Tag: owner operator

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Trucker News

Fuel Price on a Road to Constant Increase: Truckers Worry

The recent political upheavals in many of the Arab nations have raised an issue of worry among different governments. Its impact is likely to be seen on the economies of various countries and the worst affected area which is likely to suffer is the crude industry. There has been a considerable hike in the prices of the fuel pertaining to the uncertainty of the crude supply. The unstable political scenario in the Middle East has sent a wave of worry among the energy traders and they are looking out for alternatives to cope with this challenging problem. The trucking industry will be affected by this crisis and the trucking companies are also worried about the same.

The benchmark crude prices have witnessed a hike of 87 cents last week over the continued reports of disturbing situation in the Middle East regions. The oil traders are expecting a completely different market situation ahead of the weekend. The first thing to be affected after the reported fuel hike is the transportation costs. This is one of the major industries which are directly linked to the fuel cost. The truck driver jobs will also be affected by this situation as the overhead transportation costs will increase and the trucking industry will try to minimize the cost on other level to match the fuel costs. This is especially a threat to those truckers who have joined recently and they may be the first ones to face the job cuts.

The owner operator jobs are likely to suffer as this will minimize the profits of the owner operators who work on a percent basis with the trucking companies. All the industries are connected in a chain and the increase in the transportation costs will put its impact on other industries as well. Second in queue are the freight companies which take the services of the truck drivers to make their loads deliver. The trucking companies are likely to charge more from the load board and it will create an imbalance in all the sectors. There is already a shortage of truckers and the trucking industry is providing new truck driver jobs. If the driver job cuts are done, it will hamper the delivery of loads available. In the present situation, the price rise is undoubtedly a big blow and it has come at a very wrong time when the trucking companies are facing many other challenges.

If the political crisis in these nations continues, it will disrupt the chain of demand and supply and the fuel prices may go higher. The economy is already undergoing a difficult phase and managing the businesses is a challenging job. If the fuel hikes persistently goes on, it will affect the functioning of many of the trucking companies and the costs are likely to be adjusted by the cuts in truck driver jobs. The trucking industry will try hard to cope with the tough market conditions but it is a big threat to the drivers’ employment.

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Trucker News

New Law Framed for the Repair of the Vehicle for Truck Drivers

The Massachusetts federal law body has put forth the new law of Right to Repair Act which is brought into form in the present legislative year of 2011-12. The chief legislative representatives who have put this idea in form are Rep. Garrett Hadley (D-Hingham) and Senator John Hart. There are sixty other representatives who have come in support of this bill. The new repair act will put forward a wide array of choices for the consumers because previously the repair codes which were limited only for the dealers of new cars will now also be provided to retail stores.

The main reason behind bringing the bill back into the present shape is that the customers have an availability of better choice before them and they can take the services of the shops which they want to. There is no compulsion of sticking to a particular dealer. The trucking companies seem to have a double opinion on this act. It is good for those owner operator jobs who are bound to go to a big dealer. The data and codes will be bought by the individual shops and they will have to give the prior and correct information to the customers. It will be an additional benefit for the small retailers to expand their businesses and the customers may also go for a better deal.

More and more senators are coming in support of this bill and it is gaining a high approval among the legislative members. The economy is undoubtedly going through a tough phase and it is important for the government to understand the problems of the masses. Repairing a truck is often done by a trucker and it is important that he has a wide variety of choice where he can go for his truck repair which will add some extra pennies to his pocket. The technological advances have made a great improvement in the efficiency of the vehicles but the loads available demands, services and maintenance of the vehicles have also increased. This thought has also motivated the right to repair act to come in form.

The trucks and other motors have many options of safety and more and more researches are done to make the vehicle fuel efficient. This has also opened the doors for the dealers to take the advantage of the present situation. So it has become all the more necessary that the truckers have an access to all the repair shops and their choices are not limited. The guidelines and directions are meant to be given to the vehicle manufacturing companies that the repair access is not confined to the dealers of these companies and the repair rights are also scattered among the different individual repair shops and the motorists.

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It will also be useful for the truckers who are driving on the highway and have no choice to go for when the truck breaks up. They will not have to hunt for the dealers and simply repair at the shop which is easily accessible to them.

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Business

Truck Driving: A Career as Good for Women

With the changing trends and patterns of life, there have been major changes in the job profile as well. The demarcation line of the jobs has been blurred and trucking industry is no exception to it. The truck driving jobs are no more limited to men and women are also launching themselves with confidence in the business.

