TT_091519_AllPages

Vol. 32, No. 18
www.thetrucker.com September 15-30, 2019
2019 International Roadcheck initiative shows slight hike
in out-of-service rates for both vehicle, driver inspections
Courtesy: REASON FOUNDATION
Rough road ahead
After decades of incremental
progress in several key categories,
the Reason Foundation finds
the nation’s highway conditions
are deteriorating, especially in a
group of problem-plagued states
struggling to repair deficient
bridges, maintain interstate
pavement and reduce urban traffic
congestion.
Page 4
Navigating the news
Trucking’s top rookie..............3
Military transition finalists.......5
Traffic deaths dropping...........6
Urban mobility........................7
Cargo theft down slightly......11
Truck Stop............................14
Ask the Attorney...................16
Tonnage up markedly...........17
Fleet Focus...........................20
eCascadia delivery...............25
Lane Departures...................27
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Page 27
Lyndon Finney
editor@thetrucker.com
GREENBELT, Md. — If the results of the
Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s 2019 International
Roadcheck are any indication, the
trucking industry still has work to do on some
vehicle compliance issues.
The CVSA said August 29 that 12,019 vehicles
were removed from roadways because of
critical vehicle inspection item violations compared
with 11,910 in 2018, while the total number
of inspections declined from 67,603 in 2018
to 67,072.
That’s a very slight increase, but an increase
nevertheless.
CVSA said 2,784 drivers were placed out of
service for driver-related violations compared
with 2,666 in 2018. Again, it’s a a slight increase,
but an increase nevertheless.
In 2019, there was a 17.9% overall vehicle
OOS rate and a 4.2% driver OOS rate, compared
with a 17.6% overall vehicle OOS rate and a
3.9% driver OOS rate in 2018.
International Roadcheck is an annual 72-
hour inspection and enforcement safety event
that identifies and removes unsafe commercial
motor vehicles and drivers from the nation’s
roadways, highlights the daily work of the
13,000-plus commercial motor vehicle inspectors
throughout North America and acknowledges
the safety compliance of motor carriers
and professional drivers through the affixion of
the CVSA decal on eligible vehicles.
Despite the slight increases in vehicle and
Courtesy: COLORADO DOT
A tractor-trailer straddles a runaway truck
ramp along I-70 in Colorado. One of the Colorado
ramps, the Lower Straight Creek runaway
truck ramp on westbound I-70 at milepost
211.83, is the most used truck ramp in the United
States, being used once a week on average
during the summer months.
Courtesy: COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SAFETY ALLIANCE
Each year, special emphasis is placed on a certain category of violations during International Roadcheck.
This year’s focus was on steering and suspension systems. Inspectors identified 408 steering
(2.5% of all out-of-service vehicle violations) and 703 suspension (4.3% of all out-of-service vehicle
violations) out-of-service vehicle conditions.
driver OOS rates, Will Schaefer, director of
safety programs at CVSA, stressed that Roadcheck
is about more than just numbers.
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
DENVER — The Colorado Department of
Transportation, in partnership with the Colorado
State Patrol, Colorado Motor Carriers Association
(CMCA) and in-cab driver alert providers,
PrePass Safety Alliance and Drivewyze,
are coming together to enhance safety for
truckers traveling through the state’s mountainous
areas.
The Mountain Rules is a comprehensive,
strategic and safety-focused effort to inform and
educate in-state and interstate trucking companies
and drivers on the challenges of driving in
Colorado’s mountains.
It includes information on potential hazards,
and is a consistent reminder of the need to be
slow, steady and safe for the long haul.
“It’s no secret that our mountains create immense
challenges for semitruck drivers,” said
CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew. “The
“One of the beneficial outcomes of our inspection
and enforcement event is that it reminds com-
See Roadcheck on p8 m
Colorado DOT, Drivewyze, PrePass, others partner
to create The Mountain Rules for tractor-trailers
Mountain Rules has a simple mission — get everyone
home safely — and this campaign, which
supports CDOT’s Whole Safety–Whole System
initiative, is a major step towards achieving that
goal.”
In addition to an educational effort, The
Mountain Rules consists of infrastructure and
informational improvements, including:
• Signing eastbound Interstate 70 and all
eastbound chain stations, east of the Eisenhower/Johnson
Tunnels, with information on the
brake check locations for truckers.
• Restriping the wide eastbound exit ramp
at the Genesee Park Interchange into a moredefined
short-term truck parking area where
overheated brakes can cool down and equipment
checks can take place prior to the final descent
into the Golden, Colorado, area.
• A new subscription-based, in-cab alert sys-
See Colorado on p9 m

