I don't think FMSCA cares about some minimal "guarded" loads....your customers create that silliness. if you have an escort or spy car along...let them secure ya while you go off duty......
it is not your problem...it is the customers problem is what I mean...
That's exactly right. It's the customers' problem.
The FMCSA has made it obvious that they don't care even a tiny bit about economic opportunities and careers of truck drivers who provided secure services under the old rules. If a problem exists, it falls to the customers and marketplace to solve it, not the FMCSA.
Like the FMCSA, customers will not care about the economic opportunities and careers of the truck drivers who provided secure services under the old rules. Their first concern is maintaining the load security that they think they need.
I can imagine the customer conversations going on now. Do we really need exclusive use? What about shipping less often and using convoys? What about those vans? They don't have to follow HOS rules. Can they be used to ship our freight and/or as escorts? My cousin Fred and his wife are cleared. They just retired and have a pickup and would love to pull their RV trailer around the country. Can they be used? How much more is this going to cost us? Will we need to set up accounts with secure-hold facilities so we can pay to park those drivers to do nothing while they are under load? Should we use planes instead of trucks to move this stuff now that truckers cannot secure the freight 24/7? That might be less expensive than paying two trucks or paying for secure parking. Maybe we should talk to FedEx, UPS, Landstar and other big logistics companies about chain of custody services while our sensitive freight is on cargo planes booked by them. Exclusive use trucking has been convenient in the past but since that is no longer a secure option, what chain of custody options should we consider and create? What about local security companies? Might they have cleared guards who can be dispatched to a parked truck to guard it for 30 minutes? Do we need to set up an account with a large security company that can provide such a service at locations nationwide? If so, might those same companies be interested in taking custody of and transporting our goods dock to dock so we don't have to deal with multiple vendors?
You can be sure that many solutions will be considered as customers address the issues, and that little if any consideration will be given by customers to the financial well being of the truckers who served them well in years past.
Linda's hope that the problems will be solved by 2013 is understandable. It is a hope I share. But it is important to note that our problems and our customers' problems are not the same, and it is them, not us, who will develop the solutions. We're truckers with trucks to offer if customers and carriers can figure out a way to use us. Under the new rules, that's about all we bring to the table regarding secure loads.
You can also be sure that carriers are having conversations. The rules have changed. How can we reconfigure our services to provide what our customers need? Since OTR truckers can no longer provide security 24/7 by themselves, what other solutions can we invent?
No carrier is asking how can we keep Joe and Jane expediter making their truck payments? They are asking, how can we meet customer needs and make money under the new rules?
