Spot on!!

[blacksheep-1]

For those of us who have been stuck behind an 18 wheeler because it's .5 mph faster than the one it is passing.

Lawmaker vows to block speed limiters on trucks

Oklahoma Congressman Josh Brecheen calls FMCSA’s speed limiter proposal an “overreach” and introduces legislation aimed at heading it off.

www.freightwaves.com

 

[TMSBOSS]

Well it’s official. Carter is back. 55MPH was such a great idea. Wait until they dust off the wage and price freeze.
I do have to disagree with those stating The Current Administration is the worst in a century. Some of Carters plans were oh so special. Then again, this guy ain’t done yet.

 

[blacksheep-1]

Well it’s official. Carter is back. 55MPH was such a great idea. Wait until they dust off the wage and price freeze.
I do have to disagree with those stating The Current Administration is the worst in a century. Some of Carters plans were oh so special. Then again, this guy ain’t done yet.

please tell me you're kidding

 

[xr7]

More political B.S., as soon as a speeding semi mows down someone in his district he'll be crying for speed limiting regs and sending his thoughts and prayers.
The truck traffic is astounding and two lane freeways aren't helping. Then you see the 2 mile long trains with double stacked containers for its whole length.
The fleet I used to work for has recently installed vehicle monitoring systems on the whole fleet. Originally it was used to keep track of were the vehicles are, when it will need maintenance and to catch check engine or other various alerts from the vehicles. They results were astounding to the upper management. The drivers actually ignore or aren't aware of what the vehicle is warning them of. The best was speeding issues. The vehicle speed is only reported if it exceeds 75 mph for 30 seconds. More then enough time to usually pass some one. Our highest speed limit is 70 mph and only on our Federal Interstate highways, all others 65mph or lower, I don't think we even have any two lane roads at 65. The number of reported speeding was quite a surprise to the upper level folks. Surprisingly one of the suggestions was to bump the reporting threshold to 80 mph. Just roll your eyes, take a deep breathe and go get a drink.

What's really gets me is the jerk being passed won't let off the throttle for 5 seconds and let the other guy go.
When I'm out there with the truck and trailer I'm 54 foot long. If a truck is passing me I back off the throttle and if there isn't heavy traffic I'll tap the brakes and let him get around me, a flash of lights when he's by me lets him know he's cleared me and we are all good.

 

[blacksheep-1]

"What's really gets me is the jerk being passed won't let off the throttle for 5 seconds and let the other guy go.
When I'm out there with the truck and trailer I'm 54 foot long. If a truck is passing me I back off the throttle and if there isn't heavy traffic I'll tap the brakes and let him get around me, a flash of lights when he's by me lets him know he's cleared me and we are all good."

This right here..

One of the most eye opening things I have done was to ride across country with our hauler driver. It was like going back to driving school.

 

[JDee]

To me, the driving standards now are just a reflection of the incivility between people these days.
Not sure why this has happened, but in my lifetime I've witnessed first hand the massive change in our society from one where strangers greeted each other with a handshake to one where strangers greet each other with a 9mm. The only people up here with handguns are cops and bad guys, the rest of us just duck for cover when the shooting starts.
There is a moral vacuum on this continent and I relate it to left wing laissez faire politics and a complete failure to vet immigrants. They let anyone in the door who shows up, legally or not. We are in one of the worst moral vacuums ever with our current federal government and their air headed leadership.
Luckily, I live in a relatively small community on the eastern edge of the great morass known as the GTA. But even here, small town life is eroding and changing into something foreign to me.
I truly am glad that I am 71 this year and not 21. I feel sorry for the young ones, they know not what they missed. It used to be a great country.

 

[RES_22]

Amen brother.

