Confirmed: E-logs suck

[Duck]

Duck it is very simple. There are a very few things a government is supposed to do. As I have asked before give me a better alternative to fund, build, and enforce the use of public roads.

Yeah I know everyone gets tired of hearing it, but driving on public roads is not a right. I will defend with my life if necessary all of my rights. But you and I choose to participate in the use of these roads. No one is forcing you. Right now use of these roads in a commercial vehicle requires compliance to the HOS whether they make sense or not. That driver had several options he chose one that put him and others in danger.

All elogs do is track compliance. Nothing more, nothing less.

How was driving one mile "putting him & others in danger"?

You've been drinking the P.A.T.T. Kool-aid. They should put warning labels on that stuff:

Caution: May cause brain damage

It's not like he had been awake for 36 hours, ... it was just a few minutes after a predetermined amount of time, established by MORONS, had elapsed since he started driving that morning. Geez.

CALL OUT THE NATIONAL GUARD! THERE'S A TIRED TRUCK DRIVER ON THE LOOSE!!! GOD HELP US ALL! WON'T SOMEBODY PLEEEEEASE THINK OF THE CHILDREN?????



Funny thing is, ... he only had 2 hours left before he could legally drive again & he hadn't slept. So, the minute his e-log says he can drive again, would you say he's safer to drive than he was 2 hours earlier?


/shameless sarcasm

 

[Tazz]

Nope. I was referring to your description of his choice in parking spaces. He could have left earlier, he could have refused to move, he could have kept going and just logged a minor violation, hell he could have kept going and logged a major violation.

What he chose to do ( based on your description) IMO was dumb and reckless for both he and the people using that road. His actions and choices put him there.

 

[Whirlwind]

I would place some of the blame on the driver (at least, with the information I've been given.) He knew his clock was running out, and yet he apparantly didn't do anything about it.

Arrangements can be made. Trailers can be dropped at a dock while the driver bobtails out to take his break, then comes back to pick up the trailer. The driver can re-schedule the appointment. The driver can raise 50 kinds of hell to try to get unloaded more quickly.

When I was in elog class with a major mega-carrier, this is what I was told- call when you are stuck in a dock and are running low on hours. They will get you out of there before your clock runs out. One way or another. We were not to just wait for the customer to finish, then complain about having no choice but to drive illegally. It was incumbent upon the driver to keep the company informed of our situation so the company could take appropriate action on our behalf.

 

[Fancytrucker]

Had something similar happen the other day but was out of my control completely so I couldn't run at all. They refused for me to go into violation after talking on the phone with them multiple times as they tried to figure something out. They told me to sit put and had a tow truck tow me to a safe haven. Which was a terminal that was near but now stuck here. Waiting for our shop to put my drive shaft back in because the tow driver didn't when he dropped the truck.

 

[Duck]

Had something similar happen the other day but was out of my control completely so I couldn't run at all. They refused for me to go into violation after talking on the phone with them multiple times as they tried to figure something out. They told me to sit put and had a tow truck tow me to a safe haven. Which was a terminal that was near but now stuck here. Waiting for our shop to put my drive shaft back in because the tow driver didn't when he dropped the truck.

That's the most ridiculous waste of a tow bill I've ever heard of. And I bet you got bitched at over "poor planning" because you were unable to sprinkle some magic pixie dust & change reality to fit into the Kool-Aid induced fantasy land that apparently half the people posting in this thread seem to live in.

So who's paying that completely unnecessary tow bill?

 

[Rigjockey]

I have sat at a shipper and I am not even kidding 10 hours. When I called the company on my 12th hour i told them I need to get out of here, They will not let me park here. I still had not been loaded. They said get out of there, Go where ever you have to to be safe.

The next day i was loaded in under an hour. What a difference a day makes and also Balterm of Baltimore, MD. you suck!

 

[Fancytrucker]

That's the most ridiculous waste of a tow bill I've ever heard of. And I bet you got bitched at over "poor planning" because you were unable to sprinkle some magic pixie dust & change reality to fit into the Kool-Aid induced fantasy land that apparently half the people posting in this thread seem to live in.

So who's paying that completely unnecessary tow bill?

It was a waste, but they are paying it and they didn't bitch about it to me at all.
It wasn't my planning that went into play. I started the stupid e log early that morning to run but the truck ended up in the shop for 5 hours for regen problems. Headed to the dc with the skateboard thinking I wouldn't get a load for that day but they sprung one on me with 4 hours left to run. Grabbed the preloaded flatbed, tarpped and strapped it and headed out. I emptied with just enough time to make it to a truck stop but I made it about 900 feet away from the con before being involved in an accident that ran the remainder of my time out. Guy was trying to make a left turn across 3 lanes of traffic at 5pm so he stop in the road. I rounded the corner to him sitting there. You know the rest from there.

