1. Fuel prices; fuel has skyrocketed in price at the pump, while Exon continues to record record profits of over 60 billion dollars a year. We need to see caps on how high the cost may go at the pump!!
2. Brokers; We are continually asked to haul loads where the brokers take a 20 to 30 % cut off the top. Why should we pay them so much for making a phone call or two? We would like to see Government controls on brokers and how they charge for loads!! Possibly a "Truth in Brokering" laws where we can look at confirmation sheets on our loads!!
3. DAC reports; This report, or should we say fallacy of a report, has and continues to hurt good drivers due to a bad report turned in, without any evidence to verify the fault.
4. Unloading and lumper's; Why should we have to take part of the pay (which has already been chopped by brokers) and pay a receiver to take their product from our trucks? Even worse, we have to sit at their dock while that freight is re stacked to fit in their warehouse! Our deliveries should be pulled from our truck, counted, and our bills signed so we can be on our way!
5. Truck Parking; we are faced with a situation where there are more and more trucks on the highways, and less and less places to park and get our rest. We need more rest areas, and local governments to all truck stops to enlarge their parking areas so we have room, safely, to rest!
6. Hours of Service; We need representation in the discussions on changing these rules, we are the ones out here week after week doing our jobs, we know what will work and what will not work! We do not need CRASH, MADD, the ATA, and the TEAMSTERS making these rules for us!!!!
7. Uniform laws state to state, with uniform fines also; We believe that the government needs to step in where individual states are gouging truckers on fines, charging outrageous fines for simple log violations and speeding offenses.
8. Uniform speed limits on Interstate Highways; we need to be able to run the same speed in the interstates as the smaller vehicles are allowed to run. Reports have been published, by the University of Michigan, and AAA, that state differing speeds between large and small vehicles is unsafe due to the increase of accidents that happen.
9. On the road repairs; Why is it that when we are away from home, it can cost as much as double and triple as much to get repairs done?
This is by far not the end of the list, but just a beginning. As we get resolution on 1 or 2 of these issues, we hope to continue on to other issues until we feel the industry is going in the direction WE THE TRUCKERS need to see it go in!!!!!
As you think of other issues, and hopefully possible solutions to them, share them in this forum, so we can get them up and address them in other forums.
