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CARTHAGE, Texas — TravelCenters of America Inc., operator of the TA, Petro Stopping Centers and TA Express travel-center network, has opened a new TA Express in Carthage, Texas. The new TA Express franchise, operated by Brian Hatchett, is at the former Gateway Travel Plaza site on Interstate 20 and U.S. 59.
“We’ve spent many years working hard to build a network of businesses that our customers can trust and rely on,” Hatchett said. “It’s been a pleasure being a franchisee of TravelCenters of America, and we look forward to continuing our growth with the company.”
This is the third travel center The Gateway Group has converted to a TA Express in 2020. The team opened a TA Express in Kilgore, Texas, in January and another in Nacogdoches, Texas, in June. The group plans to open a TA travel center in Fairfield, Texas, next year.
The new TA Express in Carthage offers:
Five diesel fueling positions with RFID and DEF on all lanes;
16 Exxon gasoline fueling lanes;
50 truck parking spaces;
100 auto parking spaces;
Four private showers;
Laundry facilities;
A travel store;
Dining options, including Denny’s and an on-site deli;
A gaming room; and
Transflo scanning.
“With the highest concentration of truck traffic in the nation, we’re pleased to bring more travel centers to the state of Texas,” said Barry Richards, president of TA. “The Gateway Team has a strong, established reputation with professional drivers and we’re proud they chose to align with us as we continue growing our footprint through franchising.”
The opening of TA Express Carthage brings the company’s total nationwide network of travel centers to 271.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Bridgestone Americas Inc. last week introduced the FuelTech Drive retread for the drive wheel position, the newest addition to the tire manufacturer’s Bandag MaxTread line.
The MaxTread FuelTech Drive is a SmartWay-verified, closed-shoulder retread engineered for fleets operating in over-the-road hauling services. The retread, which uses a special tread compound to lower rolling resistance and deliver excellent mileage performance, is also California Air Resources Board (CARB) compliant.
“The new MaxTread FuelTech Drive retread is a fuel-efficient tire solution that maximizes mileage and performance,” said Keith Iwinski, director of marketing, Bandag, U.S. and Canada, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations. “Ideal for fleets operating in truckload and less-than-truckload applications, this drive tire position retread delivers reliable and sustainable tire performance positively impacting a fleet’s bottom line.”
The MaxTread FuelTech Drive tire is engineered to reduce energy loss by lowering rolling resistance for optimum fuel efficiency. The tire is designed for long, even tread wear and features advanced technology that controls the movement of the tire’s ribs and tread blocks during rotation, according to a statement from Bridgestone. The MaxTread FuelTech Drive tire also provides multiple gripping edges and a siped tread design to provide trusted traction on wet and dry surfaces.
Earlier this year, Bridgestone introduced the Bandag MaxTread line designed to deliver reliability comparable to new tires, featuring quality Bandag retreads as a stand-alone, single-unit tire solution rather than a traditional tire cap and casing offering. The line includes trailer, drive and all-position fitments for light truck, waste, long haul, severe service, and pickup and delivery applications.
The Bandag MaxTread line includes nine popular Bandag retread patterns outlined below:
Drive position: BDM, BDLT, BDV, DR5.3, DR4.3, FuelTech Drive;
Trailer position:1, Eclipse SST; and
All-position:
Each Bandag MaxTread tire is locally retreaded and backed by a lifetime limited warranty that features 100% coverage for the life of the tread, according to Bridgestone.
LAFAYETTE, La. — Dupré Logistics was recently recognized for its outstanding safety record by National Tank Truck Carriers (NTTC), an industry champion for transportation safety on America’s highways.
Dupré, which is categorized into NTTC’s 40-90 Million Miles class, was honored with the Merit Award in the Competitive Safety Contest for 2019. Additionally, the company earned the Grant Award in the Personnel Safety Contest for 2019.
“These awards magnify the ongoing efforts of our team to make Dupré an industry leader in safety,” said Al Lacombe, vice president of safety and risk management. “Dupré provides quality service while promoting and maintaining a culture of safety at every level.”
For more than 30 years, NTTC has honored carriers and fleets for meeting safety goals.
In his congratulatory letter to Dupré, the organization’s chairman, Kevin Jackson, said the company’s achievements are even more meaningful during the current pandemic.
“The restrictions brought on by COVID-19 have highlighted the essential work and critical role that tank trucks play in our nation’s economy,” said Jackson. “The industry has kept North America moving, and companies like Dupré have kept the roads safe while making sure that the needs of Americans are met.”
Click here for more issues of The Trucker Jobs Magazine online.
The Trucker Jobs Magazine – November 2020 Digital Edition:
Labor of Love – Daniel and Phyllis Snow remodeled their 1996 Freightliner into a showpiece, Tying up loose ends, Cat in the cab, Owning the wheel
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia officials announced a $101.3 million settlement Friday, October 30, in an antitrust suit against 11 asphalt and paving companies the state accused of cornering the market and driving up project costs.
“We’re ending sweetheart deals all across West Virginia,” Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said at a news conference with Gov. Jim Justice.
He called it the state’s largest antitrust settlement and said the savings can be directed to road rebuilding, in a state with no shortage of roads in need of repair and unfinished projects.
Three companies, West Virginia Paving, Kelly Paving and American Asphalt, will make a $30.3 million payment upfront to the state and local governments, which includes five cities and Kanawha County.
The settlement says West Virginia Paving will give an additional $71 million in credits that the state can apply to its currently unpaid projects or for work in the next seven years.
When filed in 2016, the complaint alleged that West Virginia Paving Inc. and its sister companies violated the state’s Antitrust Act. The companies took control of at least 15 asphalt plants and created a scheme that caused the municipalities to pay at least 40% more for asphalt, according to the lawsuit.
The companies had denied the charges and admitted no wrongdoing as part of the settlement.
“Our roads didn’t get into this shape overnight,” Justice said about the state of infrastructure in West Virginia. “It took decades of neglect.”
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The owner of a now-defunct commercial trucking company admitted to a federal court judge in Providence that he altered thousands of electronic entries in service logbooks for approximately 20 drivers to conceal the drivers’ actual drive time and on-duty time, according to an Oct. 28 announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Damir Sisic, 29, of Woonsocket, Rhode Island, owner of now-defunct Sisic Transport Service LLC (STS), admitted that he routinely altered data collected by onboard electronic data-gathering devices installed in his trucks that reflected the actual number of hours his drivers operated the vehicles.
U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) regulations, enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), a division of the USDOT, require accurate record keeping and operational requirements, including records related to drivers’ actual hours of service.
Sisic owned approximately 11 commercial truck tractors and ten box-style commercial trailers, and employed between seven and 10 drivers at a time. Each vehicle was equipped with an electronic logging device (ELD) that recorded the location of each truck, and the start and stop time of each vehicle. Sisic admitted that he accessed and altered that data on thousands of occasions. He admitted that he routinely concealed from the USDOT and FMCSA that his drivers were routinely exceeding the maximum number of driving hours and on-duty hours without the required off-duty hours.
According to court documents, Sisic provided altered driving records to a state trooper who was investigating the crash of an STS truck that occurred in Oklahoma on April 22, 2018, resulting in the death of the driver. In addition, Sisic provided altered driving records for numerous STS drivers to an FMCSA investigator during a compliance review.
Sisic pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence to conspiracy to falsify records, announced U.S. Attorney Aaron L. Weisman and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Shoemaker, U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Northeast Region.
Sisic is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy on Jan. 7, 2021. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ly T. Chin.
On this edition of the Dart Network Podcast, you’ll meet Scott Draper, the new driver behind the wheel of Dart’s Breast Cancer Awareness Truck. As you’ll hear, Scott felt a strong call to submit an application to fill the open seat of this special truck within the Dart company fleet. Scott’s new ride features decals of the iconic pink ribbon that has become the symbol of American Cancer Society’s ongoing Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign. For Scott, the opportunity to drive this truck provides him with a rolling tribute to his mother and his sister. As you’ll hear Scott tell PodWheels Network Executive Producer Greg Thompson during our interview, Scott lost both his mother and his sister to breast cancer in recent years. And while the pain of those losses is still present, Scott shares with Greg how driving across the nation’s highways these days has also allowed him to the feel hope and inspiration his new truck delivers with every mile.
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Announcer:
Coming up next on the Dart Network Podcast, you’ll meet Scott Draper, a company driver in the Dart fleet who recently was given the opportunity to honor his mother and sister with every mile he drives. As you’ll hear in this preview. Scott is now the proud driver of Dart’s breast cancer awareness truck.
Scott Draper:
To finally do something for my mother and my sister... Now, I’m starting to recognize more people out there that have dealt with this horrible disease. The response that I get, I didn’t realize that, before I was seated in the truck, makes me feel good for the people that come up and shake my hand. The people that come up and want to take pictures. I know my mom and my sister recognizing that also makes me feel even better.
Announcer:
Welcome back to the Dart Network Podcast. Thanks for connecting with us again on the PodWheels Network. In this edition of the podcast you’ll meet Scott Draper, the new driver behind the wheel of Dart’s breast cancer awareness truck. As you’ll hear during our interview, Scott felt a strong call to submit an application to fill the open seat of the jet-black truck in the Dart company fleet featuring decals of the iconic pink ribbon that has become the symbol of the American Cancer Society’s ongoing breast cancer awareness campaign.
Dart’s breast cancer awareness truck also offers encouraging words for those afflicted with breast cancer and their families. As many of you in the Dart Network know, “Drive Like A Boss” has been a slogan associated with Dart for many years. With the breast cancer awareness truck, Dart placed an inspirational twist within those words, by displaying a “Fight Like A Boss” decal on the big rig. For Scott Draper, his new ride provides him with a rolling tribute to his mother and his sister. As you’ll hear Scott tell PodWheels Network Executive Producer Greg Thompson during our interview, Scott lost both his mother and his sister to breast cancer in recent years. While the pain of those losses is still present, Scott shares with Greg how driving across the nation’s highways these days has also allowed him to feel the hope and inspiration his new truck delivers with every mile.
Greg Thompson:
It’s our pleasure to welcome in Scott Draper to the Dart Network Podcast. Scott was recently seated in the breast cancer awareness truck that is in the Dart fleet. Scott, welcome to the Dart Network Podcast, and congratulations on your new ride.
Scott Draper:
Thank you, Greg. I greatly appreciate it. I’ve been really enjoying the response that I’m getting from driving this truck.
Greg Thompson:
Scott, speaking of your ride, the breast cancer awareness truck is one of the specially badged trucks in the Dart fleet. It’s got the pink bows on both sides of it as well as on the front of it, and it says, “Fight Like A Boss.” It’s much like the military trucks in the Dart Network fleet in that it ...
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — “I can’t change my past, so I decided to change my future.” This statement by Sharae Moore, founder of S.H.E. Trucking, touches a resonant chord with many people, and it reflects her outlook on her career as well as her friendships and family relationships.
Moore and her father, Carlos Crutcher share a unique father-daughter bond: Both are experienced over-the-road truck drivers. Moore is an owner-operator and drives for Riverside Transport Inc., while Crutcher is a company driver for Tranco Logistics. The two achieved their career goals through very different paths.
After working as a certified nurse assistant for nearly a decade, at age 30 Moore decided it was time for a change.
“I knew a guy that drove trucks, and he actually showed me his paycheck,” she said. “I said, ‘I want one of those!’ And so I decided to join the trucking industry. I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into. It was a whole new experience.”
Another factor in Moore’s decision to make a change in her life’s focus was the death of a brother, 10 years earlier, when he was 30.
“Here I was, turning his age, and I was thinking, ‘I need to do something with my life,’” she said. “That was my turning point, and that’s when I came to the trucking industry.”
After seeing an advertisement for “free CDL training,” Moore enrolled in training through Swift Transportation.
“The training was good,” Moore said, adding that she remains in touch with some of her instructors, including Roderick Martin and Dee Hopson.
“Roderick was a great trainer,” she said. “I still call him and ask questions.”
Hopkins was instrumental in helping Moore overcome what was for her the toughest part of training — the backing maneuvers.
“None of the guys in the class wanted to partner with us (women),” Moore said. “I said, ‘Ms. Dee, no one wants to be my teammate.’ She said, ‘It’s OK, you can be mine.’ And so she taught me how to back, and do that 90 and everything ... and I just picked it up and got it.
“I’ve never seen somebody so proud,” Moore continued. “When I started getting it, she jumped up and she said, ‘You got it!’ It made me feel so good, going from struggling and struggling, can’t get it, feeling defeated to, ‘Oh, you got it!’”
On March 25, 2014, she earned her commercial driver’s license and embarked on a journey as a professional truck driver. In the past six years, Moore has not only gained experience and confidence as a driver; she has also launched the S.H.E. Trucking clothing line and Facebook group, providing encouragement and support for women drivers.
“In the beginning it’s a struggle because the first year or two, everyone just stares. The men, they’ll sit there and they’ll just wait to see what you can do,” she said. “After a while, your confidence builds. You learn how to maneuver your rig, back easily and stuff like that. It’s been a really rewarding experience.”
S.H.E. Trucking began as a merchandising website for Moore’s T-shirts and other apparel designed for women truckers.
“I couldn’t find any T-shirts that said I was a female driver, a lady trucker,” she said.
As the S.H.E. Trucking clothing line grew in popularity, so did Moore’s reputation as a mentor for other women in the trucking industry, as well as a source of advice for women wanting to earn a CDL.