 

[notarps4me]

I have sat at a shipper and I am not even kidding 10 hours. When I called the company on my 12th hour i told them I need to get out of here, They will not let me park here. I still had not been loaded. They said get out of there, Go where ever you have to to be safe.

The next day i was loaded in under an hour. What a difference a day makes and also Balterm of Baltimore, MD. you suck!

Logan aluminum in russelville ky. I think my record there has been 19 hours. They have a staging area you can sleep in and have a shower, but crap that is a long time.

 

[DubbleD]

A waste of time, money, and resources.

This whole topic is nothing more than accurately portraying "Safety Depts" lack of knowledge and the efforts companies will go to avoid an audit by the big bad wolf we all know as FMCSA.

Companies are adding optional abilities to the E-logging systems at the recommendation of Safety... Because Safety is supposed to have their collective finger on all the requirements...
Question:...how does "Solitaire" (yeah, the card game) have anything to do with HOS?

Answer: it doesn't but Qualcomm and Peoplenet offer it so there must be some legal requirement for it.... Right?

Idiots.

@Tazz said it... I'll repeat it... That box mounted on the dash WILL NOT TURN THE KEY OFF!
Drive to a safe place and document the reason for violation.

Parameters for "Auto Drive" are set by each company for their needs based on... you guessed it....
SAFETY's interpretation of HOS.

The company I'm leased to allows 10 mile radius from logging line 1 or line 2 with NO limit on speed before it'll kick me into DRIVE and if that occurs I have a "Skip" option .... So in the "remarks" field... I state something like .... "Truck stop was 14 miles from shipper/receiver"

Done. And if need be, I'll take my chances in court. Common sense seems to be an endangered specie these days but I refuse to be an idiot!

 

[notarps4me]

There is no safety involved when a driver is running against the 14. Chances are he will push when he is tired. Take a nap when needed, burn the 14. Less than 60 miles from home one day I laid down to take a power nap. At what I call boomland. My wife called and wanted to know where I was. I told her where and I was going to lay down for a bit. She said you are almost home. I hate crossing that bridge when I am wide awake. I don't need any rule to tell me when to rest. If I am tired I will sleep even if I have hours available. If I am wide awake and out of hours, what is the difference if I run? I know what is safe and when I should drive or not drive. Why punish the driver for cat napping by racing the 14????

 

[Mike]

Funny thing is, ... he only had 2 hours left before he could legally drive again & he hadn't slept. So, the minute his e-log says he can drive again, would you say he's safer to drive than he was 2 hours earlier?

So, had he drove to a safe parking area and noted in his remarks that he was going to a safe haven, he would have then been able to take an actual 10 hour break, rather than parking dangerously on the side of the road to complete a fake 10 hour rest period.

 

[Duck]

So, had he drove to a safe parking area and noted in his remarks that he was going to a safe haven, he would have then been able to take an actual 10 hour break, rather than parking dangerously on the side of the road to complete a fake 10 hour rest period.

Some companies, especially mega-fleets, have iron-clad policies & will discipline a driver in a situation like that.

 

[Tazz]

Wonder what their discipline for unapproved parking is?

 

[DubbleD]

Some companies, especially mega-fleets, have iron-clad policies & will discipline a driver in a situation like that.

My response to those drivers would be to log in to Magnumlog.com fill out an application and take some personal responsibilty for their lives.

 

[Mike]

Some companies, especially mega-fleets, have iron-clad policies & will discipline a driver in a situation like that.

That would be a good company to walk away from. Obviously haven't driven for all of them, but I have had stints with J.B Hunt, KLLM, Prime, NFI, and Crete, and Arnold (owned by US Xpress). Never had my job threatened by any of these companies. I've heard stories, but just never had the experience. But then again, this situation is one of those situations where I would have been letting dispatch know very early in the game that I would be going to sleep after leaving this place and to not even consider dispatching me on anything that would conflict with that.

That said, I have worked for some smaller places where they were very upfront in the hiring process that the only thing that really mattered was getting the freight picked up and delivered, no matter how it needed to happen. In those situations, I was left alone and drove however I needed to. Those days are very much over for me.

