differently in such situations. You MIGHT try believing them.

ANY obstacle in the road is a danger. The LOAD is secondary! One thing "I" see often in the road is a pallet. Don't know exactly WHY... but there it is. And it's seldom in the middle of my lane where I could just pass over it safely. (Once, I saw a wooden desk and chair!)

If it is just a bit too far to one side or the other, I'm going to hit it with one of my "sets" of wheels (right or left.) If I DO so, it will most likely get "pinched" up into the air under my truck (like a tiddlywink.) If it does, it will most likely rip through my brake lines and IMMEDIATELY cause my trailer brakes to lock up possibly causing a fatal accident! Same thing can happen with even the smallest piece of a 'gator.'

A deer? Yes.... HIT it square and duck if you can, cuz it can come through your windshield and kill YOU! If it is a person, or a car? Take the ditch and pray. Anything else, must be VERY quickly judged and handled. If you can 'straddle' it, do so... and hold the wheel tightly. If you HAVE to hit it with left or right tires... try NOT to hit the corner or edge of it. Hit it square in the middle and HOPE it stays UNDER your wheels!

If the LOAD shifts in the process? F**k it!!! If your dispatcher or BOSS doesn't understand? Well.... what's new?

LOAD IT, I'm not completely sure what your problems have been, and I appreciate the question, but until you've been in the situation of making a LIFE THREATENING choice in a split second.... you really don't know what YOU would do. You're correct in one respect. Common Sense will ALWAYS tell a driver to swerve. It is the professional driver who thinks FIRST about his airlines and acts accordingly.

Hope this helps.

Hobo

 

Hobo, I am an experienced professional driver, and I tell my drivers to hit, straddle, avoid if possible. I asked this question because I had one overturned last week and the driver claimed he swerved to miss an object in the road and over-corrected. I was asking new drivers what schools were teaching and you vets gave me answers and scenarios that I have already lived through. Not one new driver answered my question.

 

Okay, LOAD IT, let me try again! :lol:

1) You are on a board where newbies come to get advice. I might have missed your "introductory" post, but I didn't realize your experience OR your status.

2) Newbies rarely ANSWER questions here, they ASK them.

3) "I" am still quite new to this profession, and gave you MY understanding. (and thought it might be helpful to other newbies.)

4) If, as a "Fleet Manager" you have such a question, perhaps you should contact the schools and ask THEM.

5) Since you say you don't HIRE "rookies," then you might want to direct your question to your OWN training department.

6) Schools teach the basics of driving, shifting, backing, parking and inspecting. YOU as the hiring company are expected to TRAIN drivers in the real experiences of driving.

7) If you don't HIRE rookies, then the driver who gave you this "rookie" excuse, as you call it, has experience or training BEYOND his CDL school.

8: I live in an area with several "turnover ramps." It continues to amaze me how many drivers end up on their sides. The only thing I DO know, is that they are NOT taught this malfunction in school.

9) A driver with 30 years experience with my company, went off the left side of the road and was lucky not to kill himself or his team driver. He SAID he took his eye off the road for a moment. I drove with him later, and saw that he got sleepy easy and drifted all over the road! Perhaps HE or YOUR driver was unable to stay alert behind the wheel for an extended period of time. YOUR driver wasn't, by chance, driving over hours or without enough sleep, was he?

To answer your question, I haven't been out of school ALL that long. But, I don't remember MUCH discussion on YOUR question there, except maybe for a bit about hitting deer. Does THAT satisfy you? I can't speak for ALL schools, but I doubt they cover every eventuality much better.

Perhaps, this SHOULD be a topic of training for ALL companies that hire both rookies AND somewhat experienced drivers. But, to be honest with you, I think your driver fell asleep at the wheel (check his dispatch hours) and LIED to you about why he left the road because he KNEW he had to have a reason.

I can tell you THIS.... the problem does NOT lie with what the schools are teaching as much as it does with the hours the dispatchers are demanding!