“They started posting on my personal Facebook page, and I thought, ‘I need a place for them to go,’” she said.
“That’s when I created the S.H.E. Trucking Facebook group. And it has grown into more than I ever imagined,” she continued. Today the mentorship group has more than 8,000 members and has gained an international following. In addition, Moore and the group have been featured in Facebook’s Community Voices spotlight videos and hardcover book.
“I never knew there were so many women drivers. It’s so rewarding seeing the women accomplish their goals and being a part of that,” she continued. “The goal was to encourage women to be proud of...
GREELEY, Colo. — “The worst of times can bring about the best of changes.”
That may sound like a line from a Charles Dickens book, but it’s actually an observation from longtime driver Mark Salcedo. Delivering food in a time of crisis, he has witnessed an attitude change for the better toward truckers as the nation realizes just how essential they are.
“It reminds me of the old days,” said Salcedo. “My grandpa started a truck line in the ’60s, and growing up, I spent a lot of summers on the road with my dad. Back then, people had enormous respect for drivers, but much of that’s been lost. These days, people see us as more of an annoyance, but this situation has helped open their eyes.”
Salcedo described the outpouring of support he’s seen through acts of kindness coming from complete strangers, such as those giving out care packages at rest stops.
However, even more support has come from the people Salcedo regularly interacts with — those at truck stops and restaurants, docks and receiving departments, and especially, his own company, JBS Carriers.
“JBS is great. I originally planned to work here just one year. Now, I’m about to start my fifth, and I even mentor trainees,” he laughed.
“This company takes care of its own — always, but even more right now,” Salcedo continued. “They’re paying for cleaning supplies, providing masks and gloves, and doing lots of things that make their jobs harder, but keep us safer.”
That’s not to say that driving during a pandemic has been a cruise down Easy Street. Along with extra health precautions and risks, there have been logistical challenges.
“Traffic is down on the road, but up at distribution centers,” Salcedo said. “They’re working hard, but some are pretty jammed.”
Basic things such as parking, getting meals and taking a shower have also been harder as closures or restrictions reduce access. But the most difficult part for Salcedo has been the isolation.
“I usually stop at home on every trip to visit my dad and son, but I’ve had to keep my distance. Not getting to be with them has been tough,” he said.
That’s why the support Salcedo has received on the road is so critical, and why he’s hopeful it’ll be a turning point in how drivers are viewed and treated.
“Our work automatically puts us at social distance from family and friends, but that’s what it takes to provide for them and for everyone,” he said. “I think that’s a good lesson that’s come out of a bad time. One that will be remembered long after this is past.”
Story by Dave Ballew.
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — In response to sustained demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) as a result of COVID-19, Mack Trucks donated about 500 pieces of personal protective equipment that were manufactured at its Lehigh Valley Operations (LVO) plant in Macungie, Pennsylvania.
“The Mack team is committed to doing what we can to help the communities in which we live and work, and I’m very proud of our LVO employees for stepping up to produce PPE during the coronavirus pandemic,” said Rickard Lundberg, vice president and general manager at LVO. “For nearly 120 years, Mack has risen to the challenge of fulfilling vital needs, most recently through the production of PPE.”
Mack engineers and leadership reviewed several different design possibilities before deciding upon the production of face-shield headbands utilizing a 3D printer, as well as handcrafted assembly at LVO, where all Mack Class 8 vehicles for North America and export are built. Mack first produced personal protective equipment for its employees, and has since donated personal protective equipment to various organizations, including Lehigh Valley Health Network, Lehigh Center, Kirkland Village, Westminister Village and The Easton Home. Mack will donate more as the personal protective equipment pieces are produced, based on demand in the community.
Mack also recently began producing 3D-printed ear guards to offer additional comfort to employees wearing face masks.
Earlier this spring, Mack donated other personal protective equipment, including masks, gloves and safety goggles, to St. Luke’s University Health Network, South Mountain Memory Care, Success Rehabilitation and Maxim Healthcare Services.
The production of personal protective equipment is just one way that Mack is helping the community. Mack recently donated $10,000 to the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley and Northeast Pennsylvania to help those with food insecurity.
Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley and Northeast Pennsylvania serves 200 agencies in Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe, Northampton, Pike and Wayne counties. Its mission is to “obtain food and distribute it to people in need through area non-profits, and to provide resources for education and advocacy to end hunger.” The organization was started in 1982. Second Harvest delivered 9.4 million pounds of food during fiscal year 2018-2019.
“The Lehigh Valley community is very important to Mack Trucks,” Lundberg said. “We are doing what we can to support it in meaningful ways so that those most in need are supported.”
WASHINGTON — Naysayers had been at it since before the start of the May 1 “mayday” protest by small trucking business owner-operators. It seemed that no one, perhaps not even the protesters themselves, thought the protest would result in much change. Many thought that, like the “slow rolls” that happened in Houston, Los Angeles and Phoenix earlier, and even like past trucker demonstrations in the capital, truckers would do their thing and then go home, claiming victory for raising awareness of the truckers’ plight while accomplishing little, if anything.
This protest was different.
The movement of owner-operator trucks to parking places along Constitution Avenue almost didn’t resemble a protest at all. Horns were blown at specific intervals, but when is Washington ever without the din of traffic noise? In the COVID-19 pandemic environment, traffic was already severely reduced, and the usual throng of tourists was gone.
Well-mannered trucking-protest participants made friends of Metro and Park Police and Secret Service agents. Local residents and workers made signs for their cars and vans, mirroring the messages they had seen on protester trucks and blowing their horns, too. Smells wafted from charcoal grills as people gathered under waving American flags to share the dinner sizzling on the coals.
When the protest was over after three weeks, the giant piles of litter left after most protests weren’t there. The polite protesters left the area cleaner than it was when they arrived.
Still, the criticism continued. Some said the truckers were fighting for the wrong things. Others said they shouldn’t be protesting at all. Names were called. People were banned from social-media sites because of their ugly verbiage. And now that it’s over, some people question what was really accomplished.
A grassroots protest, however, isn’t a labor negotiation. It doesn’t end with a signed contract between union and management. And, under the United States’ form of government, there are no royal decrees to instantly settle disputes. There are channels to follow, agencies to involve. Tangible results take time, but they are results, just the same.
So, what results did the polite protesters achieve?
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They got their White House meeting. They didn’t always agree on the issues, but they never wavered from their desire to be heard. Presidential tweets and soundbites favoring their cause were welcomed, but not enough. Even when their cause made national news due to the sound of air horns during a Rose Garden press conference, they weren’t done. They said they were staying until they got their meeting — and they did.
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The Department of Justice reversed its decision not to investigate brokers for collusion and for price gouging during a time of crisis. In fact, the one time that protesters blocked Constitution Avenue was in response to a DOJ announcement that it was not investigating. That decision changed, quickly.
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Although some of the protesters’ demands were already being worked on by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), things were proceeding rather slowly. During, or perhaps because of the protest, OOIDA increased the urgency of its campaign. The organization sent a call to action to its members, sent letters to all members of Congress and then sent another letter to House and Senate Leadership, filed a petition with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and issued numerous press releases and articles through its own in-house publication.
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The protest generated presidential interest in the application and enforcement of 49 CFR 371.3, the regulation that requires brokers to share load information, including the amount paid by the shipper, to all parties involved in the transaction who request it. Encouraged by broker organizations such as Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), brokers commonly ignore the requirements of the regulation by forcing carriers to waive their r...
WASHINGTON — As protesting truckers wind down Day 19 of their Washington D.C. protest on May 19, they are on the cusp of realizing their biggest protest goal — a meeting at the White House. Selected individuals have been invited to a West Wing meeting on Wednesday, May 20. It has not been confirmed that President Trump will attend; however, the meeting should satisfy trucker demands to meet.
Exactly who will represent the truckers is as yet unannounced.
United States Transportation Alliance (USTA) CEO Michael Landis will almost certainly be among the participants, but no official announcement has been made. Reports that a representative of the Eastern European trucking group will attend, along with an attorney, are unconfirmed.
Another area of speculation is the list of demands the group will bring to the meeting.
Broker transparency is a term commonly used by protesters, but many want the government to regulate the percentage of load revenue that brokers can keep. While transparency is already written into the regulations in 49 CFR 371.3, brokers often evade the disclosure requirements by requiring carriers to waive their rights to the information or making access to the information so difficult as to strongly discourage carrier review. Revising the transparency requirements would certainly be easier than forcing a revenue percentage cap on brokers, which some would see as interference with the free market.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) today filed a petition with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) asking for a rulemaking that would require brokers to automatically provide a copy of the transaction record within 48 hours of the completion of a load. The proposed rule would prohibit brokers from including any provision in contracts that would waive the carrier’s right to access this information.
Yesterday Washington protesters got a huge boost in morale when President Trump made them a part of the agenda at a May 18 roundtable discussion with restaurant industry leaders at the White House.
As Eugene Scalia, secretary of labor, delivered comments on reopening the U.S. economy, Trump interrupted with, “And Gene, you have to help the truckers, also.”
Scalia assured the president that his department has been talking about the topic, and Trump continued, “And I’ll tell you, they’re, they work hard, and they have brokers that take a lot of their business away. They (brokers) don’t work so hard. They sit in an office someplace, it’s not good. So, I’d like to help the truckers. All right?”
There was immediate criticism of the labor secretary for laughing and smiling before responding to the president. Whether the laughter expressed a lack of concern for truckers, as some claimed on social media sites, or a lighthearted acknowledgement of the horn-blowing protesters that have disrupted outdoor events at the White House wasn’t clear.
Protest organizers and spokespersons talked nearly continuously throughout the day Tuesday, polling protest participants and solidifying the requests they will make at the meeting.
LAREDO, Texas — May 14 was a busy day for agents of the U.S. Border Patrol near the Laredo, Texas, crossing between the U.S. and Mexico. In three separate incidents, agents discovered a total of 62 people in three failed human-smuggling attempts.
The first incident occurred in the early afternoon, when a tractor-trailer approached the Interstate 35 checkpoint. After an immigration inspection of the driver, a nonintrusive scan of the tractor-trailer revealed several people being transported in the trailer. Upon opening the trailer, agents discovered 48 people from Mexico, including two juveniles, who were determined to be in the U.S. illegally. All 48 people and the driver, a U.S. citizen, were arrested pending further investigation. The tractor and trailer were seized by the U.S. Border Patrol.
The second incident occurred about an hour later, when agents working the U.S. 83 checkpoint encountered a second tractor-trailer. During the immigration inspection of the driver, a service canine brought agents’ attention to the tractor area of the rig. An inspection of the tractor led to the discovery of 10 people inside. The individuals, from the countries of Mexico and Ecuador, were determined to be illegally present in the U.S. The 10 people and the driver, a U.S. citizen, were placed under arrest pending further investigation. The tractor-trailer was seized by the U.S. Border Patrol.
The final incident occurred later in the evening. Agents working south of U.S. 59 performed a roving patrol stop on a black pickup. During an immigration inspection, it was determined the driver was a U.S. citizen but that the other four occupants were illegally present in the U.S. from the countries of Mexico and Honduras. All occupants were placed under arrest. The driver and truck were turned over to the Duval County Sheriff’s Office to face state charges.
Especially during the ongoing international COVID-19 pandemic, human smugglers endanger the lives of the illegal immigrants they transport and put at risk the health and safety of U.S. citizens, according to the U.S. Border Patrol. Border Patrol agents are working to prevent the flow of illegal immigration and slow the spread of COVID-19.
The problem with a grass-roots movement is often determining which blade of “grass” will speak for the group. That’s been a visible issue with the small trucking business protest, now in its third week in Washington. A review of the signs posted on the 100 or so parked trucks along Constitution Avenue reveals demands for respect; broker investigation, regulation or transparency; elimination of electronic logging devices (ELDs); repeal of hours-of-service (HOS) regulations; and a few other causes thrown in for good measure.
Reading through thousands of social-media comments by protesters and supporters only muddies the water further. One can imagine a make-believe scenario where the proverbial genie appears to the protesters to grant them three wishes ... and sets off a weeklong argument about what those wishes should be.
Enter the United States Transportation Alliance (ustransportationalliance.org). Conceived in the notion that the organizations with lobbying power in government exist to serve everyone except small business truckers, USTA, a 501c6 nonprofit, gives voice to the “little guy.” The hundreds of “little guys” protesting in Washington have need for such a voice.
As Mark Meadows, President Donald Trump’s chief of staff addressed an assembled group of protesters on May 14, he asked, “So, you like Mike?” The crowd erupted in cheering and applause. They were cheering Michael Landis, CEO and founder of USTA. No vote was taken to elect him spokesperson, but the trust he has garnered among the protesters makes him an obvious choice.
In an exclusive interview with The Trucker, USTA’s president and co-founder Kevin Steichen, along with Ingrid Brown, chairperson of the organization’s corporate relations and safety education, spoke about the protest, the FMCSA’s recent final ruling on HOS regulations, and the purpose of USTA.
The FMCSA ruling wasn’t entirely a surprise.
“We’re working hand in hand with the FMCSA,” Steichen said. “We attend meetings with them monthly.”
Although USTA has input into FMCSA decisions, the organization must wait for the final outcome, just like everyone else.
Steichen advised patience with the new rules.
“Third-party ‘interpretation’ sucks,” he said.” That’s why we want to read every work and then read it again, so that when we do comment, we’re commenting on facts and not what someone thinks.”
Reading the 232-page ruling takes time and could result in communication with the FMCSA for explanation of some of the provisions included.