 

[Duck]

That would be a good company to walk away from. Obviously haven't driven for all of them, but I have had stints with J.B Hunt, KLLM, Prime, NFI, and Crete, and Arnold (owned by US Xpress). Never had my job threatened by any of these companies.

Did you have electronic logs at all of those companies?

 

[Mike]

Did you have electronic logs at all of those companies?

Nope, but the idea is still the same. You sit somewhere, they assume you have a break unless you tell them otherwise. Dispatch doesn't choose whether you are rested or not.

 

[Injun]

Logan aluminum in russelville ky. I think my record there has been 19 hours. They have a staging area you can sleep in and have a shower, but crap that is a long time.

Plainview, TX. Three days at Cargill.

Garden City, KS. Two days at Tyson.

Dodge City, KS. Two days...I forget the meat packing company's name, maybe Cargill, but definitely associated with them.

Beardstown, IL. Two days at IBP, then another day for them to make the load legal weight-wise.

Amboy or Perth, NJ. Three days at receiver Wakefern.

That's why I won't haul grocery from the producer to the DC again. DC to stores? Yeah, no problem. They have time limits.

 

[Duck]

Plainview, TX. Three days at Cargill.

The only time I ever went there, it was about 24 hours. And their dusty lot clogged up my reefer's condenser & it overheated in Las Vegas & I had to have it power-washed.

Garden City, KS. Two days at Tyson.

Unless there's more than one Tyson plant in that area, I think you're thinking of Holcomb about 10 miles west of Garden City. My longest delay was one day there.

Dodge City, KS. Two days...I forget the meat packing company's name, maybe Cargill, but definitely associated with them.

Cargill or Excel. I think Cargill owns Excel. I had an overnighter there back when the truck stop was "The Hitchin' Post & the waitresses all had big boobies & wore shirts that said "Not everything is flat in Kansas". Now it's a Flying J.

Beardstown, IL. Two days at IBP, then another day for them to make the load legal weight-wise.

I've never had more than any delays there, but only because every time I've been dispatched out of there, it's when I've been at home & told 'em I won't leave the house til I know it's LOADED.

• Storm Lake, IA - Tyson. Sometimes it's loaded, most of the time it ain't. Longest wait I've had was 15 hours or so but the average is about 5 hrs waiting for a "pre-loaded" trailer.
• Worthington, MN - JBS/Swift & Company. I've sat there overnight. Usually have to wait at least a few hours.
• Marshalltown, IA - JBS/Swift & Company. I sat there 3 days once. Tried to convince the boss to rent a house for drivers to lodge in while we're in town. He thought I was kidding. I wasn't.
• Schuyler, NE - Excel or Cargill. I forgot which name. I've sat there overnight before.
• Ottumwa, IA - Excel or Cargill. I forgot which name. I've sat there overnight before.
• Sioux Falls, SD - John Morrell. I've sat there overnight before. And the smell from the smoke-house drives me NUTS because it makes me want to go pig out on ham.
• Smithfield, NC - Smithfield. I sit there AT LEAST 24 hours every time I go there.
• Clayton, NC - Smithfield. Only been there once. Rude guards & shipping desk people. I sat there about 15 hours.
• Waterloo, IA - Tyson. Let's just put it this way.... I'm banned from the property, and consider it an honor.
• Sioux City, IA - John Morrell. CLOSED. Good riddance. The city bought the property for a dollar. I think they paid too much.
• Denison, IA - Farmland. Longest wait was 15 hours. I think @patriciajnsn said it closed though.
• Fremont, NE - Fremont Beef Company (owned by Tyson). Never had to wait but it's a pain in the ass getting your empty blind-sided into the tiny-ass drop-lot.
• Olathe, KS - Tyson. Overnight.
• Ottawa, IL - Tyson. I've sat overnight but it's close enough to home I can usually make it happen without a wait. Other drivers aren't so lucky.
• Dakota City, NE - Tyson. Overnight is common but half the time it's loaded when I get there.
• Edinburg, VA - George's Chicken. Average wait is overnight. RARELY EVER loaded on time. Very tight, steep turn uphill into docks, hard on the equipment. Let the spotter do it.
• Dayton, VA - Cargill Turkeys. Never had to wait.
• Mt. Crawford, VA - White Wave. Usually loaded when I get there, but always dispatched late.
• Columbus Junction, IA - Tyson. Waited overnight every single time.

 

[Injun]

Shelbyville, TN (I think it's Shelbyville) Tyson. Almost always at least overnight. The payoff there is the cafeteria. Yum!