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THETRUCKER.COM
Nation September 15-30, 2019 • 3
Seeking High Performing
Professional Team Drivers
Courtesy: STEVENS TRANSPORT
Dwight Arnold accepts the winner’s check for $10,000 after being named trucking’s top rookie
during the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas.
Stevens Transport’s Dwight Arnold
named trucking’s top rookie at GATS
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
DALLAS — Dwight Arnold, a driver for
Stevens Transport, has been named the 2019
Mike O’Connell Trucking’s Top Rookie Award
winner.
The award was presented August 23 during
the Great American Trucking Show.
Arnold, 38, lives in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Along with the title, he won $10,000 and prizes
from the RoadPro family of brands and Rand
McNally. Arnold also received $1,000 from his
company for winning the award.
“It gives you a buffer so I can work harder
and get more done, clear debt and prepare a
better life for my family,” Arnold said. “It’s a
dream come true.”
According to the Stevens Transport website,
Arnold was born in Kissimmee, Florida,
and raised in Jacksonville, Florida.
In 2001, Arnold joined the United States
Army. During his time in the service, he served
as an ammunition specialist, a military recruiter
and as a special unit transportation officer.
Arnold received many commendations in
the Army, including the Army Commendation
Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with a Campaign
Star and an Afghanistan Campaign Medal with
two stars.
After retiring from the service in August
2014, Arnold said, he wanted a profession that
matched what he was already used to doing,
one that allowed him to see his family more.
Having experience in the transportation industry,
he realized that a profession as a truck
driver would be the perfect fit, so he obtained
his CDL from Tennessee Truck Driving School
and graduated from orientation at Stevens in
August 2018.
Today, Arnold is a member of the Stevens
Independent Contractor Division and is driving
in the company’s Kraft dedicated fleet.
“Trucking has given me the opportunity to
make a better home dynamic for me and my
family,” Arnold said. “As for my future plans
with Stevens, I’m hoping to start a fleet with
four to five trucks and I also hope to build financial
stability with my family, thanks to the
financial success that I have had with trucking
so far.”
Arnold’s driver manager, DeAnthony
Montgomery, had high praise for Arnold’s success
at Stevens.
“Dwight is a driver that I know will complete
every task presented to him with a positive
attitude,” Montgomery said. “He consistently
delivers every load on time and is a very
motivated and exemplary driver. I am glad to
have him on my team.”
Arnold was one of 11 finalists for the award.
The other 10 finalists, the driver training
school they attended and their employer include:
• Aaron Pratt, Maverick Transportation,
Maverick Transportation
• Bradley Chislett, National Tractor Trailer
School, H.O. Wolding
• Daniel Walton, Roehl Transport, Roehl
Transport
• Jaron Grier, New England Tractor Trailer
Training School, U.S. Xpress
• Kandy Qualls, United Truck Driving
School, Earl L. Henderson Trucking Co.
• Matthew Hepburn, Miller-Motte College,
Melton Truck Lines
• Oday Alhousha, CDL Xpress School, Hogan
Transport
• Pamela Girton (Coffman), Tulsa Technology
Center, Groendyke Transport
• Thomas Blitch, Roadmaster Drivers
School, Werner Enterprises Inc.
• Tyria Snow, Diesel Driving Academy,
TMC Transportation
Each received $1,000 and a prize package.
The award is named after the late Mike
O’Connell, who was the executive director of
the Commercial Vehicle Training Association
and who originated the idea of the award.
O’Connell said he believed that honoring a
top rookie driver helped show new drivers they
are appreciated by the trucking industry. 8
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4 • September 15-30, 2019 Nation
THETRUCKER.COM
Reason Foundation report shows after decades of progress
U.S. highway conditions deteriorating, especially bridges
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
LOS ANGELES — After decades of incremental
progress in several key categories,
Reason Foundation’s Annual Highway Report
finds the nation’s highway conditions
are deteriorating, especially in a group of
problem-plagued states struggling to repair
deficient bridges, maintain interstate pavement
and reduce urban traffic congestion.
“In looking at the nation’s highway system
as a whole, there was a decades-long
trend of incremental improvement in most
key categories, but the overall condition of
the highway system has worsened in recent
years,” said Baruch Feigenbaum, lead author
of the Annual Highway Report and assistant
director of transportation at Reason Foundation.
“This year we see some improvement
on structurally deficient bridges, but pavement
conditions on rural and urban highways
are declining, the rise in traffic fatalities is
worrying, and we aren’t making needed
progress on traffic congestion in our major
cities.”
The 24th Annual Highway Report, based
on data that states submitted to the federal
government, ranks each state’s highway system
in 13 categories, including traffic fatalities,
pavement condition, congestion, spending
per mile, administrative costs and more.
This edition of the Annual Highway Report
uses state-submitted highway data from
2016, the most recent year with complete
figures currently available, along with traffic
congestion and bridge data from 2017.
North Dakota ranks first in the Annual
Highway Report’s overall performance and
cost-effectiveness rankings of state highway
systems for the second year in a row. North
Dakota’s rural and urban interstate pavement
conditions both rank in the top 10 and the
state has kept its per-mile costs down. Virginia
jumps an impressive 25 spots in the
rankings — from 27th overall in the previous
report — into second place in performance
and cost-effectiveness. Missouri, Maine and
Kentucky round out the top five states.
The state highway systems in New Jersey
(50th), Alaska (49th), Rhode Island (48th),
Hawaii (47th), Massachusetts (46th) and
New York (45th) rank at the bottom of the
nation in overall performance and cost-effectiveness.
Despite spending more money per
mile than any other state, New Jersey has the
worst urban traffic congestion and among the
worst urban interstate pavement conditions
in the country.
The study finds pavement conditions on
both urban interstates and rural interstates
are deteriorating, with the percentage of urban
interstate mileage in poor condition increasing
in 29 of 50 states. One-third, 33 percent,
of the nation’s urban Interstate mileage
in poor condition is concentrated in just five
states: California, Delaware, Hawaii, Louisiana,
and New York.
It’s not just urban interstates with the
rougher pavement, however, the Annual
Highway Report finds the percentage of rural
arterial principal roads in poor condition at
its worst levels since 2000.
Similarly, the study’s three traffic fatality
categories — overall, urban and rural — all
The Reason Foundation study finds pavement
conditions on both urban interstates and
rural interstates are deteriorating, with the
percentage of urban interstate mileage in
poor condition increasing in 29 of 50 states.
Courtesy: REASON FOUNDATION
This map from the Reason Foundation report on America’s roads shows how states fared in
the rankings.
show more fatalities in 2016 than in any year
since 2007.
The most positive news is on bridges,
where 39 states lowered the percentage of
bridges deemed structurally deficient. Unfortunately,
18 percent or more of bridges
remain structurally deficient in these five
states: Iowa, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
South Dakota and West Virginia.
Traffic congestion remains about the
same from the previous report, with Americans
spending an average of 35 hours a year
stuck in traffic. Drivers in New Jersey, New
York, California, Georgia and Massachusetts
experience the longest delays due to urban
traffic congestion in their metro regions.
The Annual Highway Report finds states
disbursed about $139 billion for state-controlled
highways and arterials in 2016, a four
percent decrease from approximately $145
billion spent in 2015.
“Some may point to the slight decrease
in overall state highway spending in 2016 as
a cause of the lack of improvement in key
highway metrics, but 21 states made overall
progress in 2016. Examining the 10-year average
of state overall performance data indicates
that the national system performance
problems are largely concentrated in the bottom
10 states,” Feigenbaum said. “Toward
the bottom of the rankings, you have highly
populated states, like last-place New Jersey,
along with Massachusetts, New York, and
California to a lesser extent, that are spending
a lot but often failing to keep up with
traffic congestion and road maintenance.
There are also a few very problematic lowpopulation
states like Rhode Island, Delaware,
Hawaii and Alaska, which contribute
an outsized share of the nation’s structurally
deficient bridges, poor pavement conditions,
and high administrative costs—money that
doesn’t make it to roads.”
New Jersey, Florida, Massachusetts, New
York and Connecticut spent the most on their
highways on a per-mile basis, with each state
spending more than $200,000 per mile of
highway it controls. In contrast, Missouri,
which ranks third overall in performance and
cost-effectiveness, did so while spending just
$23,534 per mile of highway it controls.
Massachusetts ranks low in the overall
rankings but shows the nation’s lowest traffic
fatality rate, while South Carolina reports
the highest. 8
USPS 972
Volume 32, Number 18
September 15-30, 2019
The Trucker is a semi-monthly, national newspaper for the
trucking industry, published by Trucker Publications Inc. at
1123 S. University, Suite 320
Little Rock, AR 72204-1610
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Vice President / Publisher
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Editor
Lyndon Finney
editor@thetrucker.com
Assistant Editor
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klint.lowry@thetrucker.com
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Rob Nelson
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Cliff Abbott
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THETRUCKER.COM
Nation September 15-30, 2019 • 5
Finalists named for Transition Trucking’s military veteran rookie driver award
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
DALLAS — Four professional truck drivers
who have each served their country with distinction
achieved another distinction in their new careers
during the Great American Trucking Show,
as they were named finalists in the annual Transition
Trucking: Driving for Excellence contest.
In 2016, the U.S Chamber of Commerce
Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes Program,
along with Kenworth and FASTPORT, came
together “to find America’s top rookie military
veteran,” according to the program’s website,
who has made the successful transition from
active duty to driving for a commercial fleet.
And for the fourth consecutive year, the winner
will receive a fully-loaded Kenworth T680
equipped with a 76-inch sleeper and a complete
PACCAR Powertrain with a PACCAR MX-13
engine, PACCAR 12-speed automated transmission
and PACCAR 40K tandem axles.
Ten semifinalists were invited to Dallas,
where they were all honored at a dinner August
22 at the George W. Bush Presidential Library.
The next day, the four finalists were announced.
The four finalists are:
Christopher Bacon, a 31-year-old who hails
from St. Louis and drives for TMC Transportation.
Bacon served two combat tours in the Marine
Corps, one each in Afghanistan and Iraq, as
an anti-tank missileman. After an honorable discharge
in 2010, Bacon worked as an automotive
technician and service advisor before deciding to
fulfill his dream of becoming a truck driver.
Courtesy: KENWORTH TRUCK CO.
Rookie drivers Steve Harris, left, Wade Bumgarner, Christopher Bacon and Joseph Campbell
stand in front of the Kenworth T680 that will soon belong to whichever of them is named
the Transition Trucking Driving for Excellence winner.
Wade Bumgarner, who drives for Veriha
Trucking, grew up in a military family. His
father served 23 years in the Air Force before
taking on a 13-year career with U.S. Customs.
Bumgarner, joined the Navy in 1976 and has
since been actively involved in helping transitioning
veterans for many years, assisting vets
with job search skills, resume writing and jobsearch
strategies.
Joseph Campbell served a combined 24
years in the Army and Marines prior to beginning
his truck-driving career in Roehl Transport’s
flatbed division. His first responsibility is protecting
the motoring public and then picking up and
delivering cargo on-time and undamaged. Campbell
is training to become a certified trainer and he
is a member of the Driver Advisory Group.
Steve Harris was born and raised in Atlanta.
After he graduated from high school, he attended
the Army Mountain Warfare School. Upon completion
in 2002, Harris joined the United States
Marine Corps and was deployed to Iraq, Syria
and Afghanistan, during which time he received
the Combat Action Ribbon. After his deployments,
Steve worked as a corrections officer for
one year in Georgia. He started driving for Stevens
Transport and hasn’t looked back since.
“This year’s four finalists had significant accomplishments
in their military careers and now
are making excellent achievements as professional
truck drivers,” said Brad Bentley, FAST-
PORT president.
Other truck drivers in the Top 10 are:
–Thomas Blitch/U.S. Navy and Naval Reserves/Werner
Enterprises
–Keso Going/U.S. Army/Epes Transport
–Kevin Lassing/ U.S. Army/U.S. Xpress
–Maliq Melton/U.S. Army/ Melton Truck
Lines
–Monte Morrone/U.S. Army and U.S. Marines/Prime
Inc.
–Timothy Raub/ U.S. Navy/Averitt Express
Videos featuring each of the four finalists will
be posted on the Transition Trucking website,
transitiontrucking.org, where a public vote will
determine the winner. The online voting will be
from October 1 through November 1. The winner
will be announced December 6.
There, the winner will be presented with the
Kenworth T680. The first runner-up will receive
$10,000, while the two other finalists will receive
$5,000 each.
For more information on the “Transition
Trucking: Driving for Excellence” award program,
visit transitiontrucking.org. 8
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6 • September 15-30, 2019 Nation
THETRUCKER.COM
National Safety Council says traffic fatalities
projected to decline for first time since 2015
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
ITASCA, Ill. — Preliminary estimates from
the National Safety Council indicate the fouryear
upward trend in motor vehicle deaths that
began in 2015 is ebbing, with the number of
fatalities in the first six months of 2019 dropping
3 percent compared to the same six-month
period in 2018.
An estimated 18,580 people died on U.S.
roadways between January and June of this year,
compared to the council’s revised estimate of
19,060 during the same period last year. An additional
2.1 million people are estimated to have
sustained serious crash-related injuries during the
first six months of 2019, a 1 percent drop from
2018 six-month projections.
The NSC defines “serious” injuries as those
requiring medical attention.
The estimate caps a three-year period in which
roadway deaths topped 40,000 each year for the
first time since the mid-2000s.
A total of 118,315 people died on the roadways
between 2015 and 2017, and an estimated
40,000 additional people perished last year.
However, drivers still face the same fatality
risk this year as they did when fatalities were
eclipsing 40,000 annually, because the estimated
annual rate of deaths per miles driven has
remained stable. NSC estimates 1.2 deaths per
every million vehicle miles traveled, unchanged
from 2018 rates.
“While the numbers indicate a slight improvement,
the rate of deaths remains stagnant,
and 18,580 deaths so far this year is unacceptable,”
said Lorraine M. Martin, president and
CEO of the National Safety Council. “We cannot
accept death as the price of mobility. We
urge all drivers to slow down, buckle up, pay
attention and drive defensively.”
The council’s early estimates indicate significant
progress in some states. In the first half of
this year, several states have experienced at least a
10% percent drop in motor vehicle deaths, including
Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri,
Nevada, Oklahoma and Utah. A sample of
states with increases through the first six months
include Kentucky (6%), Hawaii (20%), Oregon
(6%) and New Mexico (15%).
To help ensure safer roads, NSC urges motorists
to:
• Practice defensive driving. Buckle up, designate
a sober driver or arrange alternative transportation,
get plenty of sleep to avoid fatigue, and
drive attentively, avoiding distractions. Visit nsc.
org for defensive driving tips.
• Recognize the dangers of drugged driving,
including impairment from cannabis and opioids.
Visit StopEverydayKillers.org to understand the
impact of the nation’s opioid crisis.
• Stay engaged in teens’ driving habits. Visit
DriveitHOME.org for resources.
•Learn about your vehicle’s safety systems
and how to use them. Visit MyCarDoesWhat.
org for information.
• Fix recalls immediately. Visit ChecktoProtect.org
to ensure your vehicle does not have an
open recall.
• Ask lawmakers and state leaders to protect
travelers on state roadways. The NSC State of
Safety report shows which states have the strongest
and weakest traffic safety laws.
• Get involved in the Road to Zero Coalition,
a group of more than 900 organizations across the
country focused on eliminating roadway deaths
by 2050. Visit nsc.org/roadtozero to join.
The National Safety Council has tracked
fatality trends and issued estimates for nearly
100 years. All estimates are subject to slight
increases and decreases as the data mature.
NSC collects fatality data every month from
all 50 states and the District of Columbia and
uses data from the National Center for Health
Statistics, so that deaths occurring within one
year of the crash and on both public and private
roadways, such as parking lots and driveways,
are included in the estimates. 8
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THETRUCKER.COM
Nation September 15-30, 2019 • 7
Study says it’s simple math: more cars, more congestion — fixing it more complex
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — If more
Americans are working, a new report confirms,
more of us are also tied up in traffic.
The picture is painted clearly in the 2019
Urban Mobility Report published by the Texas
A&M Transportation Institute (TTI).
Along with illustrating the problem, researchers
also stress the same straightforward
solutions they’ve long advocated: more
of everything — roads, transit, squeezing as
much efficiency out of the existing system as
possible, reducing demand through telework,
better balancing demand and roadway capacity
by adjusting work hours, and smarter land
use.
“No single approach will ever solve this
complex problem,” said Tim Lomax, a report
author and Regents Fellow at TTI. “We
know what works. What the country needs
is a robust, information-powered conversation
at the local, state and national levels
about what steps should be taken. We have
many strategies; we have to figure out the
right solution for each problem and a way to
pay for them.”
The United States added 1.9 million jobs
from 2016 to 2017 — slower growth than the
2.3 million-plus growth in four of the five
previous years, but more than enough to exacerbate
the nation’s traffic woes. TTI’s gridlock
data extends back to 1982, when Ronald
Reagan was in his first term, a postage stamp
cost 20 cents and gas was about $1.25 a gallon.
Since that time, the number of jobs in
the nation has grown almost nonstop by just
over 50 percent to the current total of 153
million.
Furthermore, since 1982:
• The number of hours per commuter lost
to traffic delay has nearly tripled, climbing to
54 hours a year.
• The annual cost of that delay per commuter
has nearly doubled, to $1,010.
• The nationwide cost of gridlock has
grown more than tenfold, to $166 billion a
year.
• The amount of fuel wasted in traffic
jams has more than tripled, to 3.3 billion gallons
a year.
“The value of investing in our nation’s
transportation infrastructure in a strategic
and effective manner cannot be overstated
as these added costs impact our national productivity,
quality of life, economic efficiency
and global competitiveness,” said Marc Williams,
deputy executive director of the Texas
Department of Transportation, which funded
the TTI research. The 2008–2009 recession
produced only a brief pause in traffic congestion
growth, which bounced back at an even
quicker pace than associated job recovery.
The result of today’s urban congestion is
that the average freeway traveler has to allow
almost twice the expected trip duration to
ensure dependable arrival for time-sensitive
things like medical appointments, day-care
pickup and airline flights compared to what
would be required without congestion. Instead
of the 20 minutes needed in light traffic,
it’s best to plan a 34-minute trip.
“Those minutes don’t sound like much,
but they add up quickly over a year,” says
David Schrank, a TTI senior research scientist
and report author. “Eventually, we’re
talking billions of wasted hours, and the cost
of delay at that scale is just enormous.” Simply
put, travel demand is growing faster than
the system’s ability to absorb that demand.
Once considered a problem exclusive to big
cities, roadway gridlock now afflicts urban
areas of all sizes and consumes far more of
each day, making “rush hour” a long-outdated
reference.
“The problem affects not only commuters,
but also manufacturers and shippers whose
travel delay costs are passed on to consumers,”
said Bill Eisele, a report author and TTI
senior research engineer. “While trucks constitute
only 7 percent of road traffic, they account
for 12 percent of congestion cost.”
Researchers emphasize that it’s urgent for
the nation to develop consensus on specific
strategies for each urban travel corridor now,
since major projects, programs, and funding
strategies take a decade or more to develop
and bear fruit.
Almost every strategy works somewhere
and in some situations, they say, and almost
every strategy is the wrong idea in certain
places at certain times. Using a balanced and
diversified approach that focuses on more of
everything — tempered by realistic expectations
— is the best way forward.
The 2019 Urban Mobility Report examines
conditions in 494 urban areas across
all states and Puerto Rico. The research was
supported by INRIX, a leading provider of
transportation data and analytics.
For a copy of the report and an interactive
map of congestion conditions visit mobility.
tamu.edu/umr/. 8
Become an OOIDA member.
800-444-5791 • www.ooida.com

