Truck Driver Knocks Down Fire Hydrant, Then Tries To Put It Back
Topic 12703 | Page 2
Substitute "JB Hunt" for "Swift" in every joke you hear today and you have trucking 20 years ago. JB was the biggest and they were supremely hated and ridiculed by one and all. Most drivers considered it an embarrassment to work there. You heard no less than 100 JB jokes and insults a day and it got to where you dreaded even seeing one on the highway because guys would spout the same old garbage about them on the CB all day, every day.
Ten years from now it will be someone else.
Two things, only two things nominate Swift to be the butt of jokes:
1. The largest carrier makes for an easy target (and the larger number, not percentage*) of doofuses.
2. They hire people off the street, train them and give them a job, unlike companies that want to see 1-2 years experience before they'll talk to you.
* That's a math thing. PM me & I'll explain it for you. :)
That's a nice opinion, but its known that big companies in trucking and in other fields hire a bigger number of idiots. They need warm bodies and in large quantities. I suppose someone could actually research and swift and prove or disprove the theory. Number 2 basically says that yes, they do have a larger number of total rookies and therefore probably a larger number of...what we shall call poor judgement incidents. It's been my experience in life that the bigger the company the bigger percentage of "doofuses", and this goes for several industries other than trucking. Its ok to defend a company you work for, but I think the reality is that any real;ly big company ends up with a higher percentage of doofuses. I currently work for a 3 man company and we have zero doofuses.
Phil
Substitute "JB Hunt" for "Swift" in every joke you hear today and you have trucking 20 years ago. JB was the biggest and they were supremely hated and ridiculed by one and all. Most drivers considered it an embarrassment to work there. You heard no less than 100 JB jokes and insults a day and it got to where you dreaded even seeing one on the highway because guys would spout the same old garbage about them on the CB all day, every day.
Ten years from now it will be someone else.
One of my cdl school teachers told me people used to pull the kingpin locks on jb hunt trucks for jokes.... that kind of stuff aint funny though.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Phil posits:
big companies in trucking and in other fields hire a bigger number of idiots.
Let's see .... Current FMCSA numbers:
Swift:
Drivers: 22,346
Driver Inspections: 38,832
Driver Out Of Service %: 1.3%
J B Hunt:
Drivers: 14,540
Driver Inspections: 15,987
Driver Out Of Service %: 1%
Old Dominion:
Drivers: 9,767
Driver Inspections: 5,006
Driver Out Of Service %: 1.2%
National OOS average: 5.51%
CSA:
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA)
The CSA is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicle
FMCSA:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
The FMCSA was established within the Department of Transportation on January 1, 2000. Their primary mission is to prevent commercial motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries.
What Does The FMCSA Do?
- Commercial Drivers' Licenses
- Data and Analysis
- Regulatory Compliance and Enforcement
- Research and Technology
- Safety Assistance
- Support and Information Sharing
Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Phil posits:
big companies in trucking and in other fields hire a bigger number of idiots.
Let's see .... Current FMCSA numbers:
Swift:
Drivers: 22,346
Driver Inspections: 38,832
Driver Out Of Service %: 1.3%J B Hunt: Drivers: 14,540
Driver Inspections: 15,987
Driver Out Of Service %: 1%Old Dominion: Drivers: 9,767
Driver Inspections: 5,006
Driver Out Of Service %: 1.2%National OOS average: 5.51%
What are Schneider's numbers. There as big as Swift aren't they ?
CSA:
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA)
The CSA is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicle
FMCSA:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
The FMCSA was established within the Department of Transportation on January 1, 2000. Their primary mission is to prevent commercial motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries.
What Does The FMCSA Do?
- Commercial Drivers' Licenses
- Data and Analysis
- Regulatory Compliance and Enforcement
- Research and Technology
- Safety Assistance
- Support and Information Sharing
Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
The Shiva wants to know:
What are Schneider's numbers. There as big as Swift aren't they
These are from FMCSA's Safety And Fitness Electronic Records (SAFER) Company Snapshot. There's way more information there than you thought you needed to know.
Schneider's on the same format:
Schneider:
Drivers: 13,284
Driver Inspections: 17,074
Driver Out Of Service %: 0.8% <- Not even 1% OOS rate!!!
CSA:
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA)
The CSA is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicle
FMCSA:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
The FMCSA was established within the Department of Transportation on January 1, 2000. Their primary mission is to prevent commercial motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries.
What Does The FMCSA Do?
- Commercial Drivers' Licenses
- Data and Analysis
- Regulatory Compliance and Enforcement
- Research and Technology
- Safety Assistance
- Support and Information Sharing
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Those numbers look great, they are accurate, and are for driver inspections. That is not, however, any indicator of how many poor drivers there are. Did the guy in the video knocking over the hydrant then putting it back get caught and put OOS? Did he do the right thing and report it? How many dumb driver moves does Swift have that the drivers cover up and never get caught for? Show me those statistics and I might begin to believe you. I wasn't singling out Swift if you reread my post I was talking about big companies in general and not just in trucking. And In my experience it is true. Swift has a lot of good drivers no doubt you are one of them Errol. Don't feel that you need to defend Swift on every aspect. Just because there are some doofuses working there doesn't mean you have to defend them or Swift.
Phil
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Driver OOS only indicates the logs were correct and they were not drunk. Since they are using electronic logs , of course the driver OOS rate will be low.
Electronic Logs:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
For those that need to know why there was not spouting water here is a cutout of a hydrant.
Here is one connected to the main water line. Below the hydrant you will see a reddish colored fitting and that is the valve. Everything after that up to and including the hydrant is dry with no water.
And, if you park in front of a hydrant you may need new windows.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.New Reply:
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Two things, only two things nominate Swift to be the butt of jokes:
1. The largest carrier makes for an easy target (and the larger number, not percentage*) of doofuses.
2. They hire people off the street, train them and give them a job, unlike companies that want to see 1-2 years experience before they'll talk to you.
* That's a math thing. PM me & I'll explain it for you. :)