The latest HOS revision is only one of the things the USTA board has been working on.
“We are partners and stakeholders in the ‘Our Roads, Our Safety’ campaign at FMCSA,” Brown said. “They brought us in around April of last year and we’ve been a part of it ever since.”
More recently, USTA became concerned about personal protective equipment not being available to most truck drivers.
“USTA was instrumental in putting together the $75,000 in PPE that is being distributed to drivers, free,” Brown said. “Now we’re working on the next $50,000.”
While progress on individual issues is important, USTA’s primary mission is to represent the driver. There are no products or services, save for a hat or T-shirt, to sell to the organization’s membership. Membership dues and donations don’t come close to covering the costs of travel, lodging, food, parking and other expenses incurred on each trip to Washington to meet with lawmakers or the FMCSA.
“Being that they don’t drive (a truck), sometimes they don’t understand what we do. We don’t just throw emails at them; we sit at the table and discuss the issues. That’s who we are,” Brown explained.
“It can be frustrating to work with FMCSA, but I’ve been doing it for two years,” Steichen added. “We have a love-hate relationship with those guys, but we make it work. Our role is to bridge the gap between FMCSA and the drivers in our industry.”
Persistence has been key to the organization’s success in gaini...
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) continued a busy week on Wednesday (May 13) with a message to the majority and minority leaders of both houses of Congress. The five-page letter included a list of requests for congressional action.
“Congress must provide more targeted relief specific to our industry,” the letter stated, and OOIDA recommended a series of steps.
This letter followed up on a May 6 missive, sent to all senators and representatives, that asked for a requirement that brokers provide electronic copies of the information required in 49 CFR 371.3 to carriers upon completion of the load, as well as a prohibition on contract clauses requiring carriers to waive their rights to this information.
Under 49 CFR 371.3, brokers are required to keep a record of each transaction that includes, among other items, the amount of compensation received by the broker for the brokerage service performed and the name of the payer. Brokers are required to retain these record for three years, and each party to a brokered transaction has the right to review the record of the transaction.
OOIDA’s May 13 letter reiterated those demands and recommended that broker bond requirements be reformed to serve as a greater deterrent to broker malfeasance.
Next was a recommendation that the current suspension by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) of weight and size requirements be lifted because allowing heavier trucks on the road can result in fewer trucks being needed to haul the same amount of freight in a market where there are already too few loads. The FMCSA recently extended the exemption until June 14.
The letter went on to recommend a repeal of the Fair Labor Standards Act overtime exemption for truck drivers, saying these laws are outdated. Then came a request for hazard pay for drivers who are working through the COVID-19 pandemic, citing drivers’ personal expenses for personal protective equipment, sanitizer and other supplies as part of the justification.
The next section of the letter dealt with the Small Business Administration and the inadequacies in the agency’s ability to get needed funds into the hands of small business truckers.
As in the May 6 letter, OOIDA again asked for a suspension of the heavy vehicle use tax, a $550 annual burden for most Class 8 trucks and their owners.
Finally, the letter called for enactment of H.R. 6104, the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act.
The letter was signed by OOIDA President and CEO Todd Spencer.
OOIDA also issued a “call to action” to its 160,000 members, asking each member to request information in accordance with 49 CFR 371.3 for every load they accept from a broker. Further, OOIDA asked its membership to report any problems with brokers to the association as well as to the National Consumer Complaint Database. Included with the letter to membership were for- letter templates for members to use n requesting the information.
In an act of defiance, the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), a trade group representing freight-brokerage businesses, followed the OOIDA call to action with a letter to its own 1,800 member companies, reminding them that making load information available at their place of business only during normal business hours is permissible under the regulations. This practice has been roundly criticized by OOIDA, which said in its letter to congressional representatives, “Brokers know this makes it virtually impossible for most carriers to access records.”
In a press release announcing the call to action, the organization included a May 3 tweet sent by President Donald Trump in response to a protest in Washington that started May 1 and is ongoing as of May 14. Rather than acknowledge the protesters, however, OOIDA attributed the reason for the presidential tweet as “public outcry.”
Also quoted was the president’s later tweet acknowledging that truckers are being price-gouged.
The membershi...
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today published a final rule updating hours of service (HOS) rules to increase safety on America’s roadways by updating existing regulations for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.
“America’s truckers are doing a heroic job keeping our supply chains open during this unprecedented time and these rules will provide them greater flexibility to keep America moving,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
First adopted in 1937, FMCSA’s hours of service rules specify the permitted operating hours of commercial drivers. In 2018, FMCSA authored an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) to receive public comment on portions of the HOS rules to alleviate unnecessary burdens placed on drivers while maintaining safety on our nation’s highways and roads. Subsequently, in August 2019, the Agency published a detailed proposed rule which received an additional 2,800 public comments.
Based on the detailed public comments and input from the American people, FMCSA’s final rule on hours of service offers four key revisions to the existing HOS rules:
The Agency will increase safety and flexibility for the 30-minute break rule by requiring a break after 8 hours of consecutive driving and allowing the break to be satisfied by a driver using on-duty, not driving status, rather than off-duty status.
The Agency will modify the sleeper-berth exception to allow drivers to split their required 10 hours off duty into two periods: an 8/2 split, or a 7/3 split—with neither period counting against the driver’s 14‐hour driving window.
The Agency will modify the adverse driving conditions exception by extending by two hours the maximum window during which driving is permitted.
The Agency will change the short-haul exception available to certain commercial drivers by lengthening the drivers’ maximum on‐duty period from 12 to 14 hours and extending the distance limit within which the driver may operate from 100 air miles to 150 air miles.
“The Department of Transportation and the Trump Administration listened directly to the concerns of truckers seeking rules that are safer and have more flexibility—and we have acted. These updated hours of service rules are based on the thousands of comments we received from the American people. These reforms will improve safety on America’s roadways and strengthen the nation’s motor carrier industry,” said FMCSA Acting Administrator Jim Mullen.
FMCSA’s final rule changes do not increase driving time and will continue to prevent CMV operators from driving for more than eight consecutive hours without at least a 30-minute break.
In addition, FMCSA’s rule modernizing hours of service regulations is estimated to provide nearly $274 million in annualized cost savings for the U.S. economy and American consumers. The trucking industry is a key component of the national economy, employing more than seven million people and moving 70% of the nation’s domestic freight.
The new hours of service rule will have an implementation date of 120 days after publication in the Federal Register.
The complete final rule is available here:
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has issued yet another extension to its suspension of hours of service for commercial vehicles in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In a May 13 notice, FMCSA announced that the exemption will now expire on June 14, 2020.
The original emergency declaration granting relief from hours-of-service requirements was issued March 13 and was initially set to expire April 12. In April, that expiration date was extended to May 15, and the hours-of-service waiver has now been extended for another month.
The FMCSA’s declaration provides for regulatory relief for commercial motor vehicles transporting the following:
Medical supplies and equipment related to the testing, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19.
Supplies and equipment necessary for community safety, sanitation and prevention of community transmission of COVID-19 such as masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, soap and disinfectants.
Food, paper products and other groceries for emergency restocking of distribution centers or stores.
Immediate precursor raw materials — such as paper, plastic or alcohol — that are required and to be used for the manufacture of essential items.
Fuel.
Liquefied gases to be used in refrigeration or cooling systems.
Equipment, supplies and persons necessary to establish and manage temporary housing, quarantine and isolation facilities related to COVID-19.
Persons designated by federal, state or local authorities for medical, isolation or quarantine purposes.
Persons necessary to provide other medical or emergency services.
The expanded and extended declaration stipulates that direct assistance does not include routine commercial deliveries, including mixed loads with a nominal quantity of qualifying emergency relief added to obtain the benefits of the emergency declaration.
To ensure continued safety on the nation’s roadways, the emergency declaration stipulates that once a driver has completed his or her delivery, the driver must receive a minimum of 10 hours off duty if transporting property, eight hours if transporting passengers.
To read FMCSA’s official release regarding the extension and expansion, click here.
Previously reported story below.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has issued an extension to its unprecedented suspension of hours of service for commercial vehicles. This exemption will now expire on May 15, 2020, as a response to the ongoing nationwide COVID-19 outbreak.
The agency also extended the qualifying supplies to include liquefied gases to be used in refrigeration or cooling systems.
The original emergency declaration granting relief from hours-of-service requirements was issued March 13 and was initially set to expire on April 12. The agency’s release states that “because emergency conditions have not abated” the relief will continue.
The FMCSA’s declaration provides for regulatory relief for commercial motor vehicles transporting the following:
Medical supplies and equipment related to the testing, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19.
Supplies and equipment necessary for community safety, sanitation and prevention of community transmission of COVID-19 such as masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, soap and disinfectants.
Food, paper products and other groceries for emergency restocking of distribution centers or stores.
Immediate precursor raw materials — such as paper, plastic or alcohol — that are required and to be used for the manufacture of essential items.
Fuel.
Liquefied gases to be used in refrigeration or cooling systems.
Equipment, supplies and persons necessary to establish and manage temporary housing, quarantine.
Persons designated by federal, state or local authorities for medical, isolation or quarantine purposes.
Persons necessary to provide other medical or emergency services.
The expan...
DALLAS — Barnhart Transportation and ShipSmith have partnered with Richard Rawlings and the Gas Monkey Foundation to provide 13 truckloads of Gas Monkey Energy Drink to COVID-19 first responders and health care workers across the country.
Richard Rawlings put out a request for trucks on Instagram, seeking assistance in getting his product to health care workers in COVID-19 hotspots. Jeff ‘Smitty’ Smith, owner of Charleston, South Carolina-based ShipSmith, responded and knew how to make it happen.
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“Everyone is looking for ways to help during this crisis, and this was the perfect opportunity to reach out to Barnhart to make it happen,” said Smith. “I’ve been a huge fan of Richard Rawlings and his show ‘Fast N’ Loud’ for years, and really admire his philanthropy work.”
Barnhart Transportation is donating its trucks, fuel and drivers to the effort to get all 13 truckloads to the hardest-hit areas of the country.
“When the opportunity was presented to us, we jumped at the chance to do our part to help first responders and front-line workers,” said, Bryan Barnhart, president of Barnhart Transportation. “We’re incredibly grateful to Richard Rawlings and his organization.”
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Commercial drivers who stopped at Florida’s southbound Interstate 75 rest area near Ocala last Thursday (May 7) were treated to a free meal in appreciation for their work on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), Florida Trucking Association (FTA) and the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) partnered to provide lunches to essential workers. Meals were sponsored by the FTA, Chick-fil-A, Publix Super Markets and Walmart Transportation.
“FDOT is proud to support Florida’s truck drivers, who have continued to work tirelessly during the fight against COVID-19,” said Florida DOT Secretary Kevin J. Thibault, P.E. “These individuals are on the front lines each day providing vital goods to Floridians during this unprecedented time — keeping shelves stocked, medicine delivered and supplies directed to those most in need. Their selflessness is inspiring, and the department is committed to continuing to support their needs as they serve others.”
During the event, FDOT, FTA, and FHP distributed 500 meals to truck drivers at the southbound Interstate 75 rest area near Ocala at mile marker 346 in Marion County.
“We are always proud of what our member companies and their drivers do every day of the year,” said Ken Armstrong, president of FTA. “Their patriotism and pride in the profession shines brightly during this time, as all Floridians become more aware of the vital role these men and women play in our daily lives. We thank FDOT for joining us today to recognize their work.”
Col. Gene Spaulding, director of FHP, also expressed gratitude to truck drivers for their dedication and professionalism.
“We are privileged to partner with the Safety Management Council Executive Committee, the Florida Trucking Association, and the Florida Department of Transportation in support of our truck drivers,” he said. “It’s our honor to participate in this special recognition to them for the outstanding job they do every day.”
There are approximately 38,000 trucking companies in the state of Florida, and one in 21 jobs in the state is in the trucking industry.
Photo courtesy of the Florida Department of Transportation.
There has been little change as owners of small trucking businesses continued their protest along Constitution Avenue in Washington. A few more trucks have arrived to support the effort, but the anticipated meeting with President Trump or members of his administration hasn’t occurred yet.
Jeremy Johnson, one of the principals behind the Facebook group The Disrespected Trucker, stays in touch with the protesters and says they are “dug in” for the long haul. There are, however, cracks in the movement’s foundation.
Without centralized leadership, it’s hard to tell who speaks for the group.
“We’ve had a couple of rough days,” Johnson told The Trucker. “Some people are posting things as if they have something to do with leading the protest, but we’re not following any one group or person. We’re doing this together.”
Another problem is that with so many speakers, the protest message can be confusing.
“We’re struggling with presenting a united message when we have so many people demanding different things,” Johnson said.
Facebook videos are the group’s primary method of communication to the public, especially sympathetic drivers who aren’t physically part of the protest. Some of the videos, like those posted by Janet Sanchez, are inspiring and motivational to the protesters.
“She’s a dynamo,” Johnson said. “She’s incredibly high-energy. We’re so lucky to have her.”
The problem is that others can post videos, too, and some of those contain dissenting opinions, creating the impression of a lack of organization among the group. The membership of The Disrespected Trucker has swelled to nearly 7,900 and not all the new members are there in support.
There’s a financial aspect, too.
Some of the protesters are feeling the pinch of buying food and necessities while their trucks are parked at the protest. With no money coming in, financial resources are dwindling for many of them. This has led to numerous attempts to raise funds in support. Several people have posted links to various fundraising efforts, and Johnson said that’s a problem.
