Tag: load board

Categories
Owner Operators

Semi Truck Leasing: An Alternative to Owner Operator Jobs

There are bundle of truck drivers jobs available and the trucking companies are trying hard to lure the drivers to get into the trucking business. Looking at the profits in the business, many individuals seems to be dissuaded from the driver jobs and are looking at the option of owner operator jobs. The owner operator job will allow them to own their vehicles and work on the term and conditions they wish to. But the owner operated jobs have their own limitations. Owning a truck requires many formalities like the credit, balances and down payments may not be possible for the drivers who are new in the industry.

With the present perspective, the trucking companies have put forth the alternative of leasing trucks to the drivers who have a dream of owning the trucks. There are many feasible options available for the drivers like easy installments, low down payments and many other facilities pertaining to finances. From the point of view of carriers, it is good for the drivers who are challenged with the start up costs or stuck in some credit situation.

There are a number of truck driver jobs which have been switched on with the leasing of the carriers by the drivers. They can always make use of the trucking load boards to keep their truck moving. It is a short cut to the otherwise seeming difficult path of owning the carrier. Different trucking companies have their own terms and conditions but it is surely a benefit for the drivers. Even they help the driver to get the loads available to be hauled.

There is a lack of financial risks in the leasing operating jobs as compared to the owner operator jobs. The trucking companies don’t give fragile freights to the new drivers. If you have leased the carrier, there is an added advantage of carrying the materials you want to. But there are some questions raised on the leasing process by the trucking companies and many drivers have been cheated. The driver advocacy groups have been formulated to fight for the rights of the drivers who have been victimized in the name of leasing opportunities. Owner operated independent drivers association (OOIDA) has stood for the rights of many such drivers and law petitions have been filed in the court.

The issues which have been in the limelight and filed in the lawsuits are like violating the government rules in leasing papers, inability to return the amount kept as a security while leasing and in some serious cases fraud have also been seen. For most of the drivers, the leasing of trucks has much been like a nightmare and they have lost more rather then earning. The lease contracts are often prepared in such a complex manner that they are meant to benefit the carriers rather than the drivers.

But every coin has two facets and the decision cannot be taken only looking at one perspective. There are some drivers who are doing really well while taking up the leasing of the vehicles. There is no database or statistics available which can show the list of successful or unsuccessful drivers. It is totally the discretion of the drivers the way they want to choose.

Categories
Newbies

Getting CDL License Tips and Tricks

To start your lucrative career as a truck driver, you need to first complete some of the legal formalities required to work for a trucking company as a truck driver.

The pre-requisite for aspiring truckers as required by the trucking companies are:

1. The truck driver should be at least 21 years of age for interstate driving.
2. The truck driver should be at least 18 years of age for intrastate driving.
3. The truck driver should have passed the DOT physical exam.
4. The truck driver should have cleared the drug test.
5. The truck driver should possess valid driving license from the state of residence.
6. The truck driver should possess the commercial truck driver license, CDL

CDL license is the passport to enter the trucking industry. It will permit you to haul available loads weighing over 26,000 lbs. You can get the CDL license after attending the training and clearing the CDL exam. Some professional companies would even pay for your CDL training.

After the weeks of attending CDL classes, there will be a CDL exam to judge what you have grasped from the training and to see if you are eligible to get the CDL now or not. The CDL test is conducted in two parts. The first part is the written or theory exam which will test the theoretical knowledge on three subjects: combination, airbrakes and general knowledge. You should have learnt the type of vehicles such as hazardous material vehicles, passenger vehicle, combination vehicles and the technical issues related to them.

This first part is pretty straight forward and the questions asked are direct from the manual. So regular study schedule with dedication is all you need for this. Studying your training manual well will not only help you clear the CDL exam but will help you incredibly in your truck driving job too. A quick tip: pay more attention to figures and number related information as they are the most asked questions.

The second part of the test is the practical test. It includes three tests: pre trip safety inspection, skills test and road test. All the knowledge you need to clear the CDL exam will be included in the training program. You will be receiving additional DVD’s which will make you familiar on how to take the test? What to inspect and say about it?

Check our load board blog page for more trucker articles and news.

Tips to take the pre-trip inspection test:

Remember to point out and describe all the safety related issues that you can see on the truck. There are some important key phrases that will make you score high in this test.

