TA verus Pilot

Are you willing to give up the .05 fuel discount?...for a TA program


  • Total voters
    8
  • Poll closed .

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
IF it were even remotely possible......are you willing to give up your .05 discount at Pilot for a TA/Petro fuel card?

Yes or No
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
we are not big enough to get that discount....that is why be very careful at what you ask for....
With the Ultra program it would take you 3 fill ups to get 1 shower...

Here is just one problem John has....there are not enough TA's for J the Truckload division....Pilots are like Panther...a fuel stop on every corner....
 
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golfournut

Veteran Expediter
we are not big enough to get that discount....that is why be very careful at what you ask for....
With the Ultra program it would take you 3 fill ups to get 1 shower...

Here is just one problem John has....there are not enough TA's for J the Truckload division....Pilots are like Panther...a fuel stop on every corner....

And you would still have shower credits left over! Lol
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Ta/Petro are everywhere. Never was without a fuel stop.

At this point...unless TA can present a better offer to John....you guys will just have to either use the .05 discount as a down payment for a shower at TA....John isn't going to risk his truckload fleet nor loss millions $$$ in discounts....better yet..ya know that $50 layover pay ya get that NO ONE else gets?...use that to pay for your showers...just saying...
 

golfournut

Veteran Expediter
At this point...unless TA can present a better offer to John....you guys will just have to either use the .05 discount as a down payment for a shower at TA....John isn't going to risk his truckload fleet nor loss millions $$$ in discounts....better yet..ya know that $50 layover pay ya get that NO ONE else gets?...use that to pay for your showers...just saying...

I go where the carrier card goes. Like you, I only use pilot or FJ when I want a shower. I have more coffee credits at speedway than on my pilot card.
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
I go where the carrier card goes. Like you, I only use pilot or FJ when I want a shower. I have more coffee credits at speedway than on my pilot card.
Same here.....have my own payment system...only use the card for showers...and NOT all Pilots are that bad.....it is ONLY a shower for Lords sake..not the Hilton....boy oh boy....LOL
 

golfournut

Veteran Expediter
Same here.....have my own payment system...only use the card for showers...and NOT all Pilots are that bad.....it is ONLY a shower for Lords sake..not the Hilton....boy oh boy....LOL

Yep, I where my shower shoes in all of them, use my own soap. Long as the water is hot and the towel is clean, I'm a happy camper.
 

scottm4211

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
At this point...unless TA can present a better offer to John....you guys will just have to either use the .05 discount as a down payment for a shower at TA....John isn't going to risk his truckload fleet nor loss millions $$$ in discounts....better yet..ya know that $50 layover pay ya get that NO ONE else gets?...use that to pay for your showers...just saying...

So you asked the question yet arbitrarily decided that this hypothetical can't happen. Lol
 

Dynamite 1

Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
you are right about not getting t/a petro unless a better deal is presented. this was discussed and that is what it is hinged upon. the floating discount like others get at t/a petro will not work here at load one. not because of fleet size though. it is because of the problem with people tracking their own discount and knowing what they are being charged versus what load one says on the fuel report. it creates a problem for payroll. we all know that there are some out there that cant tell you what they earned this week till they see the settlement sheet. for as much as we would love to have t/a petro for fuel and showers, we wouldnt wish those problems on payroll or john. it is however being looked at and a better discount where ever it may be is being sought out by the one that matters. this info is as true and correct as can be and we accept it. we currently do as ken said, we apply it toward showers when not at a j we will shower at.

however, im still not convinced that fuel is fuel. LOL
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
you are right about not getting t/a petro unless a better deal is presented. this was discussed and that is what it is hinged upon. the floating discount like others get at t/a petro will not work here at load one. not because of fleet size though. it is because of the problem with people tracking their own discount and knowing what they are being charged versus what load one says on the fuel report. it creates a problem for payroll. we all know that there are some out there that cant tell you what they earned this week till they see the settlement sheet. for as much as we would love to have t/a petro for fuel and showers, we wouldnt wish those problems on payroll or john. it is however being looked at and a better discount where ever it may be is being sought out by the one that matters. this info is as true and correct as can be and we accept it. we currently do as ken said, we apply it toward showers when not at a j we will shower at.

however, im still not convinced that fuel is fuel. LOL

I absolutely lose MPG's at Pilot/J's.....does it make sense to get a discount and then burn thru said discount?...
 

Dynamite 1

Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
not to me, unless said discount is more than mpg loss. personally we can track our own and did quite well with the floating discount. it can however come around and bite you. when it does the higher price eats up what you save fairly quick but you do still have the better mpg savings to fall back on. im sure something will happen and we are committed to seeing what that is. we need the deductions anyway. so a few more bucks for fuel washes at the end of the year. if things go this year like the last 5 mo. of last year, it will be welcome.
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
not to me, unless said discount is more than mpg loss. personally we can track our own and did quite well with the floating discount. it can however come around and bite you. when it does the higher price eats up what you save fairly quick but you do still have the better mpg savings to fall back on. im sure something will happen and we are committed to seeing what that is. we need the deductions anyway. so a few more bucks for fuel washes at the end of the year. if things go this year like the last 5 mo. of last year, it will be welcome.

And then there is the perk of FREE truck washes at the yard....wonder if any has factored in what they are saving right there....what is it 17-20$ bucks a was?....almost 2 showers right there...
 

guido4475

Not a Member
So why can't we have both? Yes, Ken, it is only a shower, but c'mon, with the amount of money we spend at the Flying Pilots, and that's the best they can do?? It's like a slap in the face.Look at the restrooms.I have never seen one clean yet.Never.They just don't care, and never will.It is all about get the customer in and out as quickly as possible.Period.How many small chains has the Flying Pilot bought, and completely screwed up?Take the Davis brothers chain in Kentucky, for example.Awesome family restaurants in all of them,super service, and clean.Then, Pilot comes along, and BOOM !!!! restaurant gets yanked out and a mcdonalds get put in.service and cleanliness goes away.Why do they think everyone has to eat Subway or fast food? But yet, in their monthly challenge magazine, they try to paint a healthy let's care about the obesity problem in the trucking industry face.Get real.I could go on and on, and believe me, I've talked to corporate Pilot about their shortcomings.They simply don't care.
 

jelliott

Veteran Expediter
Motor Carrier Executive
US Army
As of yet they have not come up with a better program than what Pilot has with us. The other big issue is coverage. I have trucks and owner operators that can not always make it to a Pilot or Flying J to fuel. With the considerably less amounts of TA Petro's this problem will only get worse. You are going to see another .01 per gallon discount taking effect shortly. Paperwork and systems being updated this week.

As for fuel quality, I am never sure of this. If one chain had better fuel that delivered better fuel economy, wouldn't they be promoting and selling that fact all over the place? Not sure, but seems like an easy sell if they could prove it.

Last point is many carriers have no fuel program at all. We do this as a benefit. It is not mandatory and owner operators are free to purchase fuel themselves where they prefer and with their own payment method. I have no issue with that. Receipts just need to be submitted for fuel tax computations.
 
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