“There have been several posts about people starting GoFundMe accounts and asking for donations,” he said. “The Disrespected Trucker is not asking for any money, and we will not take any money.”
Johnson said he reserves his trust for only one fundraising effort.
Anthony Marin has posted a GoFundMe account on The Disrespected Trucker Facebook page and has used the donations to provide portable toilets for protesters, supply food items and rent hotel rooms so participants can be shuttled back and forth for showers.
“I know he’s keeping every receipt and keeping it honest,” Johnson said. “But none of the money goes to Disrespected Truckers.”
Steve Oatley, CEO of Freight Broker Live and producer of the “Your Favorite Freight Broker” video blog, also suggests that the message of the protesters isn’t clear. He commented yesterday, “I don’t think they know what they’re protesting anymore,” and suggested the protesters might be better served by working with their individual representatives of Congress.
Rick Santiago, one of the original organizers of the protest, spoke in a Facebook video yesterday saying, “We need 1,000 trucks in Washington.”
However, Santiago’s position has changed substantially from his original assertion that brokers are “gouging” carriers and demanding that broker profits be regulated. Santiago explained that he now believes that both brokers and carriers are simply responding to the free market and that there’s no legal limitations on the amount of revenue the broker can keep. His message has changed to one of transparency.
Then there’s OOIDA, which has issued recent press releases outlining the organization’s effort revise federal regulations regarding broker information. CFR 371.3 requires brokers to provide the details of each brokered transaction to each party involved upon request, but brokers often circumvent the requirement by requiring truckers to ...
Harrisburg, Penn. — The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has reopened indoor facilities at three additional rest areas statewide.
PennDOT’s rest areas were temporarily closed statewide on March 17 in response to Gov. Tom Wolf’s mitigation guidance regarding COVID-19 to ensure that proper safety and sanitation protocols were in place. Many rest areas across Pennsylvania have since reopened.
Additional cleaning and maintenance will be performed at all reopened locations. Tourism services are not available at this time.
The following locations reopened May 11:
Interstate 80 eastbound in Columbia County, 3.5 miles east of Exit 242;
Interstate 80 westbound in Columbia County, 10 miles west of Exit 256; and
Interstate 70 westbound in Fulton County, 1 mile west of the Maryland state.
These rest areas were previously reopened and remain open for travelers:
Interstate 79 northbound in Allegheny County, 8 miles north of Exit 45;
Interstate 79 northbound in Crawford County, 8 miles north of Exit 154;
Interstate 79 southbound in Crawford County, 3 miles south of Exit 166;
Interstate 79 northbound in Greene County, 5 miles north of Exit 1;
Interstate 79 northbound in Lawrence County, 3.5 miles north of Exit 105;
Interstate 79 southbound in Lawrence County, 3.5 miles south of Exit 113;
Interstate 79 northbound in Mercer County, 5 miles south of Exit 141;
Interstate 79 southbound in Mercer County, 6 miles north of Exit 130;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Centre County, 13 miles east of Exit 133;
Interstate 80 westbound in Centre County, .5 miles west of Exit 147;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Jefferson County, 1 mile east of Exit 86;
Interstate 80 westbound in Jefferson County, 10 miles west of Exit 97;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Luzerne County, 8.5 miles east of Exit 262;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Monroe County, 1 mile east of I-80/I-380;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Montour County, 4.5 miles east of Exit 215;
Interstate 80 westbound in Montour County, 4.5 miles west of Exit 224;
Interstate 80 eastbound in Venango County, .5 miles east of Exit 29;
Interstate 80 westbound in Venango County, 4 miles west of Exit 35;
Interstate 81 northbound in Cumberland County, .5 miles north of Exit 37;
Interstate 81 southbound in Cumberland County, 5.5 miles south of Exit 44;
Interstate 81 northbound in Lackawanna County, .5 miles north of Exit 202;
Interstate 81 northbound in Luzerne County, 1.5 miles north of Exit 155;
Interstate 81 southbound in Luzerne County, 1.5 miles south of Exit 159;
Interstate 81 southbound in Susquehanna County, 4 miles south of Exit 211;
Interstate 83 northbound in York County, 2.5 miles north of the Maryland state line;
Interstate 84 eastbound in Pike County, 6 miles east of Exit 20;
Interstate 84 westbound in Pike County, 1 mile west of Exit 26;
Interstate 70 eastbound in Washington County, 3.5 miles east of Exit 1;
Interstate 81 northbound in Franklin County, 1 mile north of the Maryland state line;
Interstate 81 southbound in Susquehanna County, .5 miles south of the New York state line;
Interstate 90 westbound in Erie County, .5 miles west of the New York state line; and
S. 15 southbound in Tioga County, 7 miles south of the New York state line.
PennDOT will continue to evaluate and will determine whether additional locations can be reopened.
The Truckload Carriers Association awards about 50 scholarships to students each year to students who have a family connection to TCA.
One past recipient of one of the top scholarships is Blake Quinn of Springfield Missouri, who is a student at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. His dad works for Prime Inc., and Quinn is studying supply management.
“As I progress through my college career, I am made increasingly more aware of the impact the trucking industry has had (and continues to have) on my family life,” Quinn said in a press release from TCA. “As a supply-chain major, I am gradually learning more and more about the industry my dad climbed the ladder in to provide for my family.”
Andrea Vidaurre of Indianapolis is a student at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Her mother works for WEX EFS.
“I have always respected my mother’s work ethic and learned early on to follow in her footsteps, whether it be my schoolwork, basketball or my own job,” said Vidaurre. “After college, I look forward to beginning my career in accounting or finance with the same passion and drive as my mother has for an industry that has played such an important part in our lives.”
Marli Hall, TCA’s senior director of outreach and engagement, said the scholarship fund is an independent organization governed by the bylaws and the board of trustees, which is always actively recruiting to be a part of the fund.
“If there are TCA members who are interested in helping advance TCA’s successful scholarship program, we encourage them to share their interest in becoming a TCA Scholarship Fund Trustee,” Hall said. “The trustees help fundraise and judge the application submissions.”
Hall said TCA, which was founded in 1938, is the only trade association whose sole focus is the truckload segment of the motor carrier industry.
TCA’s scholarship program includes seven larger scholarships named after significant contributors to the fund. To have a scholarship named in their honor, donors must give $50,000 for that scholarship, or at least $10,000 over the course of five years. Students receive up to $6,250 for the full year, split between the two semesters.
The application process begins in early March through an online application.
To qualify for any of the scholarships, a student must be in good standing, with a minimum grade-point average of 3.0, and attending an accredited four-year college as an undergraduate. The student must also be a child, grandchild or spouse of either an employee of a TCA member or an independent contractor affiliated with a TCA member.
“We try to be as transparent as possible,” Hall said. “This is what you need to have to be eligible and the qualifications considered. We also share when the winners are posted.”
Hall said the application process includes submitting headshots, school transcripts and a course schedule. Hall said TCA is up front with what is needed before prospective recipients “dive into an application.”
“We’ve got some guidelines for the judges — a framework — but for the most part, it is up to their discretion,” Hall said. “They judge (the applicants) on their workload, such as are they taking 12 credit hours or 21, or are they in honors classes, and they take (the students’) extracurricular activities into account.”
She said even if a student does not have a 3.0 GPA, but is close, perhaps with a 2.8, he or she is still encouraged to apply because the judges will take into account factors such as extracurricular activities or a student working to pay for classes.
The scholarships are funded by members of the trucking community. Hall said anyone who wants to give to the program can, and that “there are lots of different avenues to do so.”
“We are working on a campaign, which has been placed on the back burner for now,” Hall said. “Once the economy picks back up and starts to improve, we will reach out for funds. In the past, one of the largest ways we generated funds was th...
SAVANNAH, Ga. – As the nation faces concerns over COVID-19, Eric McCray realizes that the trucking community is the heartbeat of America, keeping the supply chain moving and store shelves stocked.
“Our drivers are essential workers,” said McCray, director of human resources for TCW Inc., a trucking company who consistently hauls from the Port of Savannah. “We make sure everything runs like it’s supposed to.”
McCray said precautions in place aim to make sure employees return safely home to their families. TCW and other trucking companies serving the Port of Savannah are transporting much-needed essentials such as medical supplies, food, and agricultural products day and night.
“At the Georgia Ports Authority, we can’t say enough to thank our trucking community for their effort and dedication to serving the needs of our state and the nation,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “Especially now, motor carriers are a vital link in the supply chain for frontline healthcare workers, and for the farmers who need to get their goods to market.”
In addition to adhering to social distancing guidelines and frequent hand washing, McCray said some of the most effective strategies to minimize possible exposure include wiping down trucks before and after each shift and providing mailboxes through which drivers electronically receive dispatches on provided tablets.
Having a safe working environment is also at the top of Crystal Foster’s list. Foster, a driver for the Hubach Group, makes frequent pick-ups and deliveries at Garden City Terminal.
Foster said she’s noticed the community is doing as instructed and stepping up to make sure everyone is protected.
Recent protocols included in Georgia Ports’ “Isolate and Operate” plan such as frequent cleaning of high-traffic areas and temporary suspension of biometric scanners have helped address drivers’ concerns.
“It just makes drivers feel more comfortable,” Foster said. “We are doing what we have to do in order to get our job done.”
McCray added that it’s important to let drivers working around the clock to ensure cargo fluidity know they’re appreciated. He also said his friends in the trucking community take great pride in what they do.
“We consider ourselves fortunate to have the opportunity to help and get through this thing,” McCray said.
[Photo courtesy of Georgia Ports Authority]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published an article to help over-the-road truck drivers stay healthy and help prevent the spread of COVID-19. The article, titled “What Long-haul Truck Drivers Need to Know about COVID-19,” appears below.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness caused by a virus called SARS-CoV-2. Symptoms often include cough, shortness of breath, fever, chills, muscle pain, sore throat, or new loss of taste or smell. Our understanding of how the virus spreads is evolving as we learn more about it, so check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 prevention page for the latest information. The virus is thought to spread mainly from person to person:
Between people who are in close contact with one another (about 6 feet), and
Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks.
Recent studies indicate that the virus can be spread by people who are not showing symptoms. It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose or possibly their eyes. This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, but we are still learning more about this virus. Older adults and people of any age who have serious underlying medical conditions may be at higher risk for more serious complications from COVID-19.
As a long-haul truck driver, how can I protect myself and slow the spread?
As a long-haul truck driver, you spend many hours alone in the cab of your truck. However, there are times when you will be at increased risk of exposure to COVID-19. For long-haul truck drivers, potential sources of exposure include having close contact with truck stop attendants, store workers, dock workers, other truck drivers or others with COVID-19, and touching your nose, mouth or eyes after contacting surfaces touched or handled by a person with COVID-19.
Notify your supervisor and stay home if having symptoms.
Make a plan with your employer and your family as to what to do if you become sick while you’re on the road. Include where to stop, where and how to seek medical advice and treatment, and plans for freight delivery.
Follow CDC-recommended steps if you are sick. You should not return to work until the criteria to discontinue home isolation are met, in consultation with health care providers and state and local health departments.
Follow CDC recommended precautions and notify your supervisor if you are well but have a sick family member at home with COVID-19.
Limit close contact with others by maintaining a distance of at least 6 feet when possible.
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- Limit time spent outside of the truck cab during fueling, loading and unloading, and at rest and truck stops.
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Use paperless electronic invoicing for fueling, deliveries and other tasks, when available.
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Contact facilities in advance to make an appointment for unloading of cargo. Be aware that some facilities may not grant access to restrooms, and plan as best you can.
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Use radio/phone to talk with dock managers or other drivers, if possible.
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Pack food, water and supplies to limit the number of stops.
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Avoid shaking hands.
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Keep your truck well ventilated.
CDC recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social-distancing measures are difficult to maintain, especially in areas of significant community-based transmission. Cloth face coverings may prevent people who don’t know they have the virus from transmitting it to others. These face coverings are not surgical masks or respirators and are not appropriate substitutes for them in workplaces where masks or respirators are recommended or required.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces on a routine basis such as:
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- In the truck cab (driver-door handle, steering wheel, seat belt and buckle, arm and head rests, seat cover, turn signal, wiper contr...
The COVID-19 crisis isn’t the type of tunnel a nation enters with expectations of an ever-brightening light ahead. After all, an enemy with the ability to kill millions and destroy the global economy isn’t something a nation can look beyond. But in terms of the trucking industry and its executives, drivers and support personnel, history may view the current crisis as a turning point. 2020 could go down as the year truck drivers attained a status similar to what first responders received after 9/11 — heroes, or at least doers of heroic deeds.
The shift in public opinion has been a long time coming. Not since the 1970s, when public opinion of truckers was based more on myth than reality, have truck drivers been as popular as they are today. Crisis situations tend to pull the veil from decades of misconceptions and negative publicity.
Public-opinion surveys as recent as last October deemed tractor-trailers and their drivers as menaces of highways. But as the COVID-19 crisis spread, anecdotal evidence sprung up signaling a change of opinion. The vital role the trucking industry plays in the nation’s economy shone brightly, and Americans have recognized it. Billboards offering thanks to truckers have popped up along interstates and highways, and testaments of drivers being personally thanked by strangers are numerous. Small businesses are even making special efforts to ensure drivers have what they need to keep them safe as they make the deliveries that will help save the economy.