8 • September 15-30, 2019 Nation
b Roadcheck from page 1 b
mercial motor vehicle owners and operators
of the importance of vehicle maintenance and
fixing mechanical issues when they arise, and
it reminds drivers of the importance of conducting
pre- and post-trip inspections,” Schaefer
said. “Some vehicles might not be as well
maintained if there was not this annual event
when vehicles are more likely to be checked
with a roadside safety inspection. It is a little
disappointing to see the OOS remaining at
around one in five vehicles checked, but that’s
why our work needs to continue.”
Jack Van Steenburg, chief safety officer
and assistant administrator at the Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which
is heavily involved in Roadcheck, compared
the Roadcheck results with national OOS
rates, but noted one major disappointment.
“The 2019 Roadcheck results indicated
lower driver and vehicle OOS rates than the
national average,” he said. “This year during
Roadcheck the driver OOS rate was 4.2%
compared to the national average of 4.9%,
while the vehicle OOS rate was 17.2% compared
to the national average OOS rate of
21%. The big disappointment was that 748
citations were written for seat belt violations;
one violation is one too many. In 2017, at
least 36% of large-truck occupants who were
killed were not restrained by a safety belt.”
Both Schaefer and Van Steenburg stressed
that in addition to enforcement, Roadcheck
is an educational endeavor that is important
in lowering OOS rates in the future.
“What is not mentioned in reporting the
numbers is all the education that occurs during
road checks and the partnerships that
goes on between the enforcement community
and the motor carrier industry,” Van
Steenburg said. “There are so many variables
that can impact OOS rates and to speculate
won’t help. Together, we need to continue to
collaborate, assure industry has strong systematic
inspection, repair and maintenance
programs, conducts quality pre-inspections,
and promotes a strong safety culture atmosphere
for all their personnel.”
Schaefer said CVSA continues to document
the vehicle conditions that are found in
the inspection process so that drivers, owneroperators,
carriers and researchers can more
effectively address the root causes.
He noted that Roadcheck covers all facets
of the transportation industry.
International Roadcheck is not only
checking over-the-road drivers and trucks
but also everyday delivery vans, construction
and vocational trucks, trucks in and out
of ports, motor coaches and any other commercial
motor vehicle operations on public
roadways, he said.
During an inspection, if an inspector identifies
critical vehicle inspection item out-ofservice
violations, he or she will render the
vehicle out of service, which means those mechanical
defects must be corrected before the
vehicle is permitted to proceed. A driver found
to be in violation of the driver-related conditions
in the CVSA North American Standard
Out-of-Service Criteria will be placed out of
service until the condition can be rectified.
During International Roadcheck, inspectors
primarily conducted one of three inspection
levels:
• The North American Standard (NAS)
Level I Inspection is a 37-step procedure that
includes an examination of driver operating
requirements and vehicle mechanical fitness.
In 2019, there were 45,568 Level I inspections
conducted in the U.S. and Canada;
21.5% (9,817) of those inspected vehicles
were placed OOS.
• The NAS Level II Inspection typically
includes everything that can be inspected
without physically getting under the vehicle.
• The NAS Level III Inspection is a review
of driver requirements, such as the license,
additional operating credentials, applicable
cargo and vehicle documentation,
record of duty status, seat belt usage, etc.
CVSA gathered and analyzed data from the
three days of International Roadcheck from the
U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s
Motor Carrier Management Information
System and pooled that data with data collected
and submitted by CVSA’s Canadian jurisdictions
to report overall statistics from Canada
and the U.S. for International Roadcheck.
• There were 60,058 Level I, II and III
inspections conducted in the U.S.
• There were 7,014 Level I, II and III inspections
conducted in Canada.
• The total vehicle out-of-service rate in
the U.S. was 17.7%.
• The total vehicle out-of-service rate in
Canada was 19.9%.
• 4.4% of drivers inspected in the U.S.
were placed out of service.
The North American Standard (NAS) Level I
Inspection is a 37-step procedure that includes
an examination of driver operating requirements
and vehicle mechanical fitness. In 2019, there
were 45,568 Level I inspections conducted in
the U.S. and Canada; 21.5% (9,817) of those
inspected vehicles were placed OOS.
• 2% of drivers inspected in Canada were
placed out of service.
Each year, special emphasis is placed on
a certain category of violations, with this
year’s emphasis being on steering and suspension
systems.
While checking those vehicle components
is always part of the North American
Standard Inspection, CVSA selected steering
components and suspension systems as
a reminder of their importance to vehicle
safety and fitness.
Inspectors identified 408 steering (2.5%
of all out-of-service vehicle violations) and
703 suspension (4.3% of all out-of-service
vehicle violations) out-of-service vehicle
conditions during International Roadcheck.
Of the 67,072 inspections conducted
during International Roadcheck, there were
16,347 out-of-service vehicle conditions
(some vehicles had multiple OOS violations).
The vehicle portion of an inspection
includes checking critical vehicle inspection
items such as: brake systems; cargo securement;
coupling devices; driveline/driveshaft;
driver’s seat (missing); exhaust systems;
frames; fuel systems; lighting devices (headlamps,
tail lamps, stop lamps, turn signals
and lamps/flags on projecting loads); steering
mechanisms; suspensions; tires; van and
open-top trailer bodies; wheels, rims, and
hubs; and windshield wipers.
Since December 17, 2017, the U.S. Department
of Transportation requires the use
of electronic logging devices in commercial
motor vehicles involved in interstate commerce
when operated by drivers who are
required to keep hours-of-service records of
THETRUCKER.COM
duty status. The ELD mandate did not, however,
change any of the underlying hoursof-service
rules, regulations, requirements,
exemptions or exceptions.
There were 3,851 commercial motor vehicles
transporting hazardous materials/dangerous
goods (HM/DG) inspected during International
Roadcheck. Inspections of HM/
DG include, in addition to the standard Level
I vehicle and driver items, checking for compliance
of shipping papers, placarding, marking,
labeling, packaging and loading.
There were 527 HM/DG vehicles with
out-of-service conditions, which is a 13.7%
out-of-service rate for HM/DG vehicles.
There were 52 HM/DG drivers placed
out-of-service; that’s a 1.4% out-of-service
rate for HM/DG drivers.
Since its inception in 1988, more than 1.7
million roadside inspections have been conducted
during International Roadcheck campaigns.
International Roadcheck is a CVSA
program with participation by FMCSA, Canadian
Council of Motor Transport Administrators,
Transport Canada and Secretaría de
Comunicaciones y Transportes (SCT) (Ministry
of Communications and Transportation)
of Mexico. 8

THETRUCKER.COM
b Colorado from page 1 b
tem, warning truck drivers about specific areas
where brake failures could occur, and the
location of brake check and runaway truck
ramps.
• Information gathering on the feasibility
of a new ramp and other measures to mitigate
runaway trucks, such as geometric and
signage improvements to the existing Mount
Vernon Canyon Truck Runaway Ramp.
“I want to dispel any misconceptions,
myths or rumors about truck ramps for all
commercial carriers who travel our mountain
corridors,” said CSP Col. Matthew Packard.
“Commercial carriers will not be cited
by law enforcement for using truck ramps.
Should your brakes fail, please save lives
and use the ramps.”
The I-70 Mountain Corridor will be the
initial pilot for The Mountain Rules. CDOT
then will expand the program to other mountainous
locations.
“Our mountains, and the highways winding
through them, provide some of the greatest vistas
in the world and make Colorado special,”
said Jim Coleman, chairman of the CMCA.
“These same roadways, such as I-70, pose a
particular challenge for truck drivers and truck
brakes, with long and steep downgrades of up
to 7%. This outreach effort and program will
go a long way in educating truck drivers of
how to navigate through our mountains, which
will enhance safety for all highway users.”
Drivewyze said that its subscribers will
have their drivers receive in-cab alerts that
will inform them of upcoming safe locations to
pull over for brake check inspections and show
them prompts to gear low while showing suggested
maximum speeds down steep grades.
It will also alert drivers of upcoming runaway
ramps. Colorado was Drivewyze’s first state in
the new alert program. Seven Colorado mountain
passes are part of Drivewyze Safety.
According to Brian Mofford, vice president
of government experience at Drivewyze,
Colorado’s I-70 west, which goes from Vail
Pass from the west through Eisenhower Tunnel
(elevation 11,158) to Mt. Vernon Canyon to the
east, represents 60 miles of difficult driving.
“It’s a challenge for truck drivers, with
steep grades and heavy traffic, especially for
those new to mountain driving,” he said. “Drivers
have to be in tune with their surroundings,
check their brakes and be prepared for constant
downshifting and speed control.
“Brakes can get hot and fail for those
who are not ready. It’s why we also have notifications
for runaway ramps as a last-resort
safeguard for a safe stop. Our alerts will help
Nation September 15-30, 2019 • 9
keep preparations top of mind to help keep
truck drivers and the motoring public safer.”
PrePass said its alerts are a feature of the
MOTION weigh station bypass mobile application.
The alerts notify truck drivers of
steep grades ahead from about 5 miles away
and notify them as they approach any of five
runaway truck ramps along the route. Drivers
will also receive alerts for seven sites
along I-70 where they can perform brake
checks and, during winter, complete truck
tire chain-ups or removals.
“These dynamic alerts will improve highway
safety by notifying truck drivers well in
advance of steep grades and sites where they
can check their brakes,” said Terry Maple,
regional director for PrePass Safety Alliance.
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Maple, former superintendent of the Kansas
Highway Patrol, said the additional alerts
will minimize distractions because they require
no interaction on the part of the driver.
Colorado’s I-70 is known as having one of
the country’s most difficult passes for truck
drivers. An out-of-control runaway truck
in April slammed into stopped traffic near
Lakewood, killing four people. Other tragedies
have been averted thanks to truck drivers
using the corridor’s five runaway truck
ramps along the route. The Lower Straight
Creek runaway truck ramp along westbound
I-70 at milepost 211.83 is the most-used
truck ramp in the United States, being used
once a week on average during the summer
months. 8
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10 • September 15-30, 2019 Nation
THETRUCKER.COM
FMCSA announces Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse query fees for carriers
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THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
WASHINGTON — As the trucking industry
grudgingly lurches forward in the face of inevitable
change — specifically, to the Federal Motor
Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) Drug
and Alcohol Clearinghouse — the agency has announced
what the new database, set to go into effect
at the start of next year, is going to cost to use.
Per a directive from Congress in 2012, the
FMCSA’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse is a
national electronic database that will keep individual
records of CDL holders of any positive
drug or alcohol test results, as well as any test
refusals and other drug and alcohol violations.
The database will also record when a driver
completes the return-to-duty process following
a violation.
As of January 6, when the clearinghouse is
officially activated, employers looking to hire
a driver for a CDL-required position will be required
to conduct a query through the database
as part of the hiring process.
Employers will also be required to perform
a query at least once a year on every driver
holding a CDL that is in their employ.
Trucking companies and owner-operators
will have two options for paying query fees to
access the records of drivers in the database.
The first option will be to pay at a rate of $1.25
per query.
Carriers and owner-operators will be required
to purchase what the agency is calling
a query “bundle” on FMCSA’s website, clearinghouse.fmcsa.dot.gov.
There will be 19
bundles, ranging from a single query for $1.25
to a bundle of 7,500 queries for $9,375.
These bundles are valid indefinitely, although
FMCSA is recommending employers purchase
bundles based on a year’s anticipated need. If a
carrier runs out of queries, they can purchase another
bundle, but FMCSA recommends carriers
choose a bundle based on the size of their fleet.
Large fleets have the option of paying a flat
rate of $24,500 for a year of unlimited queries.
There will be two levels of queries into
the database. The first is the limited query, for
which the driver must give their permission.
The limited query will simply indicate whether
there are any items in the driver’s file. With a
full query, the file is opened to show detailed
information about any resolved or unresolved
violations in the driver’s record.
“Purchasing a query plan enables employers
and their designated consortia/third-party
administrators (C/TPAs) to conduct queries on
prospective and current drivers in the Clearinghouse,”
FMCSA said, noting that third-party
administrators will not be allowed to purchase
query plans on their own. At the same time,
FMCSA noted that owner-operators will be required
to work through a C/TPA to manage a
drug and alcohol testing program.
The $1.25 fee applies to both limited and
full queries. However, the FMCSA website explains,
“If a limited query returns a result that
there is information recorded in the Clearinghouse
about the queried driver, and the employer
follows up with a full query to access the detailed
violation information, the employer will
only be charged once for both queries.” 8
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THETRUCKER.COM
Cargo thefts hold steady in
second quarter of 2019; food
products most common
Nation September 15-30, 2019 • 11
Women In Trucking gives
its endorsement to insurance
options for member carriers
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
AUSTIN, Texas — There were 144 cargo
thefts in the United States in the second quarter
of 2019, according to the SensiGuard Supply
Chain Intelligence Center (SCIC).
The thefts were almost evenly divided
among the three months of April, May and June.
SCIC said the average loss value per incident
was $118,496.
Compared to the first quarter of 2019, this
represents a 1% decrease in volume and a 2%
increase in value. When comparing these figures
to the same quarter in 2018, it represents
less than a 1% decrease in volume but a 34%
decrease in value.
SCIC said it should also be noted that there
were two thefts of more than $1 million recorded
in the second quarter of 2018, while there
were one each in the first and second quarters
of 2019, as of the publication of SCIC’s latest
report. However, SCIC noted that delays in incident
reporting typically cause measurable increases
in theft volumes in the weeks following
publication of its quarterly reports. The totals
for the most recent quarter are expected to rise
above those recorded thus far.
It is SCIC’s practice to use updated theft
numbers from past quarters when comparing
them to current three-month totals, the company
said.
©2019 FOTOSEARCH
Between 2010 and 2016, food and drinks has been the perennial top product type in cargo
theft. The category was at the top of the list in the second quarter with 27% of the total.
In the second quarter of 2019, food and
drinks (27% of total) claimed the sole top spot
for the first time since the same quarter in 2016.
The food and drink category tied for most stolen
in the second quarter of 2017 with home
and garden.
Between 2010 and 2016, food and drink
had been the perennial top product type in
cargo theft, the most prevalent product stolen
in that category was meats, which accounted
for 26%.
Home and garden claimed the second spot
in Q2-2019 with 15% of total thefts, with 24%
of thefts being paper products, closely followed
by furniture and decor (19%).
“Miscellaneous,” which was the most stolen
product type in in the first quarter of 2019,
accounted for 14% of total thefts this quarter
to place third. As usual, thefts within miscellaneous
were primarily mixed load (63%), which
are typically loads of mixed inventory destined
for brick-and-mortar retail locations.
Electronics came in fourth with 12%, led by
thefts of audio and video equipment (29%) and
closely followed by software, components and
peripherals and televisions and displays (24%
each).
Auto and parts rounded out the top five
product types with 11%, the majority of its
thefts being tires (50%). 8
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
PLOVER, Wis. – The Women In Trucking Association
recently endorsed a health insurance and
employee benefits portfolio of options now available
to members with two or more employees.
The organization is working with insurance
broker OneDigital Health and Benefits, a provider
of employee benefits and human resource
solutions to provide sales and service for its
members. Services include highly rated, wellrecognized
insurance carriers and include group
life, dental, vision, local doctors and hospitals, as
well as additional options for voluntary benefits.
Payroll administration options through Zenefits
are now available, as well, to all interested
WIT member companies though this relationship.
The Women In Trucking Association will
offer its members a resource to provide viable
employee benefits and related administrative
options at a high-quality level.
Member companies have the option at any
point in the year to learn more about these new
benefits by requesting a quote from One Digital.
WIT will also be hosting a free webinar on the
topic on September 19 at 11a.m. CDT. Register at
womenintrucking.org/wit-webinar-series.
For more information about the Women In
Trucking insurance benefits options, contact
Cheryl Blake at cblake@onedigital.com or Joe
Simon at joe.simon@aon.com. 8
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Date: 08/23/19 Client: CMA Job #: 2821 File Name: 2821-CMA-TheTrucker-September-HP-iR Page 1 of 1