The truck driving business was pre dominantly confined to males and it was hard for a female to think of entering into the business. But in the past few decades, the phenomena have changed considerably and the concept of women truckers is not new to ears. The trucking companies are also witnessing a huge crisis and there has been a huge gap between the demand and the supply.

The shortage of drivers has forced the trucking companies to look at the alternative of women truckers and many women have tasted success in the trucking business. Driving a flatbed is a difficult job and there are a number of flatbed driver jobs available in the trucking industry. Driving a truck has been a challenging job for women and they generally don’t consider it as dream career choices. But the profitable returns received have left few women to regret of entering the business. The statistics reveal that the number of women truckers is increasing day by day. The trucking company is also heaving a sigh of relief as they also have a alternative present before them.

As compared to the other business in which gender bias has been seen, trucking industry seems to be an exception. The drivers are paid according to the number of kilometers that they have undertaken and so there is no question of any discrimination being made. Women truckers also go to cross country delivering the loads and are catching up with the deadline. The trucking companies have also brought up the new idea of trucking couples in which both the partners drive together. This is certainly a very good choice especially for the wives whose husbands often go for long distance journey. The women drivers have also formed teams in which more two women drive together. This makes the long journey less tiresome as both the truck drivers drive equally and they can also go for a 24/7 job.

There have been many associations and organizations for men which work on ensuring the safety of the women truckers. There have been a number of load boards which have a large amount of loads available on them. The deficit of the truck drivers has opened a lot of opportunities for the women who are planning to enter the business. With the technological advances, the power steering of the trucks requires less manual strength.

By large women have entered the trucking business and they are ready to face the challenges planning to take trucking as a long term career option.

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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.

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Carriers

34 Hours Rest Period for Truck Drivers – A New Challenge to Trucking Industry

The life of a truck driver is always set on the wheels of the truck. It seems to be an unending journey for them. It is not an easy job to drive a truck continuously without any pauses and breaks. The various researches done on the truck drivers recently show that the side effects of driving for a long time are clearly visible in the living style and behavioral traits of truckers. There is abundance of driver employment for different drivers like flatbed drivers, reefer drivers, dry cargo van drivers and more, but the drivers seem to resist taking up the life of a trucker. There are many trucking companies which have a demand for many drivers. There is a need of a lot of patience and endurance before going for the job of a truck driver.

The increasing cases of the accidents of the truck drivers have raised a hue and cry and forced the people to look for an alternative. Besides the accidents, the health problems of the truckers are also raising issues of concerns among the researchers and the scientists. Recent study of a Washington University makes it evident that insomnia is quite a common problem in the truck drivers who go for longer destinations and get a very little time to rest.

The researchers of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) has proposed a 34 hour rest period for the truck drivers but the trucking industry doesn’t seem to agree with this study and is opposing it in every possible way. The owner operator jobs are also available and the owner operators are also being hired by the trucking companies. The freight and the logistics companies have a lot of work. If the 34 hour rest period is brought into shape, it will definitely pose new challenges before the trucking companies.

The global breakdown in 2008 led many companies to do job cuts and it badly affected the number of drivers in the trucking business. The load boards work was also not untouched by it. But the conditions have become better and there are ample of loads available. But the shortage of drivers is an issue of concern. If the 34 hours rest period is put into form, there will be more need of truck driver jobs. There is already a huge gap in the demand and supply chain and it will create imbalance in the chain management system. Many of the drivers are on the verge of retirement and the increasing number of load boards and freight companies have put the trucking companies in a tensed situation. An old study which was conducted by the national highway traffic safety administration showed that it will be difficult for the young drivers to adapt driving conditions.

There will be a need of around 1 million truck driver jobs in the coming 15 years. The trucking industry needs to take adequate steps to ensure the safety and health issues of the drivers. It will be able to attract the applicants only when it provides all the facilities to the truckers. There is a common problem of fatigue and tiredness seen in the truckers. If the trucker is driving flat bed truck or carrying petroleum or some other explosive product, he needs to be very careful. A minor mistake can cause huge loss and even cost life of people. The interests of the truckers cannot be discarded.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Lifestyle