An early April White House ceremony sang the praises of truck drivers. President Trump stated that “America’s truck drivers are the foot soldiers carrying us to victory,” a reference to the many drivers working seven days a week to complete deliveries of essential freight.
Ultimately, if the trucking industry is truly to be thanked for its efforts, the evidence may first be seen in the legal system, where juries have increasingly returned “nuclear” verdicts against the industry.
Americans aren’t known for their sympathies for insurance companies. After all, dealing with an insurance company can bring 10 times the aggravation of being involved in a car accident. When the insurer does meet its obligations, it frequently sends its “thank you” in the form of a skyrocketing premium or outright cancellation of a policy. Insurance companies are not blameless in the high costs of driving a vehicle, and they share the blame for the crippling premiums truck drivers and carriers pay to fulfill their “heroic” roles. Still, insurance companies increase premiums to remain viable, cover costs and turn a profit.
Maintaining the benefits insurers once provided for their customers became more difficult when personal-injury lawyers factored into the equation. Their ability to convince juries to return “nuclear” verdicts against the trucking industry played no small role in building the negative public opinion of the trucking industry in recent decades.
The hundreds of personal-injury lawyer billboards lining the roadways of any large American city are hard to miss. For every billboard thanking truck drivers, a hundred continue to encourage motorists to speed to the nearest law firm if they have even a minor run-in with a tractor-trailer.
The personal-injury attorneys specializing in incidents involving trucks on the highways are masters at twisting information and statistics to convince motorists and juries that trucks are the bane of highway traffic. Take for instance the statistics involving rear-end collisions. When a rear-end collision happens, fault is seldom placed on the leading vehicle or its driver. After all, it’s a matter of following distance. If the proper distance is maintained, the trailing vehicle’s driver will be able to stop before hitting the lead vehicle. The basic safety measure is as sure as the law of gravity, and every state has traffic laws against “following too close.”
A personal-injury attorney is skilled at convincing a jury...
LISLE, Ill. — International Truck, Triumph Business Capital and TriumphPay have collaborated to purchase and distribute more than $75,000 of personal protective equipment to truckers in need.
“While large fleets have a solid distribution network to provide protection to their drivers, many drivers for smaller fleets and independent drivers, like myself, are on our own,” said Ingrid Brown, principal for Rollin’ B LLC and a company driver for Fleenor Brothers Enterprises LTD.
“Hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes and masks are hard to come by these days,” Brown continued. “International Truck, Triumph Business Capital and TriumphPay doing this provides a great comfort. I can protect myself, assist in slowing the spread of this virus and still do my job.”
A truck driver for more than four decades and an advocate for the millions of truck drivers on the road, Brown has publicly shared the realities of life on the road during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Truck drivers are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, regularly coming into contact with people as they deliver critical supplies across the country,” said Jordan Graft, president of TriumphPay. “We were compelled to take action after reading about Ingrid’s troubles sourcing PPE and purchased $25,000 worth of supplies. Thanks to International Truck, we are not only able to get these goods into the hands of drivers who need it most but are also able to add to the total amount of PPE supplied.”
International Truck, Triumph Business Capital and TriumphPay have each purchased $25,000 of critical personal protective equipment to be distributed through select International Truck dealerships in the U.S. and Canada. Utilizing Navistar’s North American commercial-parts distribution network to ship the items, participating dealerships are collectively equipped with more than 6,500 masks and 6,000 eight-ounce bottles of hand sanitizer to share with drivers as they come in for service. Personal protective equipment will be distributed at these dealerships while supplies last, complete with personalized thank-you cards from International Truck employees and their families.
“Masks and disinfectants are still sparse at stores, making it difficult for drivers to protect themselves,” said Michael Cancelliere, president of Truck at Navistar. “We’re fortunate to partner with Triumph Business Capital and TriumphPay to make it easier for drivers to obtain necessary PPE in a location that’s safe for them, their vehicle and load. This is just another way we are able to show our customers and the industry that International cares and we’re with you for the long haul.”
WASHINGTON — In January, U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao called on the nation’s transportation industry to “put the brakes on human trafficking.” Chao asked for 100 pledges, within a 100-day period, from industry organizations to train employees to fight the crime of human trafficking and help raise public awareness of the growing problem.
Today (May 7), the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced that more than 200 transportation industry leaders have answered Chao’s call to help fight human trafficking. That number is more than double USDOT’s initial commitment to seek out “100 Pledges in 100 Days” from transportation, labor and non-governmental organizations across the country. The signatories represent leaders across all modes of transportation, in addition to leaders of organizations that intersect with transportation, who have committed to raising public awareness regarding human trafficking and to training more than one million employees to help fight the crime.
“Over 200 transportation organizations — double the original goal — are joining the department to ensure that America’s transportation systems are not hijacked to facilitate human trafficking. These companies are on the frontlines of helping to ensure the safety of our traveling public,” Chao said in a video statement. Click here to view Chao’s message.
In late January, Chao announced a series of efforts to combat human trafficking in the transportation sector. Among those efforts, she called upon transportation leaders to take a public stand against human trafficking by signing USDOT’s “Transportation Leaders Against Human Trafficking” pledge. To date, more than 450 transportation industry leaders have signed onto the pledge, and the USDOT continues to invite additional transportation leaders to join the effort. To see a full list of signatories, click here.
Human trafficking is modern-day slavery, affecting nearly 25 million adults and children in the U.S. and worldwide. Victims are of every age, race, gender, background, citizenship and immigration status. Some are trafficked within their own communities, while others are transported to new locations using America’s roadways, airways, railways, and waterways.
In addition to US DOT’s commitment to prevent human trafficking, Chao established an annual $50,000 “Combating Human Trafficking in Transportation Impact Award” to provide added incentive for individuals and entities to think creatively in developing innovative solutions to combat human trafficking in the transportation industry. USDOT received applications from organizations across the private sector as well as state and local government organizations. Chao said she is pleased to announce the United Against Slavery’s (UAS) National Outreach Survey for Transportation as the first-ever recipient of this award.
UAS proposed a national counter-trafficking survey of up to 15,000 respondents, with the results made available to the public. This effort could either expand upon a current UAS flight-attendant survey to include other public-facing aviation employees or be conducted within another mode of transportation.
Busing on the Lookout, a program of Truckers Against Trafficking, earned second place for its proposal targeting human-trafficking loopholes that exist between buses and casinos. ArtWorks for Freedom earned third place for Airports to Freedom, a proposal to install a multimedia counter-trafficking educational kiosk in up to nine airports to educate and engage the aviation industry and traveling public.
To support the USDOT’s countertrafficking efforts, the USDOT Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking completed a report in July 2019 that recommends actions the USDOT can take to help combat human trafficking, along with best practices for states and local transportation stakeholders. For information about the Trump administration’s efforts to fight human trafficking, click here.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores is now serving customers in Smiths Station, Alabama, and Walnut, Mississippi, thanks to two travel stops that opened Thursday, May 7. The Smiths Station store, located off U.S. Highway 280, adds 50 jobs and 51 truck parking spaces to Lee County. The Walnut store, located off U.S. Highway 72, adds 32 jobs and 58 truck parking spaces to Tippah County.
Both locations are open 24/7 and offer many amenities, including:
Smiths Station, Alabama
More than 11,000 square feet.
Chester’s Chicken and Godfather’s Pizza.
51 truck parking spaces.
60 car parking spaces.
Three RV parking spaces.
Six diesel bays.
Six showers.
Laundry facilities.
Bean-to-cup gourmet coffee.
Brand-name snacks.
Fresh Kitchen concept.
Mobile to Go Zone with the latest electronics.
CAT scale.
Dog park.
Walnut, Mississippi
More than 7,300 square feet.
Godfather’s Pizza.
58 truck parking spaces.
55 car parking spaces.
Two RV parking spaces.
Five diesel bays.
Four showers.
Laundry facilities.
Bean-to-cup gourmet coffee.
Brand-name snacks.
Fresh Kitchen concept.
Mobile to Go Zone with the latest electronics.
CAT scale.
Dog park.
“Love’s is proud to open two new locations for our customers in the south,” said Tom Love, founder and executive chairman of Love’s. “Opening our 15th and 16th locations in Alabama and Mississippi, respectively, means giving more customers the products and amenities they love to help get them back on the road quicker.”
In honor of the grand opening, Love’s will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony at each location and donate $2,000 split between the Phenix City and Lee County Board of Education in Smiths Station and $2,000 to an organization that will be named soon in Walnut.
Visit for updates regarding temporary changes to the company’s operations.
PHOENIX — PrePass Safety Alliance has announced that its PrePass MOTION app will now integrate with Geotab. This integration will give qualified motor carriers an additional option to expand bypass opportunities and help improve fleet safety and efficiency.
The PrePass MOTION app uses a cellular connection to provide carriers with weigh station bypassing and in-vehicle driver safety alerts. Drivers will receive alerts indicating work zones ahead, gusty wind areas, steep grades and no-commercial-vehicle roads, among others.
“Geotab is committed to providing fleet owners and managers with customizable solutions that help address the specific needs of their fleet. As such, we are proud to provide companies like PrePass Safety Alliance with the flexibility to integrate with our open APIs to create customizable and high-class solutions,” said Scott Sutarik, vice president of commercial motor vehicles at Geotab. “With an open platform approach, Geotab is helping to enable current and future partners to access our robust and dynamic ecosystem around the globe.”
With more than 40 billion data points each day, Geotab provides customers with the tools needed to monitor and optimize vehicle efficiencies, including fuel consumption, engine data, driver productivity and safety, and hours of service. Geotab’s open platform enables customers to customize their data to meet the needs of their operations by allowing users to select and introduce new features to their fleet, including the PrePass MOTION app.
“The integration of PrePass MOTION for Geotab customers provides seamless access to bypass and safety alerts through the Geotab Drive application,” said Mark Doughty, president and CEO of PrePass Safety Alliance. “We are excited to offer this integration and help more carriers save time and fuel, while improving highway safety.”
For more information, visit
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — To help the public show appreciation to the trucking industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Illinois Department of Transportation will coordinate with groups that want to provide free food to truckers. Events that meet and follow specific safety requirements will be held at select IDOT weigh stations throughout the state.
“We are proud to offer our assistance in saying thank you to truckers and giving them some encouragement in their travels,” said Omer Osman, the state’s acting transportation secretary. “All of us owe these men and women our gratitude for keeping the nation’s supply chain moving, making sure food is winding up in our homes, and getting medical supplies and equipment to the people that need them most.”
The events will be held only at weigh stations, with a maximum time limit of three hours for each event. Illinois Department of Public Health criteria for handling food and other safety guidelines, which can be viewed by clicking here, must be followed at all times. Events will not be held at rest areas.
Scheduling will be coordinated by IDOT and the Illinois State Police. Requests by organizations wishing to distribute food must be received at least five days in advance. The following weigh stations will be available between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays:
Interstate 55 southbound at Williamsville in Sangamon County;
Interstate 57 northbound and southbound at Marion in Williamson County;
Interstate 64 eastbound at O’Fallon in St. Clair County;
Interstate 70 westbound at Marshall in Marshall County;
Interstate 74 eastbound and westbound at Moline in Henry County;
Interstate 80 eastbound and westbound at East Moline in Rock Island County; and
Interstate 70 eastbound at Brownstown in Fayette County.
For more information or to schedule a group’s involvement, contact Keith Donovan, weight enforcement engineer, at keith.donovan@illinois.gov or 217-299-0934.
Photo courtesy of the Illinois Department of Transportation.
DALLAS — A new partnership between the Trucker Path app and Motel 6 is designed to help professional drivers easily find safe, affordable lodging while on the road. According to a May 4 press release, the Trucker Path app, which helps drivers find truck stops and available parking, will now also point drivers to the nearest Motel 6. This partnership is Trucker Path’s first with a hospitality provider.
The release notes that truck drivers are “keeping the lights on” for America as they haul essential goods during the COVID-19 pandemic, echoing Motel 6’s well-known tagline: “We’ll leave the lights on for you.”
Motel 6 has nearly 1,400 locations in the U.S, and Canada. Since the onset of the global health crisis, the lodging chain has launched enhanced protection protocols for guests and team members, including social distancing and increased cleaning frequency for common areas, so drivers can feel safe no matter where they stop along the road.
“At Motel 6, we are committed to leaving the light on for drivers who are bravely continuing on their routes, bringing much needed medical supplies, food and goods to communities across the U.S.,” said Rob Palleschi, CEO at Motel 6. “These heroes are putting their own safety on the line to keep America moving, and we are pleased to work with Trucker Path to easily pinpoint our locations for drivers so they can take a break and get the rest they need.”
To locate accommodations while on the road, users can download the Trucker Path app and then make reservations at Motel 6 locations directly through the app.
“Trucker Path is excited to partner with Motel 6 to say thank you to all truckers and help provide convenient access to an economical and clean place to rest their heads so that they can get back on the road safely,” said Joe Chen, CEO at Trucker Path.
COLUMBUS, Ind. — Preliminary North American Class 8 net orders in April fell to 4,100 units, down 46% from March and 72% lower than an easy year-ago comparison, according to information released May 5 by ACT Research. Complete industry data for April, including final order numbers, will be published in mid-May.
“April represents the first full month of COVID-19 impacts on the trucking industry, and given broadly halted economic output leading to a sharp drop in freight volumes and rates, as well as more empty miles from fragmented supply chains further impacting carriers’ profitability, a negative order number was within the realm of possibilities,” said Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst for ACT Research.