Perspective September
15-30, 2019 • 12
Letters
Are speed limiters the answer, or is
the problem actually limited literacy?
In your response to speed limiters reducing
accidents in your August 15-31 edition, I
would like to hear more about how many accidents
happen as a result of being able to read
or speak the English language at 70 mph going
into a construction with signs written in English,
toting an 88,000-pound load.
There is a law that states you must be able
to read and speak the English language fluently
to have a CDL.
How does that affect 35-50% of the seat
warmers behind the wheel of these big trucks
and what is their accident rate?
Highway safety is spelled m-o-n-e-y. Corporate
money to the bureaucrats that pass the
laws that benefit them. In Washington, it’s
called lobbying. In the real world it’s called
bribery.
Good luck all safety-oriented drivers, it’s
just going to get worse.
— Jerry Irwin
Let’s not overcomplicate HOS
regulations as we try to fix them
With HOS listening sessions underway
to voice opinions for the upcoming amendments
to the current Hours of Service, I wish
to take a moment to ask just what anyone is
thinking.
With added amendments comes room
for misinterpretation, confusion and a math
problem or two, to say the least. Why not a
16-hour clock? Yup. It’s that simple. With
today’s technologies and vast communications,
we do not need an exemption rule for
the weather. If a driver were to use it, I hope
the next time he receives a Level 3 inspection
the officer understands why he chooses to use
the exemption. If not, we just open another
rule to be enforced without clear understanding
what’s the purpose. If the DOT officer
were to disagree with how the driver used it,
now they risk being fined or even put out of
service.
As far as adding another option to add a
7-3 split sleeper to the existing 8-2, that is
crazy. Also let’s remember we need to have
a consecutive 10 afterward, but only after the
7-3 combinations. That should do wonders
considering most drivers that I have spoken
to don’t use much less understand the current
8-2.
Also, let’s not forget about the good ol’
30-minute break. With the current provision,
it was first implied that it would allow a driver
to rest. It’s another rule which is pointless
in my view bearing in mind that most drivers
are out of their trucks cleaning windows,
walking dogs and completing other tasks other
than the so-called rest. OK. I’ll give it to
them on that one. Getting out of the truck and
completing other activities is good to keep a
See Letters on p13 m
FMCSA listened: Theme of HOS proposal is ‘flexibility’
Lyndon Finney
editor@thetrucker.com
Eye on
Trucking
Cleaning out the notebook while waiting for
the first Arkansas Razorback game (if you’ve
never looked on Page 4, The Trucker is based in
Little Rock, Arkansas, and by they way, we won,
barely) …
* * *
There are few Americans who are not absolutely
frustrated with the us vs. them mentality of
the legislative branch of our federal government.
Nothing the Republicans do meets the approval
of the Democrats.
Nothing the Democrats do meets the approval
of the Republicans.
We’ve been at this job now for almost 15
years and if you’ll allow us to be very candid, the
same has been true of the trucking industry.
In this case, it was the drivers versus the
American Trucking Associations, the Truckload
Carriers Association and the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration, et al, especially the
FMCSA, and especially true when it involved
regulatory matters such as Hours of Service and
electronic logging devices.
Granted, the former has been plagued by the
court system since what is the foundation of the
current version of HOS was published in final
rule form on April 28, 2003, and became effective
January 4, 2004.
Safety advocates, buoyed by the fact that the
new rule upped the allowable driving time from
Because it is not about safety. It’s about
money. What’s more, most enforcement
officers don’t really know how air brakes
work.
— James Kendrick
10 to 11 hours each day, sued, and on July 16,
2004, a federal appeals court vacated the rule saying
the FMCSA had not considered effects of the
changes in HOS on drivers’ health as required by
a federal law that said any regulation concerning
the operation of commercial motor vehicles could
not have a deleterious effect on the physical condition
of the CMV drivers.
Over an approximate seven-year period, various
new versions of rule repeatedly wound up in
court, with FMCSA finally emerging triumphant,
and with one major exception the 2011 rule is the
one in place today.
One of the major complaints we hear concerning
the FMCSA is that the agency doesn’t
listen to the rank and file.
With the rank and file (drivers and carrier
executives alike) pleading for a rule with more
flexibility, the agency did listen, as evidenced by
the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Hours of
Service for Drivers.
Read through the NPRM and you’ll see the
words “flexible” or “flexibility” well over 50
times.
The first sentence of the document says it all:
“FMCSA proposes amendments to its Hour of
Service requirements to provide greater flexibility
for drivers subject to the HOS rules without
adversely affecting safety.”
Another statement jumped out at us: “The
flexibilities in this proposal are intended to allow
drivers to shift their driver and work time
to mitigate the impacts of certain variables (e.g.,
weather, traffic, detention times) to take breaks
without penalty when they need rest; FMCSA
does not anticipate that any of these time shifts
would negatively impact drivers’ health.”
Now here’s the real kicker.
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance has released the results of the 2019
International Roadcheck program, and the percentages of vehicles and drivers
put out of service is higher than in 2018. Why do you think the percentages are
not decreasing despite all the emphasis on safety in the trucking industry?
Blah, blah, blah. Not taking care of your
equipment just means you’re lazy or a poor
business owner. Maybe stop running 80
mph and getting 5 mpg. Maybe try saving
some fuel cost to put toward repairs.
— Kenneth Gregory Bebout
Those ELDs that so many drivers eschewed
played a role in the agency’s decision to amend
HOS.
To wit: “The HOS regulations were identified
as an area for potential modification both as
a result of the public comments received and due
to changes in tracking HOS compliance through
implementation of the ELD rulemaking. The accuracy
of the electronic data provided to enforcement
is much higher than information that was
previously provided on paper. While the ELD
rule did not change the HOS rules, the accurate
recording of driving time by ELDs highlighted
the rigidity of HOS provisions and the practical
ramifications drivers faced.”
Key to getting these amendments put in place
as proposed is the current comment period.
The agency will carefully review public comments
on the NPRM and could make changes
based on those comments.
So, let the agency know how you feel.
Go to regulations.gov, put in the document
number FMCSA-2018-0248 in the keyword box
and click “search.” When the new screen appears
click on “Comment Now!” and type in your comment
into the text box on the following screen.
Choose whether you are submitting your comment
as an individual or on behalf of a third party
and then submit.
* * *
In the past few days there have been reports
of several trucking companies going belly up, 10
to be exact as of this writing, out of 1.7 million
carriers in the United States.
Some 3,000 drivers have lost jobs, which is
sad, but based on American Trucking Associations
data on a 60,000-person driver shortage, at
least there are plenty of openings. 8
For starters, you have drivers doing crazy
things that professional drivers would
not dare do. Secondly, you have some company
drivers and owners that “pass the
buck,” that is, the burden of repair, to the
next driver. Also, there are those such as
Prime Logistics Corp. that cut corners one
too many times and get busted.
— Charles J. McCullough