Sleep Apnea Disorder-A major concern in the US Trucking Industry

Sleep apnea is a kind of breathing disorder which does not allow the person to sleep properly. Improper sleep pattern due to sleep apnea in turn causes fatigue. The safety issues related with this situation is becoming a major concern in the trucking industry. This is one of the prominent illness that the truckers are facing these days due to their lifestyle and challenges of the job. The life expectancy of a truck driver is 16 to 61 years less than the average life expectancy of an individual in the country. As per the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association chief Anne Ferro 30% of the truck drivers are facing this health hazard.
Since the disease promotes fatigue and fatigue is the cause of 13% of truck accidents on the roads. Therefore sleep apnea will soon face legal complications for trucking companies and owner operators considering the risk factor associated with it. The number of truck drivers facing this problem can be known by the carrier company. Therefore these fatigue related accidents are causing legal problems for the carriers and serving as the easy ground to play and earn for attorneys.
Keeping the increased danger associated with this disorder now the regulations will be implemented with the guidance of FMCSA to regulate and monitor the symptoms of sleep apnea in drivers. Earlier regulations that were implemented more than 10 years before stated that: the driver should not have any respiratory problems that might affect his driving performance. The DOT officials were responsible to screen the drivers who showed symptoms of sleep apnea. This does not mean that any driver who is diagnosed with this impairment will not be certified as a professional driver. His certification will depend on the severity of the apnea and its impact on his driving capabilities.
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Medical review Board suggestion will be sought for various disorders related to the driver health. As it the question of one’s livelihood and they should be rejected certificate only on strong scientific study and evidences. Now with tightening of the sleep apnea regulations and its legal action the trucking companies are working hard in this respect. They are providing treatments to their drivers suffering from sleep apnea. The study suggests there has been 30 % less crashes reported by the drivers who were treated for this. Also the driver retention rate has drastically increase. after they were provided treatment by the trucking companies.
The cost of treatment is coming out to be high. The screening test costs around $200 and the follow up course which can go up to 90 days costs around $3500. This investment has proved out to be beneficial as it decreases the overall health care cost of the driver and increases the safety factor when the driver is on its way to dispatch available loads.
The truck drivers and carrier companies need to understand that this is a very challenging situation and a planned approach towards it will remove the complications involved. These days there are many third party organizations who can collaborate with trucking companies and can provide there services on this matter. Things will be resolved only when one takes action towards it.

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Trucker News

Trucking Speed Limits proposal by NHTSA under Consideration

Keeping in mind the trucker safety and there requests National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has said it will work towards the rule proposal through which the truck manufacturer companies will have to install a mechanism or device which will limit the driving speed of the heavy trucks to 68 mph. This will be brought to effect by 2012.
American Trucking Association and Road Safe America has made a petition to give this rule a way so that the truck accidents which are caused by the speeding factors could be limited and the truck drivers job could be made more safe. These petitions were granted by NHTSA in the Federal Register posting which was conducted last week. Though the NHTSA has granted ATA and Road Safe America petitions that does not mean the final rule regarding the speed limit is issued. NHTSA further laid emphasis on two studies conducted which suggests that these speed limiting device has the potential to decrease the severity of crash.
Bill Graves, ATA president said they are happy that there petition will be soon considered and a rule will be implemented. The petition was first filed by ATA to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in October 2006. The safety on the road can be increased when the traffic on the road is slowed down the ATA president said we tried to do this on our part for the sake of the trucking industry.
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Now everybody knows that with the restrictions on the trucking speed limit the number of speed related crash will be reduced. However the rule is not implemented yet as the FMCSA is conducting studies on the economic effects of the introduction of this speed limiting rule. The reports from this study will be open to public in 90 days.
The fuel efficiency will surely be affected when the truck speed is less than 68mph. But one can obviously compromise on fuel efficiency where the truck driver life and safety is concerned. Many other industrialized countries have already implemented this rule and there can be noticed a drastic reduction in the accidents caused due to speeding. From the Schneider carrier company’s internal crash reports it is evident that the trucks with no speed limiters accounts for 40% of the total serious collisions. So there is a great need of this rule to be implemented in United States also.
Where this proposal is welcomed by many, there are some trucking companies and owner operators who say such decision is more likely to increase the risk as all the vehicles on the highway should run on the same speed and the varied speed causes more accidents. Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says setting the speed limit will not reduce the number of accidents on the highways. Other aspect against the speed limiters is that with slow moving trucks there will be increased congestion on the US highways thus affecting the overall productivity of the trucking companies. This will in turn delay the dispatch service of the available loads.
With the mixed views and suggestions NHTSA is strong in making way to the proposal to set speed limiters for trucks.