“We suspect that, as was the case in March, instead of canceling, order holders are content to move orders from close-in to later build dates, as they analyze the ongoing COVID impact,” he said. “From a seasonal perspective, April is a relative neutral Class 8 order month, and as such, seasonal adjustments adds little to actual data. On that basis, April was the weakest Class 8 order month since September of 1995, which actually produced a negative net order number.”
ACT’s State of the Industry: Classes 5-8 Vehicles report provides a monthly look at the current production, sales and general state of the on-road heavy- and medium-duty commercial-vehicle markets in North America. It differentiates market indicators by Class 5, Classes 6-7 chassis, and Class 8 trucks and tractors, detailing activity-related measures such as backlog, build, inventory, new orders, cancellations, net orders and retail sales. Additionally, Class 5 and Classes 6-7 are segmented by trucks, buses, RVs, and step van configurations. The Class 8 market is segmented into trucks and tractors, with and without sleeper cabs. The report includes a six-month industry build plan, a backlog timing analysis, historical data from 1996 to the present in spreadsheet format, and more. A first look at preliminary net orders is also published in conjunction with the report.
Day 5 of the owner-operator protest dawned in Washington on May 5, with rain on the way. That won’t be enough to deter protesters, who have resolved to remain in place on Constitution Avenue until they get their meeting at the White House.
“I’m full of energy and ready to keep going,” said protester Janet Sanchez in an exclusive interview with The Trucker. “I came here to get a job done, and I’m staying until it’s finished.”
In another interview, Jeremy Johnson, another member of the protest, said, “We’re standing strong.”
Both Johnson and Sanchez are administrators and members of The Disrespected Trucker group on Facebook. The group, started in late July 2019, currently boasts more than 7,000 members. Many of those members joined the group in the past two weeks as the current protest unfolded.
The protest continues to grow.
“We had another six or seven more trucks join us today, and there are more on the way,” Sanchez said. “We’re not leaving until we get our meeting.”
Protests involving large numbers of trucks are often at odds with the local population and government. That isn’t happening here, and protesters say they are surprised at the local support they have received.
“Right here, where we are, the police, the Secret Service, the park police — they’ve all been nothing short of supportive,” Johnson said. “At noon they come in with 15 pizzas and another 20 at suppertime. We ask who is sending them, and it’s always ‘concerned citizens of Washington D.C.’”
Sanchez agreed.
“They’re great! We have police officers that come by and have dinner with us,” she explained, adding that even some of the local motorists are getting involved. “Some of the motorists are making ‘#MakeTruckingGreat’ signs and putting them on their cars; then they honk as they go by.”
Protest participants are working hard to keep relations good, Johnson said.
“You walk up and down the street past all of these trucks, and you don’t see a piece of trash anywhere,” he said.” We’re doing our best to protest peacefully, within the law.”
The protest has achieved results. So far, the White House has acknowledged the group’s presence with the gift of a bag full of hats. Names have been recorded for the process of security clearance for a potential meeting. And President Trump himself thrilled participants with a Saturday-night tweet that began, “I’m with the TRUCKERS all the way.”
However, the demonstrators are looking for more than attention from government or media. Being noticed is a first step, but action must follow. They want a meeting with the president, or at least with members of his administration who will hear their complaints.
One of the first questions that must be answered if a meeting is granted is who will go to the meeting.
“I’m on the list, but obviously, all of us can’t go to the White House,” Sanchez said.
Johnson was a little more specific.
“Janet Sanchez will definitely go,” he said. “Either me or Shawn (McIntosh, another member of The Disrespected Trucker), if we get the chance. And Mike Landis, CEO of the U.S. Transportation Alliance.”
Johnson understands that the size of the delegation is important, too.
“We have to be careful who goes,” he said. “Everyone has to pass a background check, and we don’t want the meeting to turn into a three-ring circus.”
Once it is determined who will attend the meeting, if it happens, the question of what issues will be presented is critical to the cause. It’s also where Sanchez and Johnson differ — for now.
“You can’t just walk in and demand regulation of brokers. What happens when someone else wants to regulate how much truckers are paid?” said Johnson, adding that that hours-of-service (HOS) reform is No. 1 on his list.
“They lifted the HOS restrictions because we (truckers) were deemed ‘essential’ during the COVID-19 crisis,” he explained. “News flash: We’re essential 365 days of the year.”
Johnson also thinks too many regulations are put in place without c...
ATLANTA — The nation’s truckers provide vital resources during COVID-19 pandemic but the crisis has still had a negative impact on the industry as a whole, according to a report released today (May 5) by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA).
According to the report, the global crisis has affected all aspects of trucking operations, including deliveries, travel times, detention and truck parking. The report also provides recommendations and guidance on future strategies should another national disaster strike.
“The trucking industry has weathered national disasters in the past and is doing so again through the current COVID crisis,” said Rebecca Brewster, ATRI president and COO. “However, this latest data quantifies the challenges motor carriers and drivers are facing during this pandemic to keep essential goods moving.”
Key findings of the joint research effort include:
Long-haul trips are down considerably as container imports at ports dried up. At the same time, local trips under 100 miles increased by more than 100%.
While certain segments of the industry, such as medical devices, perishable foods and paper products, saw solid COVID-19-related increases in truck traffic, nearly 50% of respondents described freight levels as “somewhat” to “much” lower due to COVID-19.
Nearly 70% of specialized and tank truck operations were negatively impacted. In nearly every instance, smaller fleets reported greater negative impacts than larger fleets.
More than 40% of respondents said truck parking was not any worse due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but categorized by fleet size, the larger fleets did describe truck parking as more difficult to find during the pandemic.
The research confirmed that driver detention generally did not change due to COVID-19; however, owner-operators and small fleets experienced much worse detention delays relative to larger fleets.
In terms of disaster planning, almost 80% of owner-operators and small fleets do not have any plan in place for managing operations during natural disasters.
The trucking industry generally has a favorable attitude towards state and federal responses, policies and programs set up to address the pandemic, with the federal response viewed as more favorable than the state responses.
“This research puts solid numbers to what we otherwise only suspected,” said Andrew King, research analyst for OOIDA. “While we may be turning the corner on the COVID pandemic, we’re not out of the economic woods yet.”
To download the full report, click here.
BATON ROUGE, La. — The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) has extended the weight-limit waiver for commercial trucks assisting in COVID-19 relief efforts through May 31 or the end of the statewide stay-at-home order. The waiver allows commercial vehicles traveling on the state’s public highways to have a gross weight of 88,000 pounds.
Shawn Wilson, secretary of the state’s DOTD, announced the extension of the waiver on April 30, citing the continued spread of COVID-19 cases in Louisiana. According to the Louisiana Department of Health, at the time of this writing, the state has a total of 29,673 reported cases and 1,991 deaths related to COVID-19.
Commercial truck drivers should be aware that the weight exemption does not apply to bridges and other structures that have posted weight limits. In addition, the waiver does not apply to commercial vehicles that are not operating in support of COVID-19 support efforts or to vehicles traveling on interstate highways or non-state-maintained highways. To view the waiver extension, click here.
On a news-filled day when protests erupted across the country to protest COVID-19 “shelter in place” restrictions, about 100 independent owner-operators accomplished something that other protesters routinely fail to do. They got the direct attention of a sitting U.S. president.
At 9:42 p.m. on Sunday, May 3, President Donald Trump tweeted, “I’m with the TRUCKERS all the way. Thanks for the meeting at the White House with my representatives from the Administration. It is all going to work out well!”
Earlier in the day, White House representatives showed up at the demonstration site bearing gifts — a cloth bag emblazoned with the presidential seal and filled with hats bearing the messages “USA Strong” and “Keep America Great.” The Trump tweet was the first official public acknowledgement from the government of awareness of the “mayday” protest that began May 1.
The ruckus attracted the attention of 160,000-member OOIDA (Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association), which weighed in on Saturday with an informational letter from Lewie Pugh, the association’s executive vice president, to its membership that acknowledged historically low freight rates and provided a link to report broker abuse.
Social media erupted with responses to the protest. Some people were jubilant at the movement’s success in attracting the attention of The Washington Post and other media outlets, culminating with a tweet from Trump himself.
Others cautioned that the attention was only a first step and that the issue that could take more time, and more protest, to resolve.
Still others cautioned participants to be careful what they wish for. Mark Rasmussen commented on The Trucker’s website, “I want to be an owner-operator and own my own business, but I want the government to take care of me. You can’t have it both ways.”
A common sentiment expressed was that owner-operators who haul cheap freight are helping keep rates low for everyone. Brandon Montgomery, who posted that he’s been parked for seven weeks now, said, “If you haul cheap freight YOU are the problem. PARK THOSE RIGS.”
The issue facing protest organizers and participants now is what they’ll do with the newfound attention, especially if, as expected, the result is a meeting with Trump himself — or at least with administration officials.
The protest has been centered around low freight rates, but opinions diverge quickly from there. Should organizers ask for federal regulation of brokers with, perhaps, a mandated percentage of revenue brokers are allowed to keep? And, if so, what is a reasonable percentage?
Another potential avenue is increased transparency. Brokers are already required to provide rate information to every party that participates in each load. Truckers are entitled to know how much the broker was paid by the shipper, any additional services the broker provided and more. All that is required is that the owner-operator ask for the information. The majority of owner-operators believe, however, that asking for this information will result in being “blacklisted” by that broker and being unable to conduct further business.
A federal mandate that brokers must provide this information at the time of settlement with the trucker wouldn’t necessarily increase the percentage of revenue to the carrier, but it would increase broker transparency by eliminating the trucker’s responsibility to request it. Broker retribution would also be greatly reduced, since they would be providing the information to every carrier they contract with.
OOIDA expressed support for this position April 28 when Norita Taylor, media spokesperson for the group, told The Trucker that OOIDA would like to require brokers to provide electronic records as soon as a haul is complete.
A meeting with the Trump administration might be an opportune time to discuss financial assistance for owner-operators, too. As self-employed business owners, most don’t qualify for unemployment benefits in their hom...
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Pilot Co., which operates Pilot and Flying J travel centers, has rebranded its commercial-fleet credit card and rewards program. The new Axle Fuel Card promises quick credit approvals and enhanced payment terms, money-back rewards, and loyalty benefits for fleet drivers.
“In the current environment, trucking companies and their drivers are facing unprecedented challenges as they work incredibly hard to supply our country. The majority of goods that we rely on every day are transported by truck, and we are committed to doing everything we can to keep them moving,” said Jimmy Haslam, CEO of Pilot Co. “Through the new Axle Fuel Card, we’re able to extend much-needed credit to the industry with added rewards for fleets and professional drivers. Our goal is to provide fleets of all sizes with a reliable credit solution that fuels their business and enables them to focus on the road ahead.”
The Axle Fuel Card is accepted at more than 950 locations in the U.S. and Canada, including Pilot and Flying J travel centers, the One9 Fuel Network and Pilot Flying J Truck Care Service Centers. The card can be used for fuel purchases, truck care services and select truck merchandise, as determined by each fleet.
Pilot Co. says the Axle Fuel Card has no transaction, account management, annual or other hidden fees and that money-back rewards earned go toward fuel purchases. In addition, users have access to an enhanced online account portal.
Drivers using the Axle Fuel Card will earn one bonus loyalty point per gallon at Pilot and Flying J locations and two bonus loyalty points per gallon at One9 Fuel Network locations. In addition, cardholders can receive savings at Pilot Flying J Truck care centers, including $30 off any tire or service and 10% off the service center’s hourly rate, and there is no callout fee for roadside service.
For more information, visit pilotflyingj.com/axle-fuel-card.
WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Administration announced Friday (May 1) that the agency has launched its Crash Preventability Determination Program (CPDP), giving motor carriers to improve their CSA (compliance, safety, accountability) scores. Under the program, motor carriers may submit a request for data review for eligible crashes that occurred on or after Aug. 1, 2019. Those requesting data review must also provide the police accident report, along with supporting documents, photos or videos, through the DataQs website.
The CPDP stems from the Crash Preventability Demonstration Program the FMCSA started in July 2017, which proposed to evaluate the preventability of eight categories of crashes through submissions of Requests for Data Review to its national data-correction system (DataQs).
On Aug. 5, 2019, based on experiences with the demonstration program, FMCSA proposed a new CPDP with a streamlined process. Based on comments received in response to the August 2019 proposal, FMCSA established the CPDP, which expands the types of eligible crashes, modifies the Safety Measurement System to exclude crashes with “not preventable” determinations from the prioritization algorithm, and notes “not preventable” determinations in the Pre-Employment Screening Program.
The following crash types are eligible for participation in the program:
Struck in the rear type of crash when the commercial motor vehicle (CMV) was struck:
In the rear; or
On the side at the rear.
Wrong direction or illegal turns type of crash when the CMV was struck:
By a motorist driving in the wrong direction; or
By another motorist in a crash when a driver was operating in the wrong direction; or
By a vehicle that was making a U-turn or illegal turn.
Parked or legally stopped type of crash when the CMV was struck:
While legally stopped at a traffic-control device (e.g., stop sign, red light or yield); or while parked, including while the vehicle was unattended.
Failure of the other vehicle to stop type of crash when the CMV was struck:
By a vehicle that did not stop or slow in traffic; or
By a vehicle that failed to stop at a traffic control device.
Under the influence type of crash when the CMV was struck:
By an individual under the influence (or related violation, such as operating while intoxicated), according to the legal standard of the jurisdiction where the crash occurred; or
By another motorist in a crash where an individual was under the influence (or related violation such as operating while intoxicated), according to the legal standard of the jurisdiction where the crash occurred.