THETRUCKER.COM Perspective September 15-30, 2019 • 13
b Letters from page 12 b
driver alert and possibly reducing the risks
of boredom/complacency which have often
played a role is some accidents on our highways.
The last thing I think deserves some
thought is the increased air miles revision.
Increasing that area by 50 miles and by
two hours gives them more time to operate
a CMV. That would allow those drivers the
time to complete daily tasks without the time
crunch often moving in crowded metropolitan
areas.
So, what about the crazy idea of trying to
even the playing field for all CMV drivers?
CMVs are operated for the purpose of
moving America. Along with this comes regulations
and I understand that.
Why hasn’t the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration just looked at the formula
for a straight 13- to 16-hour day for all
CMV operators? A 16-hour clock in which
you have 13 hours to drive.
In my eyes, it simplifies and wraps up the
HOS in a nutshell. I truly believe this would
or could eliminate the problems that we as
drivers face on a daily basis — 16 on and
8 off. That’s that. No more splitting up the
book, figuring out what exemptions are applicable
or if you are going to need to pause
your book to extend your day by 30 minutes
or up to three hours. Now the driver is looking
at a 17-hour day. A 16-hour day is long
enough without having to figure out how to
extend it any further. As drivers, we wake
up to face adversity with shippers, receivers,
dispatchers and of course the everyday
traffic. I believe if a driver knows when their
day starts that 16 hours later a driver’s day
will finish, that should definitely give one
the flexibility to create a safe trip plan with
plenty of time to be delayed getting loaded or
unloaded, take a nap, grab a meal, etc.
It’s a great recipe with minimal ingredients
that I believe would lead to safer highways.
Once again safety should be everyone’s
ultimate goal.
— Victor Watson
Reader says if industry desires real
flexibility then go back to split logging
I read Cathy Chase’s comment in the article
about the Teamsters Union and Advocates
for Highway and Auto Safety being critical
of the proposed changes in Hours of Service
(Chase is president of the advocacy group).
She said on the existing schedule truckers
can drive up to 77 hours in seven days, double
the average American work week.
Ms. Chase obviously doesn’t know the
Hours of Service rules, which clearly state
we can only drive 70 hours in eight days. And
people wonder why truckers get fed up with
these advocacy groups and organizations.
When the president of that group is arguing
about rules she doesn’t even understand, that
is how unsafe rules get created.
Right now, under the current rules the
most unsafe thing is the 14-hour rule and not
allowing split logging. Because what you are
doing is telling young, inexperienced drivers
it doesn’t matter if you are tired or could use
a nap. Your logbook doesn’t allow that, so
you have to keep driving.
When I started driving, we had an eighthour
shift just like everyone else. Could you
drive more daily? Yes, if you pushed it, but
after eight hours you had an eight-hour break
or, if you split the logbook, you could go four
and four.
There were nowhere near the accidents
there are today because you could get
plenty of rest whenever you needed it, not
when someone who doesn’t know or understand
this job said you had to. Most of these
younger drivers haven’t worked more than
an eight-hour shift.
Then you put them in a truck and tell
them they have to work 11 hours plus after
receiving minimum training by these schools
and big companies and wonder why they get
in accidents.
I went to school four hours a day, six days
a week for three months, then worked with a
trainer. Then I worked with a trainer for six
weeks before I was on my own.
These big companies and schools pump
out drivers in two weeks and send them with
trainers 10-14 days then put them on their
own not knowing half of what they need to.
The changes proposed are a step in the
right direction toward relieving some of the
tiredness issues. Although I personally think
having true split logging would be better.
But if you really want to make the roads
safer you need to hold these schools and
companies responsible. Required minimum
training time and salary pay for trainers instead
of pay per mile would help.
If a trainer is getting paid the same no matter
how many miles are trained they have no
reason not to stay up and teach these skills
to new drivers. By paying mileage to trainers
all they care about is if the driver can hold it
steady going down the road while they sleep so
they can drive their shift when he/she is done.
Also, longer on-the-road required driving
time by these schools would help, as well.
These new drivers today are being cheated
by not giving them all the skills they need to
be anything more than steering wheel holders
and sending them on their own. You send
someone to college for four to six years to
become doctors, lawyers, teachers and even
business majors. But you pump out drivers
in less than four weeks and expect them to
be experts.
— Edward Shacklock 8
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14
AT
THE TRUCK STOP
PRESENTED BY CAT SCALE, VISIT WEIGHMYTRUCK.COM
Putting the driver first is Dart Transit’s
Stephanie Williamson’s top priority
Cliff Abbott
cliffa@thetrucker.com
Some drivers may think they were born
into the trucking industry, but it’s a safe bet
they didn’t arrive at the hospital in the cab
of a dump truck, driven by a mother whose
workday was interrupted by labor pains.
“My grandpa was doing some bulldozer
work and Mom couldn’t get his attention,
so she just drove the truck to the hospital,”
explained Stephanie Williamson, who went
on to do some truck driving of her own.
Currently, she’s the vice president of revenue
management for Eagan, Minnesota-based Dart
Transit. She’s also the Women In Trucking
(WIT) August 2019 selection as Member of
the Month. And she’s on a mission.
“I am extremely passionate about making
a driver’s life easier,” she said. She knows
something about the driver’s life, growing up
in a trucking family before obtaining her own
CDL and hitting the road. She and husband
Bob shared a Peterbilt with a 425 Cat engine
and a 13-speed transmission. “It was a dream
truck for a lot of drivers in those days,” she
said, “a real triple-digit machine.” Turns out
those early days of her career in trucking
were also the genesis of a marriage that has
lasted more than 30 years, including a side
trip through a drive-thru wedding chapel in
Las Vegas to make it official.
Soon after coming off the road and having
a child, Stephanie began her long tenure with
Dart Transit. She credits mentors Bev Oren
and Joyce Jordan at Dart for her success at
the company, where she worked her way
through the ranks in recruiting, orientation,
safety, customer service and other positions.
Today, her experience as a driver still
impacts her decision-making at an executive
level. Part of her role involves contracting
for the loads Dart drivers haul, and she
understands the role drivers play.
“It’s all about the driver,” she said. “I don’t
need or desire for our drivers to perform any
activity that takes away from their ability to
use their hours productively.”
Changes to the Hours of Service rules have
prompted changes in process, too. Williamson
and her team look for opportunities to maximize
the driver’s earning potential, and one way is to
minimize time spent on nondriving activities.
“We don’t want drivers doing things that
should be done by shippers and consignees,
like loading or staging freight,” she said.
Williamson acknowledged that modern
drivers are different than those she shared
the road with in the early days. “I mean that
in a positive way,” she said. “Drivers want to
live like normal people now. Most no longer
desire to be the ‘cowboy,’ staying gone three
to four weeks.”
Much of the change has to do with the
way families are raised, she said. “Years ago,
the father was considered the breadwinner
and did whatever was necessary to take
care of the family, including being gone for
long periods while the mother cared for the
family,” she said. “These days, both parents
are more invested in the day-to-day activities
of the children.
“For example, whoever heard of a driver
asking for paternity leave back then? It just
didn’t happen. Now, there’s nothing unusual
about a father wanting a couple of weeks off
to be with his wife and newborn child. That’s
a good thing.”
Stephanie is proud of her longevity at Dart,
where she will celebrate her 25th anniversary
this year as the company celebrates its 85th
year of operation.
“If I could change one thing about trucking,
it would be the lack of longevity,” she said.
“That’s for drivers and others in the industry,
there’s just so much churn of people.”
Williamson specified that turnover of fleet
managers and others in the office has an
impact on drivers, too. “We all tend to do
better when we know what to expect,” she
said. She lamented that changing jobs is used
far too often as a method of problem-solving.
“We should work through our problems
instead of just changing them, often for a
new set of problems. For me, making one
company my forever home has been critical.”
As for her membership in WIT, Stephanie
says she’d like to do more. “Quite honestly,
this year was my first exposure and experience
with Women in Trucking,” she said. “I hope
to be able to spend more time with them and
participate more in the future.”
Like many busy executives, however, her
available time can be limited. “My time with
my employer is my primary focus,” she said.
“When you’re around something for so long,
the lines get blurred a little,” she admitted.
While her dedication to Dart Transit and
its drivers consumes most of her time, she
remains passionate about opportunities for
women in the trucking industry. “Women
are levelheaded, rational thinkers,” she said.
“Not that men aren’t, but we’re well suited
to a variety of jobs in the industry, including
driving. We’re all equal once we’re in that
seat. The skillset is equal.”
For now, however, Williamson plans to
continue to provide Dart drivers with the best
possible experience. “We’re not a West Coast
carrier at all, so our network design and lane
density are designed with a purpose.” she
said. “We know that we have to be able to
put 2,200 to 2,500 miles per week for each
truck and driver to be productive.”
She mentioned the bidding process for
Courtesy: WOMEN IN TRUCKING
A passion for Stephanie Williamson, who was almost born in the cab of a truck, is to
make life easier for drivers at Dart Transit.
loads and the consideration involved in
procuring loads that keep drivers productive
and get them home on time. Staging
equipment is another way to keep drivers
moving, so that trailers that are preloaded on
a weekday can be picked up on the weekend,
when the shipper is closed.
Her concern for drivers goes beyond
productivity, however. In an interview with
Women in Trucking, she said: “I look at it
from the standpoint that we have to be careful
who we do business with, because the driver
is the most treasured member of our team.
Businesses that hold drivers up for loading
or unloading, businesses that won’t allow our
drivers to use a bathroom, businesses that
just generally disrespect the driver — I can’t
be a part of that.”
Stephanie Williamson didn’t set out to blaze
a trail for women in the trucking industry, but
in building a career caring for the drivers that
keep it moving, she has become an example
for others to emulate — and WIT’s August
Member of the Month. 8

CATTheTrucker081519.qxp_Layout 1 8/15/19 3:20 PM Page 1
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days of summer by honoring our unsung heroes
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• All entries receive a prize!
• Grand Prize winner and their pet will be
featured in a full-page TBS ad.
• Contest runs July 1 - September 30
Send your photos to:
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IT'S THE LEASHED WE CAN DO!
No purchase necessary, this contest is open to anyone in the United States of America that is over
the age of 18 and submits a completed entry and agrees to the terms and conditions as listed on
tbsfactoring.com/callingallpaws. The contest will run from July 1, 2019 to September 30, 2019.
The winner will be selected by TBS Factoring Service, LLC (“TBS”). The grand prize will have
no cash value may not be redeemed for cash or exchanged.
16 • September 15-30, 2019 Perspective
I know many of you will find this hard to
believe, but I am a pretty easygoing guy. I
generally roll with the punches and you have
to really go out of your way to get me worked
up.
Oh, it can be done, but it really has to be
a goal. That being said, someone sent me a
video yesterday that got under my skin.
Now, this article is not going to discuss
legal doctrine or offer advice. Instead, the
purpose of this article is simply to implore us
to all do a better job of sharing the road.
Now, back to the video. The video, recorded
from the dash cam of a four-wheeler,
showed two trucks traveling side by side
down the highway. Immediately behind the
two trucks is another CMV in the right lane.
The truck in the left lane is obviously trying
to get around the truck in the right lane
and has apparently been trying to complete
the pass for some time. Unfortunately, it was
having no luck. As a result, a “turtle race”
ensues with the two trucks travelling side by
side and blocking traffic.
I don’t know if the truck in the left lane
lacked the power to get around the other vehicle
or what exactly was going on but this
continued for a while. Eventually the driver
of the truck that was behind the two turtles
ran out of patience and attempted to create its
own passing lane — on the shoulder of the
highway. However, this truck also struggled
to pass.
For those of you keeping score at home,
this means we now are running three CMVs
wide down the highway, two in the designated
lanes and one on the shoulder. Unfortunately,
nobody is able to complete the pass.
And to make matters more exciting, a
four-wheeler decides to move up into the
space previously occupied by the CMV that
created its own passing lane on the shoulder.
As you can imagine, this basically has the
result of trapping the CMV on the shoulder.
Thankfully, this driver eventually backed off,
but….
OK, here is where I get all preachy. We all
share the roads and need to be far more considerate
of each other while driving.
To the driver in the left lane trying to pass:
If you don’t have the power to pass or if you
are governed too low, don’t try to pass. You
are blocking traffic and creating a dangerous
situation. If you can’t get around, don’t try.
I do not think being in front of or behind the
other truck is going to make that big a difference
on your arrival time.
To the driver in the right-hand lane: Sometimes
you have to be the bigger person. If
someone is trying to get around you when they
may lack the ability — and they refuse to give
THETRUCKER.COM
On road, two wrongs don’t make a right;
four wrongs was a disaster in the making
Brad Klepper
exclusive to the trucker
Ask the
Attorney
it up — you may want to back off and let them
over. I get that you feel that you did nothing
wrong; however, sometimes you have to be
the adult when those around you are acting like
children. Give the other guy some room to get
over. Again, I don’t think it will make that big
a difference on when you arrive.
To the driver trying to pass on the shoulder:
What…Are…You…Thinking? I understand
that you are frustrated; however, the move to
pass on the shoulder is just unacceptable. It is
dangerous. You could drop a tire off the shoulder
and roll the truck. You could overcorrect
and come back into the CMV in the next lane,
which could impact the truck beside it and all
the people behind it. You could die. Other people
could die. Is it really worth it?
To the driver of the four-wheeler that
snuck up behind: Seriously? What makes you
think that was a good idea? By driving aggressively,
you have essentially taken away
from the CMVs the one means of getting
out of the situation. I know you eventually
backed off, but think about what you are doing
prior to that.
At the end of the day, we all have to share
the roads with each other. I also understand
that some of us can be asses behind the wheel.
However, that is why we all need to be more
courteous than we think we need to be with
each other. Not everyone will extend you the
same courtesy, but if the majority of us make
it a point to be kind and considerate of one
other on the road, the road will be a much safe
place. Situations like this, which could have
ended in multiple deaths, will be avoided.
Everyone will get to their destination and go
home to their family, which should be the
most important thing. I will now step down
from my soap box. I promise not to get all
preachy and judgmental again. Unless, of
course, something gets under my skin.
Brad Klepper is president of Interstate
Trucker Ltd., a law firm entirely dedicated
to legal defense of the nation’s commercial
drivers. Interstate Trucker represents truck
drivers throughout the 48 states on both moving
and nonmoving violations. Brad is also
president of Driver’s Legal Plan, which allows
member drivers access to his firm’s services
at discounted rates. He is a lawyer that
has focused on transportation law and the
trucking industry in particular. He works to
answer your legal questions about trucking
and life over the road.
For more information, contact him at
(800) 333-DRIVE (3748) or interstatetrucker.com
and driverslegtalplan.com. 8