Schools are NOT required, nor is it necessary for them, to teach "common sense." Most of us allready HAVE that. And, unfortunately react as a result of it. To teach a driver to be a "professional" is YOUR job.

Hobo

 

I am a relatively new driver as well. The answer that I gave was crafted from a mix of school teachings, smith system, and lots of internet posts and news.

 

Here is a good article on avoiding deer or moose collision. I've heard that Step #10 (turn off headlights) can be very effective. One trucker told me that he would turn his headlights off for one full second. When he turned the headlights back on, it was like magic - the deer had totally vanished.

http://www.wikihow.com/Avoid-a-Moose-or-Deer-Collision

 

I did this once and the deer was gone. Headlights stop a deer in it's tracks even if it's in the middle of the road.
TMC's company policy is to slow down as quickly and safely as possible before hitting the deer. Don't stop too fast or the freight may end up in the cab with you. Don't run off the road and kill yourself trying to avoid a deer. I know a TMC driver and a Welch Stone driver that have both killed cows within the last 6 months. BOTH hit the cows without swerving. Kill the animal save your truck, yourself, and your job.

 

I grew up in NH and hitting deer and moose was an everyday problem. yes turning off the lights for a sec does seem to help. I think the lights freeze the deer and they dont react. thats why people use strong lights to jack deer.

as for the original poster the schools teach a little about avoiding objects but mostly they preach about losing air lines etc from hitting something.

maybe your driver was destracted and when he looked at the road their was something there and he over reacted.

you know its funny that you looked at the driver as the problem. but failed to tell the whole story. if you dont hire newbies then why does it matter what the schools teach. also if you are in the hireing process then you are in the managment process as well. maybe you should look at why your drivers are sitting in docks all day and then driving 10-11 hours a day. (i'm assuming you treat your drivers like all companys) you push push and then when something goes wrong you point the finger else where.

 

There is a five mile section of 16 highway east of yorkton, where in the space of a week on dry pavement on a straight. There were two fatal headons. one the driver of the truck pulled on to the hard shoulder and was hit there, the other the driver pulled off the road into the ditch and ended up on the railroad tracks with the car under the truck. In both cases the drivers were not charged. Some Things you can miss others you can't. we have had three deer under the front of two trucks this winter so far, there is a zero deductible for wild life up here. I had duck break my windshield once, that is the last time he will mate in the middle of the road, just a word of advice if it is in your lane, and should not be there it is not your fault.

 

. . slow and stop in a straight line. That should always be your default reaction. Then as you slow, if you feel you can safely avoid the hazard, try to do so.

Remember, if you swerve to avoid an animal and you damage your truck in the process, it is unlikely the animal will show up at your hearing to back you up.

I have told myself a 100 times that if a human winds up in front of me as a result of something foolish on their part . . it's goodbye human. I have yet to be tested on that and can't say how I would react. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I was driving across the Kangamangus Highway two Mondays ago. Skys were overcast, there was very light drizzle, traffic was light and the only thing close was a following big truck at a safe distance. Suddenly, out of the woods and onto the right shoulder wanders a tall young moose. I was empty, slowed a little harder than I might ordinarilly have and lit up the flashers. I glance in my rearview, here comes super trucker passing on a double yellow with his horn howling. The moose, meawhile, reconsiderd his options and retreated to the woods. I doubt the other driver ever saw the moose and had no idea why I slowed. I shudder to think what might have happened if we had opposing traffic. I played it by the book and drove away unscathed because the circumstances were nearly perfect. Any one of the components of my story could have changed the outcome dramatically.

 

Every driver should have to spend some time up here before they run anywhere.

No one does that here, its just assumed Mr Moosey is there if your stopping in a strange spot.

Heck, a couple weeks ago, in a stretch of less then a mile, maybe half a mile even, I saw 11 Moose all coming out to say hello. I think my record is 17.