1. If you see any bolt, add to it all the bolts are properly tightened and there are no rust or metal shavings on them.
2. For any part you can see attached to the truck, do mention it is securely mounted,
3. If you some across any part which is holding some fluid, then make sure to comment it is not leaking.
4. Check wipers, lights, hazard lights, horn and comment that all are working properly.

If any thing is not clear do not hesitate to ask the examiner about it.

While in skills test the best tip is to drive slow. When you are slow you will have enough time to control the vehicle if anything goes wrong. For road test the best tip is to calm down. Make sure you have followed the basic steps like fastening the seat belt and adjusting the mirrors.

Hope you will find these quick and easy tips handy while appearing for your first CDL test.

Categories
Lifestyle

Life in the Truck Driving School vs Life Driving the Big Rig

No matter how seriously you spent your time in the truck driving school classes and obtained your CDL license with true dedication, there is a world of difference in actual truck driving job on the road and the truck driving lessons you learnt in the school.

When you are on to the road for the first time there will be a mixed feeling of excitement and nervousness as you will not be aware of what is in store for you as a professional truck driver. The loads of information that has been piled on you at the time of the course will suddenly fall short in front of the real trucking knowledge which can only be gained by years of experience.

The training provided in the school follows a set standard and pattern for all trucking jobs. However the real trucking jobs are dependent on different traffic and driving regulations prevailing in different states. There are varied climate type, available loads type, terrains and traffic pattern which you have never come across in your trucking school. There are different trucking jobs available with different trucking companies who are ready to hire you as soon as you are out of the driving school. But this will be an important decision for you as you should find out which type of trucking job will suit you the best.

When you are ready to take your stroll on the road, with your first pre-trip inspection you may find all the seven thousand things which you learnt in your driving school is no longer applicable in this situation. May be you remember just the basics but you are simply not able to recall the rest. Don’t worry this happen to the finest of drivers in their initial days.

Read more articles on driver lifestyles, tips and trick on our trucking load board blog page.

The best learning time when you can gain the real road and trucking knowledge is when you will start off your career under a trainer for a month or two. He will be your companion in the few of your initial trucking assignments. These rides will be full of adventure and challenges. You will get accustomed to the trucking lifestyle at this point of time. This will be the time you can learn the most. So come up with as many questions as you can and clear all your doubts regarding loads, trucks, roads and driving practices. Pay attention to his driving styles, problem solving techniques, loads handling and dealing with freight brokers.

You might have not paid attention while in truck driving class as the main aim to study lessons at that time was to clear your CDL exam. The theory papers of the CDL exam consists of direct and easy questions from the manual. But to catch the relevant knowledge from your trainer at this time will lay the foundation stone of your successful trucking driving career ahead.

Categories
Trucker News

Truckers Experience Problems Tracking Information through GPS in Illinois

Illinois- Around the state of Illinois Truckers are facing problem to get correct and real time truck routing information. They are not able to get access to the GPS system whenever they require it. This error was reported by the task force given the task to examine the GPS responsible to provide routing information related to truck driver jobs.

The report submitted by the task force to the General Assembly and the State Governor consists of eight recommendations to improve the technology in the state.

The major cause of concern as highlighted in the report is submitted by the task force to the government official is, the State’s current database which holds the crucial data for truck routing is difficult to access by the commercial driver. This cirtical truck specific data is of high importance as it helps the trucker to keep their vehicles on the approved road networks and avoids the common causes of hazard. These GPS works majorly to provide easy access to safety measures for public.

Michael Zalewski Chairman Task Force said that they want the truck specific data to be available and more accessible. The regular updating in connection with the regulatory compliances will reduce major accidents, congestions and repair expenses. This will surely work for the benefit of Illinois citizens and trucking companies.

The main problem cause is there are many database storing the required information. This makes the task cumbersome and access difficult for the drivers. The problem will be resolved if all the information is collected in one universal database.

Check our load board blog page for more trucker news.

The GPS task force recommendations are as follows:
• Merge different databases together to form one complete universal database.
• Local jurisdiction should devise easy reporting system which reports the designated networks for trucks.
• The database is to be made more accessible for the purpose of trucking companies.
• Providing GPS usage training to truck driver so they can derive only the information relevant for them.