Medical issues, falling asleep or distracted driving type of crash when the CMV was struck:
By a driver who experienced a medical issue which contributed to the crash; or
By a driver who admitted falling asleep or admitted distracted driving (e.g., cellphone, GPS, passengers, other).
Cargo/equipment/debris or infrastructure failure type of crash when the CMV:
Was struck by cargo, equipment or debris (e.g., fallen rock, fallen trees, unidentifiable items in the road); or crash was a result of an infrastructure failure.
Animal strike type of crash when the CMV:
Struck an animal.
Suicide type of crash when the CMV:
Struck an individual committing or attempting to commit suicide.
Rare or unusual type of crash when the CMV:
Was involved in a crash type that seldom occurs and does not meet another eligible crash type (e.g., being struck by an airplane or skydiver or being struck by a deceased driver).
For more information about and links to resources for the FMCSA’s Crash Preventability Determination program, click here.
Image courtesy of FMCSA.
NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — Independent musician and truck driver Tony Justice has been selected as the second person to be inducted into the inaugural class of the Howes Hall of Fame for 2020.
“It is just a huge honor,” Justice said. “Something I never would have dreamed about or thought about. It brings a positive light on the industry that we have gathered that much support. It is a really big honor.”
According to a press release from Howes, Justice has sold more than 100,000 albums in the past nine years — in addition to averaging more than 2,500 miles per week as a professional truck driver for the past 20 years. Justice said a lot of his inspiration for his music has come from being on the road.
“I probably do 90 percent of my writing on the road, because I spend a lot of hours on the road,” Justice said. “You see a lot of good things and good people driving across America and crossing the Rocky Mountains. There is so much to see out there. There is a lot inspiration.”
When Justice is not on the road, he is recording his music. He is currently working on his fifth album for the independent label he owns. He said trying to juggle trucking and music can be pretty challenging at times.
“I’ve been writing songs and playing music since 1991. I enjoy the creativity side of it such as the writing and putting the stories out there of what we go through on the road,” he said. “We started putting music to it, and it was something I wanted to record. To watch it come to life is something I have really enjoyed, and the performing side of it is a lot of fun as well — those are the two highlights.”
Justice has performed all over the country, including venues in South Dakota; Louisville, Kentucky; Las Vegas; Texas; Atlanta; and Charlotte, North Carolina. He said he also played clubs for nine years on the east coast.
“We just felt like (Tony) was such an inspiration and ridiculously hard-working,” said Erika Howes, vice president of business development for Howes. “He makes music about the industry and he is hands-on with everything he does.
“He cares about people and he interacts with his fans, and listens to their story. He is a really down-to-earth guy, especially with his fellow drivers. He entertains and encourages people. He is so proud to represent America’s blue-collar working class,” she continued. “He embodies what we wanted to represent in the hall of fame.”
Justice is a company driver for Everhart Transport Inc. out of Greenville, Tennessee. He said he has been fortunate that a lot of the company’s customers are considered “necessities.”
“His songs are about this industry and what we represent,” Howes said. “He is hands-on with his own label. It is such a unique story that we found to be really interesting and inspiring.”
Justice has been around trucking his whole life. When he was growing up in eastern Kentucky, he said, his dad had three trucks. Justice and his siblings would service the trucks and wash them on the weekends. He said he can never remember a time where trucks were not a part of his life.
“I am still driving full time,” he said. “I like to tell people, ‘I haven’t quit my day job.’ I’m still putting up with it because I enjoy doing it. I have a great support group at home.”
Justice said that right now his biggest challenge is trying to take care of his mom, Sharon, and his wife, Misty. Misty had breast cancer last year but is currently in remission.
“My mom lives with me, and my biggest challenge is that I don’t bring anything (contagious) home,” Justice said. “I’m taking a lot of extra measures. We are used to going into stores and buying drinks or food, but now we have to get everything stocked in the truck and stay in my ‘bubble.’ I have to distance myself from things I normally do. It is a change from normal.”
The Howes Hall of Fame is part of the company’s 100th anniversary. According to a press release, the Hall of Fame “serves as a platform for Howes to thank and acknowledge...
SAN PEDRO, Calif. — On the other side of the country from Washington D.C., southern California truckers held a protest echoing the concerns of other owner-operators from coast to coast regarding low freight rates.
While the protests in Washington D.C. aimed to physically garner the attention of the federal government and the White House, one of the southern California event’s organizers, owner-operator Miguel Ramirez said this protest was a part of a nationwide effort to call attention the low rates truckers are being offered from brokers for hauling essential goods.
“We are joining a national movement, and it is taking place from the east coast to the west coast as we speak,” Rameriz said, noting that he feels the rating system that determines how much a load pays should be changed or at the very least, analyzed.
“We know it is not going to happen overnight, but we want a change in the pricing and ratings systems, and we just want to bring awareness to the general public,” Rameriz said.
Gio Marz, another of the event’s organizers, echoed the sentiment that the southern California protest aims to be a “peaceful, slow roll for unity.”
He said this legal and peaceful demonstration, which was assembled at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, California, will join another convoy coming from Fontana, California. The two groups combined have the potential to number more than 300 trucks, Marz said.
Additionally, Marz said he and the participants see this protest as a way to show they are standing in solidarity with other truckers across the country who have selected May Day (May 1, 2020) for their symbolic ‘mayday’ distress call.
“We want to bring awareness from politicians, to governors, to big corporations, to the everyday consumer,” Marz said. “If you have essential goods on your shelves at your house, it is because, most likely, the truckers brought it to you.”
The planned protest at the port drew more than 60 trucks that lined up, blew their air horns and began a slow drive to Los Angeles City Hall, where they will be joined by the second convoy.
Marz also noted that right now, truck drivers are risking their well-being to deliver goods throughout the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other event organizers, who delivered an address in a mixture of English and Spanish, said, “The place is here, and the time is now,” to recognize the importance of truck drivers and their efforts in carrying the nation through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s a risk. Every single time we leave our house, we are at risk,” Marz said. “We’re on the front lines, and we are not getting paid what we deserve. Eighty percent of the truck port drivers [here in LA] are owner-operators like myself. If the rates for the loads are coming down, it does not make sense for us to keep running our trucks businesswise. Today the mission is for us to just unite across the board as truckers and say ‘no’ to cheap freight.”
Marz said his message to brokers is to “stop being greedy,” but he also acknowledges that customers can deal directly with carriers instead of utilizing brokers, which would allow many owner-operators to eliminate another step in the logistics of the supply chain.
The group offered T-shirts commemorating the event for free in exchange for donations that will be used to help pay the fines of other drivers who have received citations during other freight-rate-related protests in the area.
PHOENIX — The Arizona Department of Transportation has extended higher weight limits for commercial trucks hauling critical supplies and goods.
In early April, in coordinating with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, the state’s DOT raised the gross weight limit for commercial vehicles to 90,000 pounds without the need for an overweight permit, up from the normal 80,000 pounds. That temporary measure was set to expire on April 30 but has been extended to the end of May.
“These temporary rules are helping ensure Arizona’s groceries, pharmacies and medical providers remain adequately supplied,” said John Halikowski, director of the Arizona DOT.
The temporary weight limits apply to commercial vehicles that are providing direct assistance to COVID-19 relief efforts as outlined in a federal emergency declaration issued in March. This includes, among other essential items, medical supplies related to the diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19, supplies necessary for community safety and preventing the spread of COVID-19, and food and household items for emergency restocking of stores.
Arizona DOT’s Enforcement and Compliance Division officers have implemented the new weight protocol at commercial ports of entry. Commercial vehicles will continue to be required to comply with state and federal regulations, and officers will continue to conduct safety inspections and issue permits as needed.
Ports of entry at state lines and international borders remain open and staffed by ADOT officers and other staff to screen commercial vehicles to ensure the safe flow of commodities and supplies while supporting federal guidelines to keep America’s commerce moving.
Photo courtesy of the Arizona Department of Transportation.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — NATSO, a national association that represents truck stops and travel plazas, has partnered with the International Franchise Association to provide truck drivers with information about available food options at truck stops and travel plazas across the U.S.
Because many state and local governments have restricted sit-down dining due to the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of restaurant franchises located within truck stops and travel centers have adapted to offer take-out and curbside delivery for truck drivers.
“NATSO and its members are committed to ensuring that the heroic truck drivers serving America during this national pandemic have access to as many food options as possible,” said Lisa Mullings, president and CEO of NATSO. “We are proud to feed the nation’s truck drivers, and through this partnership, truck drivers can more readily find food and meals in specific geographic areas.”
Travel centers remain committed to remaining open 24 hours a day to provide food, fuel, parking and the other essential amenities needed by professional drivers as long as state, local and federal governments permit them to do so.
“Franchise businesses represent some of America’s most loved and trusted brands,” said Robert Cresanti, president and CEO of the International Franchise Association. “America’s truckers are keeping our economy moving during COVID-19, and we’re excited to partner with NATSO to increase their access to meals while on the road.”
Restaurant franchises also remain dedicated to feeding travelers, especially essential truck drivers, during the current crisis.
“The COVID-19 pandemic, and its impact on the restaurant industry, has resulted in more limited options for fresh, hot meals for truck drivers. Chester’s is able to fill that void, and we are committed to serving fresh fried chicken and homestyle sides in our truck-stop and travel-plaza locations whenever possible,” said William Culpepper, vice president of Marketing at Chester’s, a restaurant franchise that specializes in fried chicken.
“During the COVID-19 crisis, we have worked hard and fast to support our operators by developing marketing assets uniquely suited to this new world where dining rooms are closed and purchasing behaviors are changing.” Culpepper continued.
To help alert drivers to the availability of prepared food, Chester’s locations have posted signs at truck stops and travel centers noting that the restaurant is “open for chicken” and that curbside pickup is available. In addition, the franchise is running a special promotion offering 10 chicken tenders for $10.
Kurt Kane, president, U.S. and chief commercial officer for The Wendy’s Co. expressed gratitude to the nation’s truck drivers.
“We are grateful for our nation’s truck drivers (and) believe that they are vital to our economy. They need access to food while on the road delivering critical supplies to hospitals, retailers, restaurants and other essential businesses,” he said. “Several weeks ago, Wendy’s introduced a new walk-up curbside ordering procedure to accommodate customers with oversized vehicles, like truck drivers and first responders, while many of our dining rooms are temporarily closed.”
A pop-up window in the Wendy’s mobile app notifies user of these options, making it easier for truckers and other drivers with oversized vehicles gain access to food.
For a listing of travel-center food options visit the NATSO website or the International Franchise Association website.
Today’s the day. May Day. Or “mayday,” as protest organizers who have adopted the well-known international radio distress signal, have labeled May 1, 2020.
Demonstrations have begun in Washington D.C. and in Chicago. In Washington, dozens of trucks are parked along Constitution Avenue, within view of the White House, blowing their air horns in unity with the cause. Reporters from several local television stations have covered the event, broadcasting coverage of the parked trucks and crescendo of air horns. Interviews with organizers and participants have been observed on sidewalks near the demonstration. Homemade banners proclaiming “Make trucking great again” hang from commercial motor vehicles, and American flags are everywhere.
In Chicago, more trucks gathered at a Northbrook truck stop in preparation for a Chicago protest.
Social-media venues have been flooded with photos, videos and comments supporting the demonstrating drivers.
Protests were also scheduled in Houston, Phoenix and Los Angeles. All three cities saw “slow roll” protests last week, and organizers have promised to return for today’s “mayday” demonstration.
Organizers are hoping to raise awareness of issues faced by small-business truckers, most of whom own their trucks. The most-expressed complaint is low freight rates, usually accompanied by complaints that brokers are paying truckers too little, keeping excessive amounts of the revenue paid to them by shippers.
Other complaints are that drivers don’t have access to masks, gloves and sanitizer despite being categorized as essential workers; that the government hasn’t done enough to ensure adequate available food and parking; and that government regulations, especially the requirement for Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs), are overbearing and counterproductive.
While it’s true that demonstrations can draw the attention of government, press and public, the publicity generated isn’t always positive. In some ways, these protests can harm the public’s perception of the protesters, in this case, truck drivers — and the trucking industry as a whole — at a time when help is needed.
Protests that interfere with traffic, either by blocking lanes or “slow rolling,” can incite public annoyance and anger. There are also safety issues to consider as motorists are impeded by the parade of protesting truckers.
Another issue is effectiveness. It seems that every year brings another protest or work stoppage that results in minimal actual change. Whether the public feels the issues faced by truckers this year are more serious than those in past years remains to be seen.
There’s also the argument that at least some of the protesting truckers are suffering pain that is, at least in part, self-inflicted. Often, small-business truckers treat settlement checks as personal pay rather than business revenue, living from check to check just as employees of businesses sometimes do. Trucking businesses that don’t set aside revenue for maintenance, repairs, taxes and other expenses are vulnerable no matter how large or small. It’s a sad reality that many drivers who work hard and are excellent drivers are not quite as skilled at managing their businesses. Many owner-operators are one major repair, accident or cargo claim away from insolvency.
Vehicle selection can be problematic too. Large carriers replace their trucks regularly, keeping a close eye on maintenance costs and replacing equipment as the costs are expected to rise. Owner-operators, for the most part, purchase used, older equipment that is less expensive to buy but more likely to suffer expensive mechanical problems. While the cost of repairs can hit the budget hard, the owner also loses revenue that could have been earned while the truck was in the shop, exacerbating the problem.
