Comments By PJ

Pretty much a similiar tale all around i think. I’m lucky I have picked up 3 new customers. Two of which left a large company. They said it was due to my service. They are running me mon-thur. I’m not killing it, but making money so I’ll take it.

I picked up my rgn last thur. It looks awesome and my trailer guy says what we are planning on using it for should last along time. It’s overkill for our need but was priced right. All in a 60k trailer with a 30k cost.

As with alot of things going on at the federal level these days they are passing RULES instead of legislation.

Unelected and too a degree unaccountable folks are using the rule making process to promote an agenda. All under the guise of safety.

Latest example is the speed limiters. That is such a bad rule they are pushing that congress has passed legislation out of the house to stop it. Of course it is stalled in the senate. We will be force fed this at some point.

Congressman Mike Collins fron Ga is a trucking company owner and is trying to fight the bad ideas, IE rules. I called his office friday and sent them a copy of the article so they can watch it to see if it gains any traction. He has a youtube channel where he has alot of information regarding things the fed’s are doing regarding our industry.

I just read an article stating that according to the FMCSA that there has been a 40% rise in refusals to be drug tested and drivers are leaving the industry. ATRI, American Truck Driving Research Institute dug into the causes. They report the actual cause is due to the federal ban on cannabis.

Of course ATA, American Trucking Assoc. chimed in with their standard line how much of a driver shortage there is, and the fed’s are contributing to it with their drug testing policy.

Of course they are stating how much trouble the whole supply chain is in and stating that by removing cannabis it will make everything alright.

Look for a new rule making coming from FMCSA, thanks to the ATA, which only represents mega carriers.

Again relax and change the rules to gain more drivers.

Daily I see articles of horiffic truck crashes and trucks striking infastructure. Yesterday and latest is a 21 yr old pulling an excavator doing 500k damage to a overpass in Texas and fleeing the scene.

FMCSA needs to get back to supporting highway safety in my opinion.

Congrats young lady!!! Well Done!!

I was in south GA looked like a cloudy day here. A friend was at a truck stop in OH and said it was pretty cool. I guess as it rolled by the street lights all came on then went out again.

Welcome Luke, I’m sorry to hear your having issues, BUT welcome to trucking. Things happen.

First of all your post makes several general statements and your conclusion. Hard to give you any good advise on that. Ask specific questions and we can give you much better advise.

Trailers at all companies that get passed around alot are bound to have issues. What you need to determine before you hook up to it is if it is safe or unsafe to operate. Once you hook to it, it is on you. There are always calculated risks we take everyday to get the job done. Always document any deficiencies you find along with photo’s.

Ensure your communiction goes over your ELD. Those are generally seen by several different folks and it documents the concerns.

I haven’t seen your contract so I have no idea how to advise there. Training comes in several different forms, not always in person. Video training is very big at some companies.

I find it odd as a brand new driver you would spend only 3 days with a road trainer. That seems pretty short.

New drivers don’t usually get the best equipment out of the gate. They expect new drivers to have issues, while hoping they don’t. Overall the equipment I see from WE seems decent.

Old School worked there early in his career, hopefully he will come along with some specific info for you.

As a new driver your still figuring everything out. Alot of it will be you figuring it out, not expecting someone in the office to figure it out for you. All of us have been where you are. Come ask specific questions and we will help you all we can. Take a deep breath, it will get better.

There is no law or DOT reg regarding doc’s to provide exams other than they have to be registered with FMCSA to proivide the service.

Each company has the right as an employeer to dictate where that is done. You have a choice, go to their provider or find another job.

Those who sign the paycheck have the right to set the rules.

Another issue is we have several different organizations that do some lobbying such as OOIDA, western states trucking assoc, ca trucking assoc plus several more. Seems the only one I have seen to have much succuess in DC has historically been the ATA. They represent overall the smallest group of drivers on the road, but have the right ears in DC.

Lobbying in DC is a huge task. For 8 years I was involved for an organization. I can give you alot of info how they ran things if you want, it will be very long.

There is a a up and coming app called truck parking club that have contracted with mom/pop small stops. Your payment is done through the app. It is my understanding policing it is contracted to local towing companies. I used it once in TN and seemed to work ok.

Truckers have 1 friendly congressman in office right now that i know of. He and his brother own a mid size trucking company so he can be a great resource. I have spoke with some of his staff locally and in DC and they are very receptive to information.

I agree with all said so far. Your bottom line is “time to grow up”.

We’ve all been there, everything in this life is a choice. You can learn from past mistakes and move foward making better choices OR you can continue blaming others for your problems and keep repeating those mistakes.

Your young and God willing have your entire life ahead of you.

Suck it up and do what you need to at WE and you can set yourself up for a good career. You didn’t say which division your in, but starting out flatbed may not be a good choice. The van division may work better for now. They are a low paying second chance company, but your success there will pay off big in the ling run.

All of us here will always listen and help where we can.