Categories
Business

Time to Review the Challenges Faced by the Country’s Transportation

We have included this crucial article on our load board blog page as the nation’s transport system is the lifeline for the complete trucking industry, thousands of trucking companies and millions of owner operators and truck drivers who earn their bread through driving big rigs, using the transportation system every day of their lives.
The much heated debate revolving around the Transportation bill has raised many campaigns nation wide. They want the all the facts that the transportation industry and the road networks of the US are facing to be reported to the leaders. The infrastructure and road networks of the 20th century are a much cause of concern for the economic growth leading to the 21st century. Below are listed the facts and figure of the US transportation that is hampering overall economic growth of the country and off-course the individual as well.

Costs and losses incurred due to incompetent Transportation system:
If the transportation system is not perfect then both the individual as well as the economy gets a setback. The loss is in terms of time consumed, accidents and fuel wasted. The improper transportation costs $78 billion to the nation’s expenses annually. $230 billion are lost over annual crashes owing to poor road networks. The loads available as freight tonnage are always increasing with the multifaceted growth; therefore it is a high time to increase the transport capacity too. The congestion on the roads is already costing $200 billion annually and it would cost 14% of the annual GDP by 2050.

The Gap in Transportation Used and Investment made over it:
As per the Transportation Research Board, there is $50 billion gap in the maintenance, capital and operations funds that require for the US highway maintenance. For the improvisation of the existing system the gap is even more around $100 billion. According to the Road Information Program one third of the US roads need immediate to light maintenance. American Society of Civil Engineers has rated the U.S. transit system D+ rating. The funds for transit system are declining as people seeking public transport facilities has increased to a great level. The federal and GDP share that the government was spending earlier has shown decrease from 11.2 percent in 1960 to just 3.5 % currently.

Benefits form the Transport Infrastructure Developments:
For every dollar invested in the Highway maintenance and infrastructure generates large number of employment opportunities, the main one being the truck driver’s employment. The increased GDP percentage is generated with each dollar invested on federal highways in a very short time.
Other than growth and benefits the improved highways are very essential to decrease the number of crashes that are taking place. The loss of life each year is around 42,000, out of which 15,000 lives are lost due to bad road conditions and other road related safety hazards.
Thus, we see there are alarming facts related to the current transportation system which would pose threat to the country’s growth both in short and long term. Already there are many campaigns running to ring the bell so that some effective measures are taken well in time.

Categories
Carriers

How Can a CDL Driver Clear the Negative Charges off the DAC report?

As we have seen in the earlier blog posted on our load board, a DAC report is the one which contains all the driving history of a driver. It includes drug/alcohol tests, criminal reports, MVR records, accidents and other incidents related to the driving with the earlier carrier companies the driver has worked for. The DAC report has gained its importance as major percentage of the carrier companies ask for this report before hiring any commercial driver.
If the report has inaccurate or false information that goes negative on your driving part then it should be rectified immediately as the negative charges might affect your driving career for years to come. The serious criminal convictions should be expunged from the court records, only then the convictions will be erased from the DAC report.

You can seek legal service in this regard. One such company is DACOff.com. They give affordable and reliable service with a high success rate

Check out the steps below if you are seeking a legal advice:
Take the copy of the original conviction judgment, analyze and figure out the situation in when you were convicted and that is there any scope of that the case can be expunged. You do a thorough research by referring to the FindLaw websites to learn about the statutes and procedures of expunging any specific case.

After you find out that you qualify for the conviction to be expunged, the next step is to get an attorney or prepare the documents required for the petition yourself.

Now you need to file a petition with the court where your conviction has been recorded. The next step will be simple if your state does automatic expunging in case you qualify the statutes. In other states where this facility is not working. You will be called for a hearing in front of the judge after you have filed a petition. Its then solely on the judge’s discretion to grant you the petition and give you a clean chit or deny it.

After the legal procedure is over, you need to get you DAC report to ensure that the charge has been removed from the DAC report as well. HireRight is the company where you can get your free annual DAC report.

The information about your truck driving job is placed on the DAC report by the carrier companies you have previously worked with or by the companies whose orientation programs you have attended in the past. Thus, if you watch out for some key areas you will not get strangled in the negative conviction at the first place.