Business
September 15-30, 2019 • 17
ATA’s Truck Tonnage Index (Seasonally Adjusted; 2015=100)
120
118
116
114
112
110
108
106
104
102
100
JUL - 14
OCT - 14
JAN - 15
APR - 15
JUL - 15
OCT - 15
JAN - 16
APR - 16
JUL - 16
OCT - 16
Annual ATA forecast projects decade
of growth in freight, and in trucking
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
ARLINGTON, Va. — The American
Trucking Associations released its latest ATA
Freight Transportation Forecast: 2019 to
2030, an annual projection of the state of the
freight economy, showing continued growth
in the industry.
“America’s trucking industry, and the
overall freight transportation industry, are
poised to experience strong growth over the
next decade as the country’s economy and
population grow,” said ATA Chief Economist
Bob Costello. “Our annual Freight Forecast
is a valuable look at where we are headed so
leaders in business and government can make
important decisions about investments and
policy.”
Among the findings in this year’s forecast:
• Overall freight tonnage will grow to 20.6
JAN - 17
APR - 17
JUL - 17
OCT - 17
JAN - 18
APR - 18
JUL - 18
OCT - 18
JAN - 19
APR - 19
JUL - 19
billion tons in 2030, up 25.6% from 2019’s
projection of 16.4 billion tons.
• Freight industry revenues will increase
53.8% to $1.601 trillion over the next decade.
• Trucking’s share of total freight tonnage
will dip to 68.8% in 2030 from 71.1% this year,
even as tonnage grows to 14.2 billion tons in
2030 from 11.7 billion tons.
• Truckload volume will have an average
annual expansion of 1.5% a year through 2024
and 2.1% for 2025-2029.
• Less than truckload volume will have an
average annual expansion of 1.8% through
2024 and 2% for 2025-2020.
• Private carrier volume will have an average
annual expansion of 1.5% percent year
through 2024 and 2.2% per year for 2025-2029.
• In 2019, truckload will handle 71.1% of
See Forecast on p21 m
Courtesy: ACT RESEARCH
ACT Research President and Senior Analyst Kenny Vieth said current Class 8 production
strength continues to cause an upward drift in 2019 expectations that is nibbling away at 2020
potential and that the biggest risk to all market forecasts is the trade war with China.
ATA’s Truck Tonnage Index shows
marked improvement in July to 122.7
Cliff Abbott
cliffa@thetrucker.com
ARLINGTON, Va. — The American Trucking
Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted
For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index whipsawed
again in July, rising 6.6% over June freight levels.
The increase follows a decline of 1.2% in
June, which followed a bigger decline in May.
In July, the index equaled 122.7, compared
with 115.1 in June. The index measures how
far freight levels have risen (or fallen) since
the base year of 2015, which is equal to 100.
Therefore, the July index of 122.7 indicates
that the amount of freight available in July was
22.7% more than in the year 2015. The report is
compiled using data collected from ATA members.
Compared to July 2018, the index jumped
7.3%, the largest year-over-year gain since
April.
According to ATA Chief Economist Bob
Costello, the ups and downs of the current year
are short-term variations. “Tonnage in 2019
has been on a rollercoaster ride, plagued with
large monthly swings, which continued in July
See Tonnage on p19 m
The Trucker file photo
The executive summary of the Freight Forecasts notes that the forecast is being released
when the U.S. economy is experiencing some volatility as uncertainties mount.
Correction coming in truck, trailer markets,
ACT reports; trade war raising uncertainty
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
COLUMBUS, Ind. — The heavy truck and
trailer markets, and increasingly the medium
duty market, are heading for corrections in
2020, even as the slow growth U.S. economic
outlook remains largely unchanged, aside
from concerns about trade and tariffs.
ACT Research noted in its release of its
Commercial Vehicle Dealer Digest that the
key driver of the near to midterm outlook is
the U.S. consumer, who remains well-positioned
to keep the economy out of the ditch,
even as key freight-generating sectors of the
economy take a pause.
“Current Class 8 production strength continues
to cause an upward drift in 2019 expectations
that is nibbling away at 2020 potential,
as this year’s additional inventory accumulation
will ultimately be paid back in future
production levels,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s
president and senior analyst. “The forecast scenario
that we have been calling for appears to
be playing out on schedule in the second half
of this year, and if build rates are maintained
longer than expected, there might still be some
upside in the 2019 production forecast.”
Vieth said, however, that large new inventories
and deteriorating freight and rate
conditions suggest erring on the side of caution
remains the right call.
“When the change comes, it is likely to
See ACT on p21 m

18 • September 15-30, 2019 Perspective
THETRUCKER.COM
THETRUCKER.COM

THETRUCKER.COM
Business September 15-30, 2019 • 19
b Tonnage from page 17 b
as tonnage surged after falling significantly in
May and June,” he said. “However, take out the
month-to-month noise, and you see that truck
tonnage is still on a nice upward path.”
The not seasonally adjusted index, which
represents the change in tonnage actually
hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment,
equaled 122.8 in July, 4.5% above the
June level of 117.5.
The freight rebound was welcome news
compared to the drumbeat of freight recession
coming from some corners, but it’s important
to note that the amount of freight is still growing
at a much slower rate than the number of
trucks being purchased to haul it. The earliest
indication that freight markets are tightening is
usually found in the spot freight market. Rates
reported for the last week in August were up
for van, flatbed and refrigerated freight, but it
remains to be seen if the increases are temporary.
Reefer rates, for example, averaged $2.26
per mile in June, dropping to $2.19 in July
and $2.15 in August. The increase to $2.23 to
start September was welcome, but still didn’t
rise to June levels. Van freight did better, rising
to $2.11, while flatbed rose to $2.39 per
mile. Load-to-truck ratios, however, continued
to fall as more trucks came available to haul
the freight being offered. That’s a scenario that
doesn’t bode well for pricing.
As for the ATA, Costello pointed out that
most of the freight carried by its members isn’t
in the spot market. “It is important to note that
ATA’s tonnage data is dominated by contract
freight,” he said, “which is performing significantly
better than the plunge in spot market
freight this year.”
While this is true, contract rates nearly always
follow spot rates in the long term and
many of ATA’s members have brokerage divisions
that depend heavily on the spot market,
as well.
A new record was set for new U.S. Class 8
truck sales in July with sales of 15,607 units.
For the year-to-date, sales have increased by
22.2%, or nearly 30,000 trucks, compared with
the first seven months of 2018.
During the same month, only 3,127 new
class 8 trucks were ordered, further reducing a
backlog of truck orders that once stood at nearly
12 months. Sales are expected to drop precipitously,
and when it will happen is anyone’s
guess, but with the backlog reduced to nearly
four months of production, it can’t be far off.
The industry’s overcapacity issue will correct
and overcorrect as it always does.
The bigger issue for freight haulers is the
economy. The signs are pointing to a recession,
which is overdue at this point since the economy
has already experienced a record 123 consecutive
months of growth. Signs that economists
consider “can’t miss,” such as Treasury-bond
rate inversions and reduced numbers of carloads
in the rail industry are pointing to recession.
Another large topic is tariffs, which some say
could hasten the recessionary cycle. The largest
players in the trade conflict are China and the
U.S., with neither side making concessions as of
press time. Market analysts at Moody’s have announced
a 52% probability that a recession will
begin during the next 12 months.
Another indicator of rough waters ahead
comes in the form of the U.S. Census Bureau’s
monthly Advance Report on Manufacturer’s
Shipments, Inventories and Orders for July.
New U.S. orders for durable goods, those expected
to last three or more years, have been up
for four of the first seven months of 2019 and
down for the other three. Overall, however, the
total is still on the “down” side of the ledger,
despite an increase of 2.1% in July. Most of the
July increase came in the form of transportation
orders. With transportation data removed,
new orders actually fell by 0.4%.
The other noteworthy numbers in the report
came from inventories, which were up 0.4%.
Inventory numbers have risen in 12 of the past
13 months, an indication that manufacturing
may soon have to slow to prevent overstock of
inventory.
The trucking industry is still riding the economic
wave that crested in mid-2018. How
long forward momentum can be maintained is
anyone’s guess, but there’s no doubt that the
wave has lost much of its strength. 8
Mccollister’s Auto trAnsport
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MERCERTOWN.COM | E
20 • September 15-30, 2019 Business
Cliff Abbott
THETRUCKER.COM
Dash cams can more than pay for themselves
when it comes to resolving insurance matters
THE TRUCKER
News Channel
Tune in and watch at
TheTrucker.com
Fleet Focus
cliffa@thetrucker.com
No one wants to be in an accident. By
now, every driver understands the role that
dash cameras can play in helping preserve the
facts about an accident. The recorded video
can save a driver from a citation or, worse,
an “at fault” or “preventable” determination
later. Those determinations, especially the “at
fault” one, can literally put a small company
out of business with just one accident. But
now, it may not even take an accident.
Despite a 2018 that brought record profits
to many carriers, 2019 has seen too many
close their doors. The biggest, New England
Motor Freight, employed over 1,400 drivers.
Another, Falcon Transport, left 585 drivers
without jobs. Many of the others have been
smaller, 20-50 drivers or so. Most of these
companies have one thing in common.
They said that rising insurance costs were a
large factor in their decision to shut the doors.
While it is possible to check a driver’s
background using motor vehicle reports and
other available data, the system isn’t foolproof.
Information frequently falls through
the cracks, and some applicants are good at
exploiting this. A move to another state, for
example, could mean that the former state
could take months to report traffic convictions
to the new state, if they are reported at
all.
A carrier, even a one-truck carrier, must
be able to demonstrate that there is control
over the process of hiring and supervising
drivers. Often, the insurance company will
ask about this before making a quote. For
hiring, the owner should do a thorough job
of vetting the prospective driver, obtaining as
much information as legally possible.
For the supervising part, dash cameras
can be invaluable. That’s because most small
carriers have zero control over the driver
once he or she leaves with the truck. Dash
cams make it possible to spot check the driver’s
performance.
Large carriers contract with services that
save video, allowing the carrier to download
it or access it online. Some send email or text
alerts when dangerous situations are detected.
Some of these video vendors will contract
with smaller carriers, however, with a
little guile and planning, a simple truck stop
camera system will work.
Dash cameras can record much more than
video. Speed and location are often imbedded
in saved video. Events such as hard braking
or swerving can trigger saving of video,
even if there’s no accident.
Most cameras record continuously and
can save hours and hours of video in small
(two to three minute) chunks.
Most record on a mini or micro SD card
and will accept one that holds at least 64 GBs
of data. Get the largest card the unit will accept,
because once the card is full the oldest
files are deleted as new ones are recorded.
Usually, the driver can save files with the
touch of a button so they are not overwritten,
and an event “triggered” by impact or hard
braking is also saved.
Many camera systems have settings that
will allow you to select the video resolution.
More resolution creates a better picture, especially
important if you plan to play it on a
60-inch widescreen. Less resolution, however,
takes up less memory and allows recording
of more video. A happy medium is the
place to be.
Make sure you have additional cards so
that they can be exchanged when the truck
comes into the yard.
Once everything is set up, simply exchange
memory cards when the truck comes
in. The card plugs into most computers with a
small adapter, and the video files are listed in
the order recorded. You won’t need to watch
all of them or every minute, simply choose a
few and skip around in each, noting the time,
conditions, road speed, and other pertinent
information. You’ll be able to verify that the
driver is holding the lane, isn’t following too
closely and, when there’s a speed limit sign
in the video, not driving excessively fast.
You’ll also be able to note road conditions
and weather and verify that the driver is taking
appropriate precautions.
In some cases, depending on the memory
capacity of the card, video from early parts
of the workweek will be overwritten and
only the later days saved. In order to ensure
that some video is retained from all parts of
the trip, develop a process of calling the driver
and requesting that he or she hit the “save”
button on the camera, and record the date and
time this is done. The camera will save video
from before and after the button is pressed.
Many owners of small fleets enjoy the
freedom of operating without the rules and
processes of larger carriers. Making sure
the person you hired to drive your truck is
doing so with your best interest at heart is
something many owners are finding that dash
cams can help with. When it’s time to renew
the insurance, those little cameras can pay
off in a big way. 8

