Tag: loads

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Trucker News

A new scope for Canadian-American Border

Leaders of the two nations, the US President Mr. Barack Obama and the Canadian Prime Minister Mr. Stephen Harper conducted a meeting last week. The main issue was the long-term co-operation relating to the borders. The negotiations lead to signing a pact Friday calling dealing with the increased trade and security tie ups between the U.S. and Canada. This will facilitate quicker and hassle free transport between the countries and a good source of business generation for the trucking companies of both the countries.
The cross-border relations regarding the trade between the two nations were in turmoil since the 9/11 terrorists attack in the U.S. The meeting was focused to “intend to pursue a perimeter approach to security”. The loads available and people should be allowed to travel with more flexibility making the transport much easier for them.

The joint declaration stated that they will work to develop an integrated security policy which will ensure that the cargo and other goods undergo compatible screening tests, before they move out of the Canadian and U.S. ports. This will enhance the quick crossings at either port enabling the subsequent crossings much more fast.

Check out some of the latest industry news and happenings on our truck load board blog page.

The leaders directed to create a Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) between the United States and Canada which will be formed by combining the foreign affairs officials and senior trade regulatory from both the countries.

The other aspect they looked towards jointly is an approach to increase and modify the available infrastructure at major public ports at the point of entry. The target is 10 major public ports.
The pact is welcomed by the Canadian Trucking Alliance. CTA expressed, this will help recreate the cross border relations which were much strained in the last decade after the terrorists attack. There is at least one truck crossing the U.S. – Canada border in every three seconds. Thus the pact will have a direct impact on truck driver employment.

We were looking towards this border agreement to be initiated by the government of both the countries from a long time. David Bradley CTA president said this agreement is the start point to achieve a more stable trade and security measures. This will help achieve more reliable risk-management and yield profits in trading programs between the countries.

It might take some time to finalize the things and start the real action; however a work group will be formed to work across the borders and look after the proceedings in this matter. The same will be reported to Obama and Harper by this work group.

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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
Carriers

Make your Semi-Truck more Efficient!!!


Check our load board blog page for more interesting trucking articles.

Categories
Business Trucker News

Idle Air

Convoy Solutions, LLC is the current owner of the idleAir idle-reduction system and began re-opening sites in the summer of 2010.

The idleAir system, previously named IdleAire, was invented about 10 years ago as the outgrowth of a challenge originally issued to A.C. Wilson, a Tellico Plains, Tennessee, contractor, by his brother-in-law, a long haul truck driver fresh off a New Jersey run.

How could a driver park, shut off the engine (along with its noise, fumes and vibration) and still stay warm or cool while having access to the comforts of home?

It so happened that the challenge came during a vacation stay at an RV park. During the night, A.C. tackled the challenge, sketching the first design for an independent, external system that would deliver to a truck cab the same sorts of services inherent in an RV.

The next morning he presented his sketches to his brother-in-law. A.C. and his partners located an experienced management team who could form a company and take his idea to market.

For the past ten years, IdleAir has further refined Wilson’s original design and made significant strides with truck fleets and travel plazas, as well as the federal and state environmental and highway safety entities.

IdleAir offers long-haul truck drivers an alternative to idling their engines and APU’s during rest periods. IdleAir reopened in Spring 2010 under new management, and currently operates 21 sites in 9 states (see www.idleair.com/locations.asp).

“WHAT DO I GET?” IdleAir service is $1.99/hour and includes powerful HVAC, standard AC electric inside and outside the cab, 60+ channels of Satellite TV (including Fox News and The Weather Channel), and basic internet.

“THERE’S MONEY ON MY OLD CARD.” Customers who had money on old IdleAire cards still have their balances available, even if they tossed the card. Just call IdleAir Customer Support at (877) 738-7024 to get set up.

SPECIAL PROMOTIONS: Idling uses 1 gallon of diesel per hour, and with diesel costing over $3.30/gallon, drivers can use IdleAir and save $1.30/hr — while you’re sleeping! There are 9 IdleAir sites that have a special $1.25/hr rate through 3/30/11, and registered fleets get a special discounted rate of $1.50/hr at ALL locations through 4/30/11.

For Drivers:

DRIVERS GET HVAC. IdleAir gives you a powerful heating and cooling air system, just like at home. Now you can shut off your engine and sleep better without
the noise, vibration, and stack gases from idling.

DRIVERS GET ELECTRICITY. IdleAir gives you standard AC electric service both inside and outside your cab. You can plug in block heaters, phone and laptop chargers, and any other accessories.

DRIVERS GET SATELLITE TV. IdleAir gives you satellite TV and free basic internet. Stay connected with friends and family, and enjoy your favorite sports, news, and Weather Channel programs.

BUY AMERICAN: ENGINE OFF, IDLEAIR ON. IdleAir is good for America. The energy that IdleAir uses comes from American resources, like coal, gas, wind, and more. You can help Buy American with IdleAir, and avoid idling engines and APU’s that burn foreign oil.

LOCATIONS: IdleAir operates 21 locations nationwide. See the complete list at http://www.idleaire.com/Locations.asp
GOT QUESTIONS? Call IdleAir Customer Support at (877) 738-7024
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/idleaire

[button link=”http://www.idleair.com/”]Visit Idle Air[/button]

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.