1. Whenever you are planning to leave a carrier company, give at least two weeks resignation notice. In such cases the company cannot charge you negatively against available loads abundance or quit under dispatch cases. These negative points prove very harmful when you seek new truck driver employment.

2. Attend the orientation program and give the pre-employment drug screening test only to the employer you are certain you will work with. If you unnecessarily attend an orientation program of a carrier company and leave the orientation program in between, the company can report this to DAC. Thus you can easily avoid such conditions and keep your DAC report clean by selective approach.
3. For small incidents and accidents try not to report them and pay off the damage yourself. This will help keep your DAC and insurance report clean.

4. Never say no to random drug test. Give the test and make sure to take the document which shows you have undergone the test. Add the paper to your trucking records.

I hope this article will be helpful to you to know how to expunge your DAC report and to avoid the negative convictions beforehand.

Categories
Carriers

What is the Importance of a DAC Report to Truck Drivers in the Industry?

This article will be really helpful to truck drivers who are looking for a job change. Whenever you would move to a new trucking company for work, the company will ask you for your DAC report. Let us see what is this so called DAC report is?
The DAC report is a record and summary of the truckers past work related activities pertaining to the trucking industry. The report is shared among the trucking companies so that they all get benefited in due course of time. Usually a DAC employment report contains accident history, any traffic violations and types of violations, why the truck driver wants to change the job or in case if he is fired, what is the reason? It also reports the type of driving done, the types of trailers hauled, is he a reefer driver, flatbed driver or dry van driver? It throws a light on the types loads available dispatched by the drivers. Therefore, the potential employer can come to know the drivers work habits, the companies worked for, training and orientation programs attended.
The DAC report can also be used to verify driving license number, criminal reports, social security number and work pay. All these reports play an important role for the trucking companies in pre hiring process to decide whether the trucker is qualified for the job or not.
To maintain the clarity in reports the reports are regulated by Fair Credit Reporting Act. According to this act each driver is eligible to acquire a free copy of this report each year. This will help them know the information that has been collected against their driving.
Earlier the report was distributed by USIS, but this procedure is now handled by a company called HireRight. A consumer report request from can be filled and send to the company in order to get your free report copy or the request can be sent online on the HireRight website. The request for the report can be submitted online but the report is not delivered in the digital form. It takes 15 days for the hard copy of the report to be delivered to you through US mail delivery system. If in case you find the there are incorrect charges on the report you can file a dispute with the dispute section of the website.
With the growing popularity of the DAC reports, nearly 90% of the commercial long hauls trucking companies are utilizing these reports to play safe while hiring new driver onboard. Since, the DAC report is a very crucial document for your truck driving career, you should read carefully the report and make sure to file any dispute for the wrong charges. The HireRight will look into the matter and make sure that inappropriate charges are removed from your report.
Keep checking our load board blog page for more trucking article. We will see in the next article, how to avoid negative DAC reports and what you should do in the case if the report stands negative for you.

Categories
Trucker News

Latest Industry News:

Flatbed Loads Rises whereas Reefers and Dry Van remains same reported by TransCore
With the week that ended on Jan 29, the nationwide flatbed freight loads showed an increase as per the loadboards of Transcore DAT network. The freight loads for reefer and dry van remained the same with the same number of loads as previous week.
The capacity to take the loads and the loads available for flatbed trucks have made up for the total number of load postings done for loads and truck available. This is the third week that both the volume and capacity is showing a weekly increase. This week thought the increase in demand for the loads available did not match the equipment capacity. The individual flatbed capacity stayed same and there was a 2.3 percent growth in van and reefer capacity.
The weekly newsletter issued by TransCore called Transcore Trendlines suggested that the there was in increase in the truck loads by 3.1 percent and the postings fir trucks rose by 2.4 percent. This rising trend as per the market indicators can be seen week over week. The main business indicator if the trucking industry id Load-to-Truck ratio, it remained stable and stated that there were approximately 4.9 loads available for each empty truck. Thus, the industry is seen giving lucrative offers to the truck driving jobs especially the flatbed drivers. This ratio is calculated by covering the data available nationwide.
The week showed an increase in the ratio for flatbed trucks to 6.7 percent and a decrease in the load to truck ratios for vans and refrigerated trucks. These key indicators suggest increased activity in the trucking industry as the US and worldwide economy revives.