THETRUCKER.COM
Business September 15-30, 2019 • 21
b Forecast from page 17 b
truck freight volume, LTL 0.9% and private
truck 35.1%
• Trucking and total rail transportation will
lose relative market share, even as revenues
and tonnage grows, while intermodal rail, air
and domestic waterborne transportation will
show modest growth and pipeline transportation
will experience explosive growth — surging
17.1% in tonnage and 8.6% in revenue over
the next decade.
As with any industry, forecasts are in part
based on what’s happening with the U.S. economy.
The executive summary of the Freight
Forecasts notes that the forecast is being released
when the U.S. economy is experiencing
some volatility as uncertainties mount.
“Despite prospects for solid trend-like
growth in the U.S. in 2019, investor concerns
over rising risks of a downturn after
2019, stoked by developments abroad and
policy concerns, resulted in sharply worsening
financial conditions in late 2018.
“Helped by a dovish pivot in Federal Reserve
Board monetary policy, a recovery in
financial conditions is now supporting Gross
b ACT from page 17 b
come fast, and we are encouraging our subscribers
to be prepared for down weeks starting
as early as the fourth quarter,” he said.
Meanwhile, Vieth said that according to
ACT’s North American Commercial Vehicle
OUTLOOK, the key risk to all commercial
vehicle market forecasts remains the onagain
trade war with China.
“This month’s chart, the U.S. dollar to
Chinese yuan (RMB) illustrates why trade
wars are neither good, nor easy to win,” Vieth
said. “As can be seen, after the U.S. fired the
latest salvo in the trade war on August 1, the
Chinese responded with in-kind tariffs and
Domestic Product (GDP) growth above trend.
The second estimate of first-quarter 2019 U.S.
GDP growth was 3.1%, up from 2.2% in the
fourth quarter
of 2018 and in line with the strong 2.9%
economic growth for 2018. The healthy economy
in 2018 resulted in a very strong freight
market for the year.
“The robust first-quarter pace of 2019 economic
growth is expected to be temporary, as
it was driven by two sources of strength that
could easily reverse later this year: inventory
investment and net exports. Both components
are volatile and rarely indicative of underlying
momentum in the economy.
“Real 2019 GDP growth is expected to
moderate beginning in the second quarter, and
we look for a 2.7% increase for calendar year
2019. We predict annual real GDP growth will
slow further to 2.1% in 2020 and 1.8% in 2021,
with implications for slower growth in freight
transportation
demand.
“Freight Forecast clearly lays out why
meeting challenges like infrastructure and
workforce development are so critical to our
industry’s success,” said ATA President and
CEO Chris Spear. “It belongs on the desk of
every decision maker in our industry and in the
supply chain.” 8
a 3% currency devaluation — so far. Since
the first ‘shots’ of the trade war were fired
on March 1, 2018, the RMB has fallen 12%
versus the U.S. dollar.
“So, tariffs imposed by the U.S. have
been met with in-kind tariffs from China,
and the Chinese government has allowed the
yuan to devalue, thereby offsetting the U.S.
tariff impact while simultaneously making
U.S. goods even more expensive in China.”
Vieth said the bigger risk, especially to
emerging economies, is that in order to compete
with China, they will have to devalue
their currencies, making U.S. goods more expensive
in more countries and raising the risk
of a deeper global downturn.
More information can be found at actresearch.net.
8
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22 • September 15-30, 2019 Business
THETRUCKER.COM
THE TRUCKER
News Channel
Join Dave Compton and Jessica Rose every week as they
bring you the only weekly news show just for Truckers.
Tune in and watch at TheTrucker.com

RECRUITING at a Glance
Company Driver Owner Operator Teams Lease Purchase Flatbed Van Reefer HAZMAT Expedited Specialized Tanker
Cargill
www.cargillmeatlogistics.com
(316) 462-7220
See our ad on page 13!
FedEx Custom Critical
www.customcritical.fedex.com
(866) 729-9789
See our ad on page 10!
Mercer
www.mercertown.com
(888) 374-8445
See our ad on page 20!
P.I.&I. Motor Express
http://www.piimx.com
(855) 693-8963
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Smith Transport
www.smithdrivers.com
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CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
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National Carriers
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ProFleet Transport Corp.
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(877) 684-8787
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Transport Designs, Inc.
www.transportdesigninc.com
(855) 496-3039
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CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
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CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
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D&D Sexton, Inc.
www.ddsextoninc.com
(800) 743-0265
See our ad on page 6!
Landstar
www.lease2landstar.com
(877) 472-0097
See our ad on page 2!
Penske Logistics
www.gopenske.com/careers
(855) 235-1361
See our ad on page 26!
Schneider
www.schneiderjobs.com
(800) 44-PRIDE
See our ad on page 9!
Tribe Transportation
www.TribeTrans.com
(877) 628-6285
See our ad on page 20!
CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
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Diamond Transportation
www.diamondtrans.net
(262) 554-4025
See our ad on page 19!
McColister’s Transportation
www.mccollisters.com
(800) 257-9595 ext. 9490
See our ads on pages 19 & 21!
PFS Brands
www.jobs@pfsbrands.com
(573) 893-1361
See our ad on page 3!
Skelton Truck Lines
www.skeltontruck.com
(800) 387-9796 ext 231
See our ad on page 5!
CD OO T LP F V R H E S TK
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Come Join the JanCo Family!
EntErtainmEnt transportation spEcialists sincE 1975
Currently hiring company drivers and owner operators.
Excellent salary and benefit packages available. Lead driver pay and cash bonuses.
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TEAMS ARE
URGED TO CALL
WE REQUIRE
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u Clean MVR
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Please call our recruiting department for more details and to apply.
888.JANCO.NJ or 800.526.9085
Please visit our website at www.jancoltd.com
or like us on facebook.com/JancoLTD

24 • September 15-30, 2019 Business
THETRUCKER.COM
Recruitment
Classifieds
Recruitment
Classifieds
For For ad ad information
call call (800) 666-2770
or or email email publisher@
thetrucker.com
thetrucker.com
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MCCOLLISTER’S TEAM!
Now HiriNg
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FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL:
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PAUL (WEST)
1-800-257-9595 EXT. 1041
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800.387.9796 ext.231
lesia@skeltontruck.com
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Professional Drivers Have THeir
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Courtesy: DAMILER TRUCKS NORTH AMERICA
NFI and Penske Truck Leasing were the recipients of the first two Freightliner eCascadia
models built by Daimler Trucks North America.
Equipment September
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
PORTLAND, Ore. — Nine days after Daimler
Trucks North America said it was getting
ready to deliver to customers the first Freightliner
eCascadias, they arrived as scheduled on Wednesday,
August 21, at Penske Truck Leasing, based
in Reading, Pennsylvania; and NFI, of Camden,
New Jersey.
The trucks are part of Freightliner’s Electric
Innovation Fleet, and both customers will use
their vehicles to test the integration of battery
electric trucks into large-scale fleet operations in
Southern California.
“Co-creation is the cornerstone of DTNA’s
strategy to rapidly develop and deploy battery
electric trucks,” said Roger Nielsen, president
Future emissions regs lead push for smaller Class 8 engines
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
COLUMBUS, Ind. — Engines over 10L are
projected to account for more than 85% of Class
8 production between 2020 and 2024, and the
trend to smaller displacement engines is expected
to continue, according to the recently released
N.A. Commercial Vehicle On-Highway Engine
OUTLOOK, published by ACT Research and
Rhein Associates.
“Although the over 14L engine category will
remain the largest segment in 2019, there is a
trend to smaller displacement engines in the over
10L market segment for Class 8 trucks and tractors,
with an acceleration prompted by new emission
regulations expected in 2024,” said Tom
Rhein, president of Rhein Associates, who added
that as for Classes 5-7, the current metric of interest
is gasoline penetration, which continues to see
share gain.
Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst at
ACT Research, said diesel power is under attack
in the long term for use in on-highway commercial
vehicles.
“Alternative power is being developed, tested
and refined, even as diesel engines are transitioning
to become more fuel efficient and clean,”
Vieth said. “Emission regulations are one of the
main drivers of alternative fuel adoption, which
is why the Engine OUTLOOK includes a section
on the commercial vehicle regulatory environment.
While many think this is a California-only
phenomenon, we would note that Oregon’s legislators
recently voted in favor of a bill to regulate
diesel trucks in the Portland metro area, and we
Courtesy: TUSIMPLE
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said it understands necessary changes
must be made to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to accommodate automated
vehicles, but that many of the proposals discussed within the Advance Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking are hypothetical in nature.
15-30, 2019 • 25
Daimler delivers first 2 eCascadias for
commercial use in Southern California
continue to see reports about various state and
federal-level funding for alternative fuel programs
that are sending millions of dollars toward
these efforts for both commercial and passenger
vehicle use.”
Rhein Associates is a supplier of powertrain
information to worldwide clients enabling accurate
and informed business decisions and marketing
plans.
For more information, go to rheinreport.
com/.
ACT Research is a publisher of commercial
vehicle truck, trailer, and bus industry data, market
analysis and forecasts for the North America
and China markets.
More information can be found at actresearch.net.
8
and CEO of DTNA. “DTNA’s partnerships with
customers like Penske and NFI provide valuable
feedback for the final design of our trucks, as
well as the design of the surrounding e-mobility
ecosystem. DTNA’s holistic approach is vital to
advancing viable transportation solutions from
which society, as a whole, will benefit.”
Nielsen said the Freightliner Innovation Fleet
is supported by a partnership between DTNA and
the South Coast Air Quality Management District
(South Coast AQMD), which focuses on improving
air quality in the South Coast Basin and
which partially funded the Innovation Fleet with a
nearly $16 million grant. Freightliner eCascadias
and medium-duty electric Freightliner eM2s from
See Daimler on p26 m
Courtesy: ACT RESEARCH
Tom Rhein, president of Rhein Associates,
said new emission standards that go into effect
in 2024 is one reason the 10L engine is
becoming a trend in the Class 8 market.
OOIDA warns fed regulators: Don’t put
encouragement of technology on autopilot
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. — The Owner-Operator
Independent Drivers Association said in
comments in response to the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration’s Advance Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on Safe Integration
of Automated Driving Systems-Equipped
Commercial Motor Vehicles that as autonomous
technology develops, OOIDA is concerned that
federal regulators will put on blinders and push
for more technology as the answer to the industry’s
problems without considering the negative
impacts of those technologies.
“Regardless of their potential, it is important
to understand the implications that autonomous
vehicles (AVs) will have on public roadways,”
OOIDA President and CEO Todd Spencer said
in comments sent to FMCSA Administrator Ray
Martinez. “Despite the various claims that AVs
will lead to zero deaths, there have been realworld
situations in which automation has devastatingly
failed. While AVs might improve safety
under certain conditions, they create new risks
with dangerous outcomes. Beyond ensuring that
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations
(FMCSRs) provide appropriate standards for the
safe operation of AVs, FMCSA must consider unforeseen
concerns and practices that might offset
the potential safety, mobility, and sustainability
benefits from the technology.”
Spencer wrote that while FMCSA and most
experts acknowledge automated trucks are years
away from reality, the agency’s proposal may signal
that the Department of Transportation does
not value the human driver as a necessary operator
in the transportation industry.
“Given the fact that 3.9 million commercial
drivers deliver 70 percent of all freight worth
$11.7 trillion annually while collecting $700.1
See OOIDA on p26 m