 

[Fabman]

To me, the driving standards now are just a reflection of the incivility between people these days.
Not sure why this has happened, but in my lifetime I've witnessed first hand the massive change in our society from one where strangers greeted each other with a handshake to one where strangers greet each other with a 9mm. The only people up here with handguns are cops and bad guys, the rest of us just duck for cover when the shooting starts.
There is a moral vacuum on this continent and I relate it to left wing laissez faire politics and a complete failure to vet immigrants. They let anyone in the door who shows up, legally or not. We are in one of the worst moral vacuums ever with our current federal government and their air headed leadership.
Luckily, I live in a relatively small community on the eastern edge of the great morass known as the GTA. But even here, small town life is eroding and changing into something foreign to me.
I truly am glad that I am 71 this year and not 21. I feel sorry for the young ones, they know not what they missed. It used to be a great country.

100%

 

[Paul McWhiskey]

As the Son of a Son of a Teamster I can testify to the lack of professionalism of Class A drivers today compared to yester year. Unfortunately, it has a lot to do with the things mentioned previously and the fact that so many of the drivers on the road now are from 3rd world countries with nearly no regulation pertaining to these classes of vehicles and the lack of knowledge and skill in operating them. Retired from petroleum product sales and specialized in yellow iron and over the road trucking I have been in many maintenance and repair shops that were truly frightening to see what passes for such. Not only very sketchy work and minimal concern for safety but even long line team trucks with holes cut in the floor so that teammates could relieve themselves without pulling off the road. Those trucks were easy to find in the shops (and stay away from) and trust me, what an absolutely disgusting mess on the drivelines and frames. It is impossible to expect high levels of skill and professionalism from operators such as these.

No disrespect to the many "Professional" Drivers and Operators that are out on the roads keeping everything moving. You are very much appreciated and respected. Keep the shiny side up and the dirty side down.

 

[TMSBOSS]

Paul.
I have stepped onto the running boards of a truck or two delivering product. Won’t do it again. The smells coming from the cab of a few is just disgusting. And yes, the drivers are mostly immigrants who were raised a bit differently.
When I managed overseas projects the first thing I asked a person applying for a job as a plumber was “Where was the toilet in the home you were raised in?” I was looking for someone familiar with indoor plumbing, preferably the sit down type. Simply because that’s what they would be working on.
I drove through the Ukraine and Moldova a few years back. There is Zero courtesy on the roads there. None. In some places there were no roads (pavement) on the roads.
It’s easy to see why folks are flocking to America. It would be nice if more adopted a few more of our basic traditions.

 

[xr7]

As the Son of a Son of a Teamster I can testify to the lack of professionalism of Class A drivers today compared to yester year. Unfortunately, it has a lot to do with the things mentioned previously and the fact that so many of the drivers on the road now are from 3rd world countries with nearly no regulation pertaining to these classes of vehicles and the lack of knowledge and skill in operating them. Retired from petroleum product sales and specialized in yellow iron and over the road trucking I have been in many maintenance and repair shops that were truly frightening to see what passes for such. Not only very sketchy work and minimal concern for safety but even long line team trucks with holes cut in the floor so that teammates could relieve themselves without pulling off the road. Those trucks were easy to find in the shops (and stay away from) and trust me, what an absolutely disgusting mess on the drivelines and frames. It is impossible to expect high levels of skill and professionalism from operators such as these.

No disrespect to the many "Professional" Drivers and Operators that are out on the roads keeping everything moving. You are very much appreciated and respected. Keep the shiny side up and the dirty side down.

My dad was a Teamster Driver, drove for one company his whole career. Started right after WWII. He taught me some of my driving skills, mainly defensive skills. Learned on a 63 Ford 2dr sedan 352 4 speed. I'm not sure he would have approved of some of my driving skills developed on our rural gravel roads. I road with him many times, I remember the Super Duty Ford tandem tractors with the roaring 477 gas engine and the gear whine of the transmission. In 1981 he was Driver of the Year for Minnesota, at that time he had over 3 million miles under his belt & no accidents or tickets. He was a a patient driver, speed limit was the speed limit for him.

The flip side of the holes in the floors of trucks, reliving themselves in pop bottles and pitching them out the window. Then the person mowing the ditches and medians hitting the damn things. I would hear about this when talking with the road maintenance crews.