Categories
Lifestyle

Successful Drive through the First Year Leads to a Promising Truck Driving Career Ahead

Recently there has been much news about the shortage of drivers in the trucking industry. Planning a career and following it in the same way are two different things. There are bundle of truck driver jobs but there are some hindrances which seem to dissuade the youth for going for this career option. There are always challenges posed by the new job and it takes some time to accommodate with the environment of the working place. The trucking career is no exception to it. Although it is different from the routine job of 9 to 5 but this job has its own demand.

The life of the driving school is totally different from that of the real truck driver job. It is very difficult for the new drivers to adjust to the new life style of the truck driver. It is not a fixed routine job and the drivers tend to be away from their families for days and sometimes weeks as well. One needs to be mentally prepared before taking up the job. It may sound to be a thrill and adventurous before taking up the job but it is not so easy. Trucking career can turn into a very fruitful one if a new truck driver is through the job in the first year. Many of the drivers who have spent their many years as a truck driver in the trucking industry have a great liking for the job.

The company will always try to test the new drivers. All the new jobs try to take extra advantage of the new comers in the various fields and the trucking company is no exception to it. There are all kinds of load boards and all these have different loads available on it. The freight companies have many kinds of various requirements which the trucking companies have to follow. Trucking companies can’t place their orders on the old drivers as they can do to the ones who have started their career and spending the first year in the logistics industry.

All the loads available have their different demands as some are fragile, valuable, or very delicate to carry. No company will blindly give the responsibility of delicate stuff to the new drivers. Sometimes the location where the load is to be carried is in a desolate area and old drivers tend to argue going to such places. These all things are the testing situations for the owner operators and if you give a consistent performance then there are no obstacles in your success. There are many trucking companies who offer proper assistance to the new drivers and help them teaching the rules of the company.

The truck driver jobs are similar to any other job as far as work is concerned. Initially you need to give your best performance to prove your worth and the success is just a road away. Do not expect any spoon feeding as no one is going to tolerate mistakes and so the drivers need to do the work very carefully. Once you adjust yourself in the new situation and then there will be no looking back.

Categories
Lifestyle

Truck Driver Jobs: Safety on Roads

Driving the big rig on national highways has never been an easy task. The truck driver job responsibility is conglomerated with many risks such as long driving hours, incomplete sleep, fatigue, home-sickness, lack of concentration, improper road networks or sudden malfunctioning of any part of the vehicle. Keeping these factors in mind, the driver safety on the road is a crucial factor and need to be studied and researched in detail to devise new mechanism and ways which will ensure your increase the safety of the drivers on the road.
There are many innovations taking up in this field and they work in two ways: Firstly, they considerably reduce the chances of accidents and secondly, in case the accident occur the vehicle body is designed in such a way to lessen the impact of the accident as much as possible. One such mechanism is Collision Mitigation Control System.
Many carrier companies these days are installing collision mitigation system on to their fleet to ensure driver safety and avoid the loss of lives as well as goods. This ensures more reliable dispatch service of the loads available. The front end collision can be avoided with the help of such control units. The use of radars and laser sensors helps to detect the possibility of crash by analyzing the relative distance the speed of vehicles. These system after detecting the danger releases warnings to the driver and in turn automates the safety processes like seat inflation, changing passenger and driver seat inclination to the safer one, pre-charging the brakes, application of brakes to full or partial thus decreasing the accident impact.
The radar that is used in the mitigation control system is installed on the front bumper of the fleet. It uses radio waves of high frequency to receive and transfer the signals and activate the control system to make the truck ready to avoid or reduce the collision intensity. The mitigation system in turn makes an interface with the cruise control thereby reducing the speed of the vehicle. It also sends the driver audio and visual warning signals when any mishap is foreseen so that the driver can manually slow down the speed of the vehicle and avoid the collision.
Along with the installation of such safety systems by the owner operators and trucking companies on their truck, the drivers need to be more careful and attentive while driving to avoid major accidents. Simple changes in the behavior pattern of the drivers will go a long way to make the US roads a safer place to drive. Check our laodboard blogs to find more articles on truck driver jobs, their importance and various other factors that rule the trucking industry.