How the trucks are equipped also matters. Owner-operators often want bigger engines, heavier components, larger sleepers and more chrome — features that well-run carriers e...
JACKSON, Wyo. — The Wyoming Department of Transportation on April 30 approved the first food-truck vendor for operation at the state’s rest areas. G-Licious Catering of Cheyenne, Wyoming, is now offering burgers, sandwiches and breakfast foods at the Interstate 25 welcome center.
The move means commercial truck drivers and other motorists traveling along interstates 80 and 25 will more options for purchasing prepared food. The I-25 Welcome Center is close to the intersection of I-25 and Interstate 80.
Typically, WYDOT doesn’t allow food truck vendors or other businesses to sell items at the state’s rest areas. However, truck drivers and other motorists have found it difficult to buy food because restaurants have either closed or have restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, WYDOT decided to allow businesses to apply for a special-event permit to help feed travelers.
“We are pleased we are able to offer motorists this service at our rest areas,” said WYDOT Director K. Luke Reiner. “This service is for all motorists, but it is especially vital for our commercial truck drivers who are transporting critical supplies and food in our state and throughout our nation. Without those dedicated men and women, our nation would not be able to function.”
WYDOT’s special-event permit for food trucks requires vendors to follow certain guidelines. Vendors will provide trash cans and remove any trash daily, may be required to remediate any issues that impact WYDOT property and land, will need to supply other necessary documents, and will set up business at a specific location at a rest area.
Businesses that are interested in having their food-truck services at one of WYDOT’s rest areas are urged to contact department’s district offices for an application. A list of locations and office contact information can be found here.
SOCIAL HILL, Ark. — Truckers stopping at Arkansas’ Social Hill rest area along Interstate 40 received free protective masks Thursday, April 30. The masks were distributed by officers from the Arkansas Highway Police division of the Arkansas Department of Transportation.
“We have individuals from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the Arkansas Highway Police and the Arkansas Trucking Association all out here trying to get PPE (personal protective equipment) to commercial truck drivers, making sure that they have masks, hand sanitizer and things that they need to keep them healthy while they’re out working,” said Shannon Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association.
The Arkansas Highway Police received protective masks to distribute to truck drivers as part of a coordinated effort by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide one million masks to truckers around the nation.
“We’re part of a massive effort to issue right at one million masks to commercial truck drivers traveling the nation’s highways. Last Friday Arkansas Highway Police received 100,000 of the one million masks. We’ve started handing them out at all of our weigh station facilities as well as sites such as this rest area,” said Jay Thompson, chief of the Arkansas Highway Police. “We’ve issued probably close to 30,000 of them.”
Randy Ort, deputy director and chief operating officer for the Arkansas Department of Transportation, said mask-distribution efforts in the state will be ongoing.
“We’re handing out these masks at all weigh stations around the state,” he said. “We’re not really planning events. It’s about getting the truckers the masks that they need. I think as we’ve all learned through this event, it’s very important to keep our economy going. Yes, public health is extremely important, but it’s also important to keep the economy going. And one of the biggest parts to keeping the economy going is keeping commerce moving. We at ArDOT are very happy to be doing our part to keep that part of the economy going.”
In another effort to help the nation’s truck drivers as they deliver essential goods during the COVID-19 crisis, the state’s DOT granted permits to food-truck operators to provide food for truckers at some Arkansas rest areas.
“We are happy to be a part of this effort to support the commercial transportation industry in Arkansas,” said Lorie Tudor, director of the Arkansas Department of Transportation. “This emergency has truly opened the eyes of many about how important the role of a truck driver is to this country.”
The stories from owner-operators about low freight rates abound.
Tony Filla commented on The Trucker’s Facebook page, “The bottom dropped out. They’re (carrier customers) not shipping, so there went 60% of my long-distance freight out the window.”
Filla usually hauls rebar and other fabricated products on a flatbed trailer. Due to the reduction in loads, he’s now working in his carrier’s local fleet making shorter regional runs. Under normal operating conditions, he would use load boards to pick up a return load from a broker, but the rates are so low that he is deadheading back, adding that he is “surviving for now” and has no desire to haul freight for “free.”
Kevin Kocmich is doing a little better.
“I’m not going backwards,” he said. “Times are tough now, but my income hasn’t dropped too much.”
In March, Kocmich was named the 2019 Owner-Operator of the Year by the Truckload Carriers Association. He is leased to Diamond Transportation System (DTS), which assigns oversize loads received from its contract customers. Kocmich depends on brokers to supplement the loads he receives from DTS.
“Rates are down, but so is fuel, at least 25%,” Kocmich said.
His advice to struggling owner-operators is to know their costs of doing business.
“You gotta know the numbers of your business,” he said. “How can you protest when you don’t even know your own numbers?”
Kocmich isn’t planning to join any organized protests.
“I stay kind of neutral,” he said. “I agree on some stuff and disagree on some.”
He was clear about how protests should be conducted, however.
“I don’t think they should be slowing traffic and getting the police involved,” he stated.
Norita Taylor, media spokesperson for OOIDA, talked numbers, too.
“Know your cost of operations. Know your customers,” she said. “And, always, safety first.”
While Taylor did not express support for any particular protest, she was supportive of the rights of the participants.
“Our general take on any protest is that everybody has the right to legally protest,” she explained. “We wouldn’t support blocking roads and that sort of activity, but we support their right to protest so long as they do it legally and safely.”
OOIDA, Taylor explained, doesn’t take an official position on broker rates paid to carriers, but the organization does support brokers providing electronic records to owner-operators as soon as the haul is completed. The group also supports waiving both Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (HVUT) and Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) fees for 2020.
Jeff Hopper, vice president and chief marketing officer at DAT, recommended that owner-operators pay particular attention to rates.
“Rates are negotiated between broker or shipper and the carrier,” he said. “The best time to address rates is in the negotiation process.”
Hopper vehemently denied recent publicity that claimed DAT sets broker rates.
“DAT does not set rates. All rates are negotiated between the parties involved,” he said. “We believe the DAT load board is the largest public marketplace for loads in the country.”
That status as “the largest public marketplace” provides lots of data that can be useful.
“We use anonymized data to identify trends in rates, regional activity and other factors,” Hopper continued. “We use past data to report on what’s happening in the market currently and also to forecast what we think will happen in the future.”
Owner-operators and brokers who are subscribers to DAT can use the information found there, including summary reports produced by DAT, to determine average rates that they can then apply to their own loads. Hopper was clear, however.
“We do not take a percentage of revenue and we certainly don’t set rates,” he said.
Responding to suggestions that owner-operators cancel their subscriptions to DAT, Hopper said, “It’s everyone’s right to do so, but they’ll lose access to a lot of loads as well as information that helps them make good business decisions.”
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DALLAS – The 2020 Great America Trucking Show, which was scheduled for Aug. 27-29 and presented by Randall-Reilly, has been canceled according to a release on the show’s website.
“The same fears and uncertainties that have led entities as diverse as Facebook and Major League Baseball to cancel or severely curtail in-person events have informed a very difficult decision: Randall-Reilly is canceling the Great American Trucking Show, scheduled for Aug. 27-29, 2020. This decision has been made with the health and well-being of all participants first and foremost in mind,” the release said.
The release continued to say that the show’s presenters “will use the coming months to determine what form future events take and assess the safeguards needed to ensure your health.”
“This pandemic has underscored how critical the industry and drivers are to the well-being of America. The fleets, owner-operators and drivers are what’s kept the flow of food and other goods in stores and homes. We are thankful to you, proud of you and will keep you posted on what’s next for GATS so we can celebrate you at a future event,” according to the website.
Columbus, Ind. — In the release of its Commercial Vehicle Dealer Digest, ACT Research reported that the North American commercial-vehicle market, as well as the global economy, addressed the spiraling pandemic with shutdown announcements, but the report continued by preparing readers for the restarting phase to come.
The report, which combines ACT’s proprietary data analysis from a variety of industry sources, paints a comprehensive picture of trends impacting transportation and commercial-vehicle markets. This monthly report includes a relevant, high-level forecast summary, complete with transportation insights for use by commercial-vehicle dealer executives, reviewing top-level considerations such as for-hire indices, freight, heavy- and medium-duty segments, the total US trailer market, used-truck sales information and a review of the nation’s macro economy.
“There has been a level of incrementalism to date in shutdown announcements by state and manufacturing entities, and generally speaking, to date we have seen one and two-week extensions to the initial timing of planned shutdowns, with many ‘playing this by ear’,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “The immediate challenge, of course, is saving lives, but the next challenge is saving livelihoods, as the globe does not have the luxury of waiting a year or two for a , to be developed before the solution itself becomes the cause that risks lives.”
Vieth elaborated on the subject of restarting the nation’s economy, noting that “new layers of safety and testing protocols” will be needed “throughout an already complex supply chain, from the lowest to highest tiers and throughout the logistics and warehousing components, not just for new builds, but also for the aftermarket side of the business.”
“It is one thing for the automotive/commercial/off-road industries to get supply chains up and running; it is another entirely to get buyers to market when the economy has so recently cratered and going outside poses an existential risk,” he said.
Vieth concluded, “In a nutshell, the extent of the damage to the US economy will be directly proportional to the time it takes to bring the virus under control. Although no one really knows, with new COVID cases starting to level and vaccine trials underway, we hope that the herculean efforts of the past month or so have made a difference and life as we knew it can begin to return as the situation is de-risked.”
ACT Research has created a COVID-19 Market Watch web page to track noteworthy high frequency macroeconomic and transportation-specific market indicators.
COLUMBUS, Ind. — Used Class 8 same-dealer sales volumes saw just a 1% drop month over month in March, with longer term sales rising 5% year over year compared to March 2019 (12% year to date), according to the latest release of the State of the Industry: U.S. Classes 3-8 Used Trucks, published by ACT Research. The report also indicated that used Class 8 average price, miles and age in March were essentially unchanged compared to the previous month. Longer term, average price, miles and age all contracted year over year as well as year to date, down respectively from the first three months of 2019 by 15%, 1% and 7%.
The report provides data on the average selling price, miles, and age based on a sample of industry data. In addition, the report provides the average selling price for top-selling Class 8 models for each of the major truck OEMs — Freightliner (Daimler), Kenworth and Peterbilt (Paccar), International (Navistar), and Volvo and Mack (Volvo). This report is used by those throughout the industry, including commercial vehicle dealers, to gain a better understanding of the used-truck market, especially as it relates to changes in near-term performance.
Additionally, ACT Research has created a COVID-19 Market Watch web page to track noteworthy high-frequency macroeconomic and transportation-specific market indicators.
“Dealers are reporting that there are more trucks than buyers, which is not new news. This has kept downward pressure on prices, particularly for late model aerodynamic sleepers,” said Steve Tam, vice president at ACT Research.
“Some dealers are saying they just want to get rid of inventory and take their losses. Dealers had become accustomed to getting more money than what is normal for used trucks in 2018 and early 2019,” he added, “When trucks are overvalued, sellers can ask for higher pricing on their used trucks, as long as demand supports higher-than-normal prices. Unfortunately, when the market adjusts, taking big losses is the only solution. The good news for buyers in a falling used-truck market is that there are some very good bargains to be had.”
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — The generosity of the community has been overwhelming for one trucking company in Idaho.
“It took us by surprise,” said Whitney Polson, human-resource director for Super T Transport. “To see the outpouring of love and support for the drivers, and the outpouring from communities across the country, it has been a moving experience. This is hard for them too, and you don’t know until you are in the driver’s seat.”
Recently Super T Transport held a canned-food donation drive. While Polson said she couldn’t say exactly how much was donated, she said they received enough food to fill 22 boxes and give away 1,300 goodie bags to local drivers.
“That was all donations from the community,” she said. “All we had to do was organize it and put it in the care packages and distribute it to drivers at truck stops, just to give them something. There are some other drivers that are giving packages out as they were on the road.”
Polson said there were quite a few things donated during the event, including canned-food items such as soup, granola bars, fruit cups and cookies. In addition, the community contributed personal items such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoos and small bottles of hand sanitizer.
“There were all sorts of stuff donated,” she said. “It was very touching and heartwarming to see it come in and come in quickly.”
One of the challenges for drivers right now, Polson said, is finding places to stop and eat, as well finding shower and laundry facilities.
“It has become really difficult for them, but the community outreach has been wonderful,” she said. “The drivers are really appreciative. Some of them have taken pictures of their care packages and put little thank-you notes on Facebook.
“Everyone is doing what they can to help so our drivers can continue to work,” she continued. “They are very much needed and essential, so it is nice for them to be acknowledged and know they are appreciated.”
Polson said there was a “ton” of food donations, including a large pallet of instant potatoes and a full pallet of other food donations. Personal protective equipment has been tough to find because it is in such high demand, she said, adding that Northwest Cosmetics helped by donating about 14 liters of hand sanitizer.
“There are quite a few people that are making homemade masks, and we are trying to get these masks out,” Polson said. “And we purchased some hand sanitizers for our drivers, along with some protective gloves.
“What we are doing now is really focusing on PPE items and trying to get that out to drivers,” she said. “We need face masks and gloves and we need to get it to our drivers — that is our primary need. We should be getting some hand sanitizer soon and hope to get that out. These are necessities our drivers need to protect themselves on the road.”
For more information or to offer help in any capacity, contact Super T Trucking at 208-754-7553.