Comments By Delco Dave

My biggest stresser is navigating tight neighborhoods and unforeseen problems getting out of said neighborhoods. I run local flatbed, 99% of my deliveries and pickups are residential houses and apartment complexes. I pull around a 43 footer all day and have to travel on roads a tractor trailer doesn’t belong on just about every stop. Even though I trip plan very carefully, you never really know what your getting into until your there.

That gives line haul a whole new definition!!!

A few guys I work with used to work for New Penn, who is now owned by YRC/Yellow. They’ve been talking to some of the guys who stayed after the buy out. They are delivering only, no pickups. Trying to clear the dock and call trailers of all freight. Complete shutdown looks imminent.

I’m guessing some Yellow guys will end up at ABF at some point since they’re Teamsters as well. The Union will probably push to have them be hired before new members. The rest will retire or be scattered among the other no union ltl outfits.

That blows my mind. Your ELD doesn't track that?

No, our city driver app only gives you total milage at the end of the manifest and only if you have a stop outside PA. If all miles are in PA, you have to tally your miles on the paper manifest. If I have only PA and MD stops, thats all it will ask for. I’ll have to keep track and add the DE miles I traveled to get to and from MD

I do 4 states quite often with my flatbed deliveries/pickups. I can roll through PA, NJ, DE & MD in one run due to our terminal location and service area.

We have to enter each states milage to close our manifest upon return to terminal, have to really pay attention to odometer on those days and make a mental note of mileage at each line crossing then write it down at next stop.

The Yellow/YRC situation has been addressed quite often at our Union meetings. They are in a real bad spot again. The teamsters have loaned them 100’s of million’s over the years to keep them afloat, no more help is coming from the union. The feds have bailed them out a couple times as well.

They have been hurting other Teamster workers and retirees for a long time by failing to pay the full amount due into the health and welfare as well as the pension. Apparently they have contributed less then a quarter since their 1st bailout.

I know my and other ABF terminals are gearing up for a large increase in freight with Yellow most likely going under and UPS strike looming. We are crazy busy as is, yard is full of trailers awaiting appointment and every city trailer including my flatbed is going out and returning full everyday. I don’t know how we’re going to handle more freight

Thats a tough one! There have been so many over the years.

Doubt this is who they are looking for but… My vote is for Tim Allen. Home Improvement and Last Man Standing. Love those shows, still watch em.

Yes Bobcat, its temporary. They built walls on either side of the ramp where the bridge was. Then they filled it with a recycled glass aggregate that can be compacted but doesn’t need to settle over time. Then they paved over it. That allowed them to quickly get the road passable again.

Yesterday I had to go to the Philly terminal to borrow their extra flatbed. Ours was down a few days and we were really backed up and needed to run 2 to get all the freight and cubes out. That terminal is one exit south of the collapse. The traffic up there was unreal. Its 15 miles from my terminal straight up 95. 1st 12-13 miles were fine, last 2-3 were a nightmare. Took me 3 hours round trip.

Lack of self motivated labor was one of the main reasons I closed shop.

Exactly the same reason I closed up my landscaping business. Same problems with different names over and over again.

work that requires a hard work ethic. Work that the young Americans think is beneath their dignity.

Experienced this at a few interviews trying to find young guys for grass crew positions with guys in their 20’s. They believed they were above that work and that it was a Mexicans job. Working on a grass crew requires a lot of hustle and is a young mans game. I Ended up having to hire older guys and ran the the crew myself which ate up most of my time and prevented the growth of the business

I tilt my mirrors in slightly to keep an eye on my bed and straps. Unfortunately, I can’t see the binders behind the lift tires but I did see it move a little bit coming to a stop and knew I had a problem. I double check every tie down at every stop so I knew it wasn’t me.

Luckily only the one broke free. I still had the right side, which by rating should hold it, plus the forks lock into the cradle which will prevent it from falling off. I still wasn’t taking any chances though, the 3 extra straps I threw on it would hold 13k