handling downtime...

[NB Trucker]

First a note to all who have answered my questions etc... here, Thanks for your assistance, I really appreciate the timely advice!

I've been devouring the boards since signing on here. and I note that there is a lot of downtime. As a solo driver, which I would expect I would be, there will be times when I'll have to be out of service for my ten hrs. (presume D -unit for the moment). I've read that there are better days of the week to take a breather, It seems to be mid week and weekends, with Mon & Fri being prime busy days.
When Idle, how do you handle the down time. Is it 'wait for the qualcom to beep' on edge, or do you set your PTA (Potential Time of Availability) and take time for you when you can? Do the carriers understand the need for personal time? I wouldn't see a problem with being out on the road for several weeks at a time, providing there was a bit of time for myself.
When I was an OTR driver, I was patient between loads. I carried a book or would do a crossword etc. As an expediter, can you make time for yourself? I have friends all over the country thanks to my woodworking hobby, as well as being a Mason. Naturally I'd be interested in expanding my contacts around the country for that.
Are those realistic expecations or am I being too optomistic?

 

[davekc]

If you are driving your own truck I would think you can work as little or as much as you want. After all you would be an independent contractor. If driving for an owner it would depend upon what everyone had agreed.
Davekc

 

[x06col]

Actually, it is not if the company understands your need for personal time, or, if your desire for personal time is there. It is in fact, that the freight that needs to move, when it needs to move does not understand (or care) about your need for personal time. That is why we are called expediters.

 

[NB Trucker]

>Actually, it is not if the company understands your need for
>personal time, or, if your desire for personal time is
>there. It is in fact, that the freight that needs to move,
>when it needs to move does not understand (or care) about
>your need for personal time. That is why we are called
>expediters.

question though. for the sake of discussion, and when I do make the move, I am gearing toward running solo in a D unit. HOw do you get around the hrs of service requirements? I'm well familiar with logging what it takes, vs what it really was, but if a DOT officer puts you 'down' for 10, or your log does (same thing), what do you do?

I'm all for running when the freight needs to GO, and that's part of the appeal, I can't stand when drivers I manage now sit idle, I LIKE the get it there NOW aspect of the expediting industry. However with a log book, solo, there will be down time from time to time. Do the carriers allow for that, or is there industry pressure to just 'get it done' and they don't worry about the logs? I want to do the job, but I also don't want to face the penalties for being over on my log book.
I was surprised to see in another post, that expediting managers have to estimate at the same rate for logging that my OTR, governed slow trucks do. (there's a hint, everybody passes my trucks) Is it a time management tool, booking loads at 50mph?

Thanks for the thought provoking posts, though.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

The carriers are required to abide by your HOS. They are very liable if you get into an accident and they have given you a load that doesn't allow you enough time to deliver it legally. Of course, it is up to you to tell them how many hours you have left available, or how long you need to sleep. And it is up to you to refuse a load if you can't make it legally. If the dispatchers penalize you, go to your safety director.

 

[NB Trucker]

So it is a case of Good information = good loads. gotcha.
My current employer tends toward 'newer' drivers, so I wind up explaining the HOS rules a lot, especially split sleeper berth time to the new guys. It is very hard not to take them aside and say 'ok, here's how it 'should be' legally, and this is how it ought to be for you to make money.' We have a lot of drivers who log 110% of their hours,(or so it seems, they run out of hrs at the strangest times, and in the middle of runs that are time critical. Drives me nuts!) And then there are drivers who never seem to run out, somehow they get the job done no matter what.
I'd like to think I'd be one of the latter. I have learned from a management standpoint, that good information is crucial to proper load planning. We recently updated our qualcom system so that the drivers could update their ETA/PTA themselves, and are now trying to instill in the drivers that they need to do so several times a day, especially in our Northeast Regional fleets. That way with accurate information, inlucding time left on their 11 and 14 hr clocks at the pta, we can get them a load they can actually DO, instead of having to turn them down for lack of hours.
As a Solo driver in a D Unit, that would seem to me to be a large key to my success. Keeping the planners up to date on my status will allow them to better plan me with loads I can handle.