26 • September 15-30, 2019 Perspective
THETRUCKER.COM
MAKE A LIVING
AND ENJOY THE
LIVING PART
Penske is hiring safe, professional truck drivers to
haul freight for some of the world’s leading brands.
• Return home daily
• Choose from a variety of shifts and customers
• Receive outstanding benefits
• Join an internationally renowned team
855-235-7367
gopenske.com/drivers
Apply using job number 1003259
Penske is an Equal
Opportunity Employer.
b Daimler from page 25 b
the Innovation Fleet are operated within the South
Coast AQMD jurisdiction.
“We are excited to be a part of this groundbreaking
project that will directly impact local
Southern California communities, especially
those disproportionately impacted by air pollution,”
said Wayne Nastri, South Coast AQMD’s
executive officer. “We hope to see large-scale
deployments of similar zero-emission trucks that
will have significant environmental and health
benefits across the entire state.”
Penske and NFI are the first to deploy batteryelectric
commercial vehicles from Freightliner to
their operations. Penske Truck Leasing will run
eCascadias in daily delivery operations within
California’s Inland Empire, while NFI will employ
eCascadias in drayage operations at both the
Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
“We’re pleased to continue our collaboration
with Freightliner and be among the first
companies putting the eCascadia to work,”
said Brian Hard, president and CEO of Penske
Truck Leasing. “Our first eCascadia will
be used by our subsidiary Penske Logistics to
make multiple, daily store deliveries on a dedicated
route. Our in-house maintenance technicians
are trained and well prepared, and our
recent investments in charging infrastructure
in the South Coast Air Basin will play an important
role as we operate these cutting-edge
vehicles on their delivery routes.”
“NFI’s partnership with Daimler is a testament
to our commitment to social responsibility,
supporting the California ports and driving innovation
within our industry,” said Sid Brown,
CEO of NFI. “As the premier drayage provider
in Southern California, we are excited to be one
of the first to deploy the eCascadia into our operations,
accompanied by the installation of electric
charging stations. We look forward to continuing
to invest in new technology and equipment to operate
more efficiently, and to do our part in creating
cleaner communities.”
Nielsen said the Freightliner eCascadia is
built on the proven foundation of the Cascadia,
the best-selling Class 8 on the market. It was first
revealed in June 2018 along with the medium-duty
eM2. The planned start of series production for
both models is late 2021. In preparation for their
introduction, Freightliner has established multiple
avenues for co-creating with customers. Freightliner’s
Electric Vehicle Council, a collective of 38
customer companies, works to address the total
e-mobility ecosystem. Freightliner’s Innovation
Fleet provides customers with the opportunity to
fully test the eM2 and the eCascadia in real-world
use. In total, Penske and NFI will receive 30 battery
electric trucks.
The Freightliner eCascadia and eM2 are part
of Daimler Trucks’ global electrified truck initiative,
joining the company’s Thomas Built Buses
all-electric Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley school bus, the
FUSO eCanter, and the Mercedes-Benz eActros
and eCitaro. To date, there are more than 100
electrified trucks and buses from Daimler Trucks
& Buses on the road globally. 8
T
s
b OOIDA from page 25 b
billion in gross revenue, DOT must more fully
consider the practical implications that eliminating
the human driver from the FMCSRs might
have on the economy.”
Spencer said OOIDA understands necessary
changes must be made to the FMCSRs to accommodate
AVs, including training, licensing, and inspection
standards, but that many of the proposals
within the ANPRM are hypothetical in nature.
“In this sense, OOIDA questions why the
agency has chosen to focus on regulations that
may or may not be necessary depending how the
technology performs,” Spencer wrote. “Most of
the questions laid out in the ANPRM are based
on assumptions, many of which are nothing more
than marketing ploys from ADS developers,
rather than actual safety performance. Currently,
it is difficult to fully understand what role AVs
will have on the trucking industry. Without more
concrete data about how AVs will function and
their impact on the industry, our feedback on the
ANPRM is generally speculative. As the practical
impacts of the technology evolve, so too will our
recommendations.” 8
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Features
September 15-30, 2019 • 27
Tire exec: Advanced truck technology
starts where the rubber meets the road
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
FINDLAY, Ohio — Today’s commercial
truck tires are rolling pieces of sophistication.
They are the vessels that carry the payload
on a tractor and trailer, so the importance
of their construction and foundation
— the casing — can’t be understated.
“Other than tires for the aerospace industry,
commercial truck tires have arguably the
toughest job in the tire business,” said Phil
Mosier, Cooper Tire’s manager of commercial
tire development. “It’s why we dedicate
so much engineering time to ensure our tires
perform safely and productively. From a productivity
standpoint, since tires are the second-highest
operating cost after fuel, miles
to removal and fuel economy — balanced
by a competitive price — is what can keep
truckers making money.”
So, what makes tires so high tech? On
the surface they’re black and round and look
pretty much the same.
“Commercial truck tire manufacturers
all primarily use natural rubber for heat resistance
and durability,” Mosier said. “As a
comparison, the automotive tires you drive
on generally consist of more synthetic rubber
than natural rubber. And, truck tires all
use carbon black to some degree as a primary
ingredient in the chemistry of the tire. But
that’s where the similarities end.”
According to Mosier, some commercial
tire brands are well known and have been
around for generations, proving their performance
on North American roads. Others are
less known, with limited distribution.
“And, like with any product, you have
varying degrees of quality and expectations,”
he said. “In the tire world you have up to four
tiers of quality and pricing. And for the most
part you get what you pay for.”
Mosier said that the lower the tier, typically,
the lower the performance — fewer
miles to removal, for example.
A Tier 4 tire might show up sporadically
in the U.S. market, for example, then disappear.
And there are a lot of players. There are
more than 250 different brands of drive tires
listed on the SmartWay website, with the
vast majority in the lowest tier.
“The buyers of these tires are looking for
rubber to put on the road — not high mileage,
retreadability or other metrics,” Mosier said.
“When you move up to Tier 3, Tier 2 and Tier
1 tires, you find incremental quality improvements
and better casings. These tires give you
longer miles to removal, better fuel economy,
and many are engineered for multiple retreads.
And for drivers who don’t retread, it translates
to more money back when they sell their casings.
One way to sum up the quality variant
is to look at the tire manufacturer’s warranty.
The better it is, the higher the quality. A tire
manufacturer knows better than anyone else
how its tires will perform because they, like
us, track performance data.”
When comparing a passenger tire versus
commercial truck tire, Mosier said each has
its own performance challenges for engineers.
“With a passenger tire, consumers are
Courtesy: COOPER TIRE
Phil Mosier, standing, says it’s an exciting time to be a tire designer. “We have so much
technology and research at our fingertips. We have chemists with PhDs who uncover new
ways to perfect compounding, and we have new ways to design and test our tires to ensure
top performance.”
looking for handling, low road noise and
mileage in the 30,000- to 80,000-mile
range,” he said. “With commercial truck
tires, it’s those attributes: fuel economy plus
casing integrity. Some truckers, with diligent
tire maintenance practices, get more than
400,000 miles on drive tires.”
According to Mosier, long haul and regional
operations each pose different challenges,
and that’s why wear (miles to removal)
can vary greatly.
See Tires on p28 m
Even as we continue to hear the sky is falling, let’s remember what keeps us grounded
Klint Lowry
klint.lowry@thetrucker.com
Lane
Departures
I write about trucking, but I am not a truck
driver. I have never been a truck driver. And
even though I respect the adage “never say
never,” I can say with reasonable certainty
that I never will be a truck driver.
I wouldn’t last six months as a trucker.
It’s just a matter of compatibility, of not being
suited for the business. Wrong temperament,
wrong skill set — wrong everything.
Oh well. I won’t shed any tears if you
won’t. Watching the industry from arm’s
length often leaves me shaking my head.
Collectively, in so many ways, this industry
can be its own worst enemy.
Trucking culture often operates, for better
or worse, like family or a group of longtime
friends. Even when they’re screwing up royally,
or just annoying one another, you also
see the good inside. And that’s what happened
a couple of days before I wrote this,
and it involves the press, and an irresistible
opportunity to diss on my own kind.
By the time you see this, it will be old
news that truckload carrier HVH Transportation
shut down without notice in late August.
And then a day later, a smaller carrier, Ready
Transportation, shuttered its operation.
Of course, the trucking media was all
over it, us included. That’s the way the media
works. We all keep an eye on one another to
make sure the other guy didn’t get a popular
story that we missed. That’s why everybody
seems to cover the same stuff. It isn’t some
vast political or ideological conspiracy; it’s
more of a monkey see, monkey do situation.
It wasn’t the fact that HVH shut down
that made this a hot story, it was the way
that it shut down. It was sudden, employees
weren’t given any notice. Drivers’ gas cards
were shut off and they were stranded all over
the country. It fit perfectly into drivers’ resentments
of company owners as heartless,
greedy and often incompetent, with the employees
having to suffer the consequences.
And then, when Ready Transportation shut
down a day later, it fed into the wider scale
plotline that’s been getting all kinds of traction
lately — the premise that the economy,
and trucking along with it, are on the brink of
recession. Or the recession has already started.
Or it’ll start next year. It depends on which
story you read. A couple articles suggested
that maybe the recession is already over.
Perish the thought. The fact that these two
carriers shut down was played up as Exhibits
A and B that calamitous times are upon us.
Gosh, how many carriers does this make this
year? A couple of outlets decided to look it
up. Their published findings varied from nine
total to six hundred and something carriers
that have closed in 2019. Either way, that’s
out of 892,078 for-hire carriers, and almost
twice that if you include private carriers.
It was just a year, even six months ago,
that trucking executives were patting themselves
on the back and practically lighting
Cuban cigars with $100 bills. Now everyone
seems certain, even eager to pronounce that
the sky is falling. Could things have changed
that much that quickly?
Avery Vise, vice president of trucking at
FTR Transportation Intelligence, has one of
the sharpest minds out there devoted to trucking
concerns. He shared with us a few facts
and figures and his interpretations. Vise indicated
that the media does seem to be leading
this Chicken Little chorus, and hyping trucking
company closures is part of the tune.
“The transition from an extraordinary
market like 2017-2018 to today usually reveals
which carriers made poor choices during
a time when those carriers could still be
profitable despite those choices,” Vise said.
Without question, there are some signs of
stress on the industry, he added, but “market
conditions have not deteriorated to the point
where reasonably well-run companies should
be at risk.”
“Carriers always are going out of business
without many people paying much at-
See Lane on p28 m

28 • September 15-30, 2019 Features
b Tires from page 27 b
“The trick — or the art in what we do — is
in balancing the performance attributes of the
tire,” he said. “The first 5 miles and the last 5
miles of a trip wear out a tire faster than the
500 miles in between. Stopping, starting and
scrubbing tires (turning) are what wear away
the tread and it can impact uniform wear. So, as
a tire designer, we have to figure out a way to
resist those forces in order to make a better tire.
Anyone can build a tire to go straight for 500
miles … and have good wear. But to get top
performance you have to offset the forces that
eat up a tire or cause it to come out of service
due to irregular wear. That’s the challenge.”
Also challenging to tire designers are the
different wheel positions. Steer tires are considered
the most important, as they typically
carry maximum loads and are very sensitive
to tire pressure. “And they’re constantly
turning and scrubbing and can be impacted
by alignment issues,” Mosier said. “It’s why
we put so much emphasis in engineering
a tire that can withstand all the forces that
come into play. We’ve seen changes over the
last 10 to 15 years, as well. In the past, the
typical width of a steer tire was 8.5 inches.
Now it’s nine inches. What this has done has
given a bigger footprint to spread weight.
And new compounds have made that tread
roll easier over the road.”
According to Mosier, commercial tires
are evolving at a rapid pace.
“Compounds continue to change, and the
mixes keep improving,” he said. “The use of
new raw materials and formulations allow
us as tire designers to expand performance
so that improvements can be made in rolling
resistance while maintaining or improving
treadwear and traction.”
Another component in continued tire quality
improvement is in the manufacturing process.
To be considered a top tire manufacturer,
tires coming off the line need to be uniform.
“And that means the specs and tolerances
are very tight,” Mosier said. “For top tire
brands, if the tires don’t meet spec, they’re
rejected. Manufacturing commercial tires
has come a long way. These improvements
mean tires from the leading brands have better
uniformity, which translates to longer,
more even wear.”
All told, Mosier said, it’s an exciting time
to be a tire designer.
b Lane from page 27 b
tention,” he said. He added that when New
England Motor Freight shut down in February,
it was understandable that it got a lot of
attention. It had more than 1,400 power units
and almost that many drivers, and it had been
around since the 1930s.
“But we have also seen some fairly small
carriers get media coverage recently because
it reinforces the narrative,” he said. That’s a
tactful way of saying it makes for sensational
headlines.
When the HVH/ Ready Transportation
stories broke, it immediately drew comparisons
to four months earlier when Falcon
Transportation closed in very similar fashion
— zero notice, drivers stranded in the
same heartless manner. And then a smaller
company in Alabama closed, which probably
wouldn’t have gotten any media attention
were it not for the timing.
There was another parallel between the
Falcon closing in April and the HVH closing
in August. Both companies had been purchased
by equity groups in the last few years.
This could explain a lot. Granted, trucking
and journalism are very different professions,
but I’ve seen what happens when equity
groups get their hands on a company.
It’s about the same as being diagnosed with
Stage 4 cancer. The survival rate isn’t high,
THETRUCKER.COM
“We have so much technology and research
at our fingertips,” he said. “We have
chemists with PhDs who uncover new ways
to perfect compounding, and we have new
ways to design and test our tires to ensure top
performance. There is so much opportunity
in the commercial tire space — it’s exhilarating
to come to work every day to see what
we can accomplish.” 8
and even if the company does survive, the
quality of life is greatly diminished.
Equity groups are ultimately in charge of
the businesses they buy without really being
part of them. They don’t share in that industry’s
culture. They come in with a different
attitude, a different skill set. Equity groups
are about profit at all costs, and they want
it fast. They come into troubled companies
with one cure — bloodletting. If the company
starts making money, great. If not, they
have no qualms about pulling the plug.
I can’t say for sure if that’s what happened
at Falcon or at HVH, but the sudden,
thoughtless manner in which they closed is
exactly the kind of move an equity group
would make.
But in both cases, what happened next is
part of the true nature of the trucking industry.
As soon as word got out that there were
drivers stranded all over the country because
of what their companies had done, lifelines
were thrown out from every direction with
offers to get them home.
Just like family, just like old friends. You
may argue right and left about darn near everything,
but when the chips are down, you
come through.
I’d never make a good trucker, but that’s
one thing about the culture that even my burnt
charcoal lump of a heart can appreciate, and
that’s the humanity that pervades this profession.
For what it’s worth, that’s something
the equity guys will never get. 8
THE TRUCKER
News Channel
Tune in and watch at TheTrucker.com

thetrucker.com September 15-30, 2019 • 29
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