As most readers know, Diane and I are making a career change out of trucking and into the fitness industry (see this). When such a move is made, your former career is seen in another light from further away. As the viewing angle changes, you see things that you did not see before.
One of the things I notice now is the frequency of compliance events that truckers have. When experiencing it every day, all day, as all truckers do, I did not think much about that aspect of trucking. It was just part of the daily grind that is only now coming into clearer view as Diane and I step away.
No industry in the U.S. is free of government regulations. As we prepare to open a gym there are a number of certifications, inspections, codes, licenses, insurance requirements, permits and laws to deal with. When setting up shop in a retail location, these events happen in one place and are mostly one-time or annual events (excluding sales tax collection and income tax reporting). But when compared to trucking, this regulatory compliance feels like a walk in the park.
That's partly because the general public fears trucks more than they fear gyms. It's also partly because truckers move around. They pass through many jurisdictions and many other jurisdictions reach out to them whether they are in such a jurisdiction or not.
Example: Think about a run from a warehouse in a Chicago suburb to JFK airport in New York. How many government entities and rules apply? It's no wonder truckers feel like the world is closing in on them. It is!
I'll need help from readers to list all of the compliance and undesirable government events on such a trip. Some of them are:
1. If you wish to run in Ontario and Quebec, you will likely be in a speed-limited truck.
2. If you wish to run in California, you must spend tens of thousands of dollars to upgrade an older truck or spend the same money on the higher price of a newer truck. Even if you don't want to run in California, all new trucks come with this higher-price for EPA add-ons.
3. You will pay tolls in IL, IN, OH, NJ, and NY.
4. In IN, you will have the pleasure of driving on a deteriorating toll road that was recently leased by the state to a foreign corporation that increased the tolls but is letting the road decline. And you'll have time to think about it while you drive a few hours on that road.
5. You will pay fuel tax at different rates and collection methods, depending on where you buy it.
6. In New York, you will pay a mileage tax that other states do not charge.
7. When you cross the George Washington bridge, you will pay tolls that have increased to obscenely high levels, that have no relationship to inflation or highway operating costs, and some of the money from which goes to non-highway projects.
8. Some of the fuel tax dollars you pay to each state you drive through are diverted away from highway maintenance to politically-desirable projects that have nothing to do with transportation.
9. At any point along your route, you can get pulled into a scale or pulled over on the road for an inspection that may put you out of service.
10. Don't you dare run with a burned out marker light. That violation will taint your record for three years.
11. Because it is prohibited in many, many places, truck parking will be a challenge. And even when you are in a place where no signs prohibit it, you might get run off by a cop or private security guard.
12. If it is cold outside, you can't idle your truck engine to keep warm.
13. If you wake up early, feeling great, and want to go to work, you may not be able to do so because your log book may say you have not had enough rest.
14. If you complete your delivery in the morning, find a good parking place, and decide to run an errand a few hours later, you may choose not to, again because your log book and/or carrier tells you when you can and cannot drive.
15. As a trucker, you must report your duty status and truck location every minute of every day, whether you are "in the office" or not.
16. You cannot deliver your load to the airport unless you have previously completed a course and been certified to do so.
17. So too if the load is HAZMAT, and in that case, you must undergo a background check and fingerprinting before transporting such cargo.
18. At any time, you can be told to go in for a drug test that must be taken at your expense and will trigger an on-duty log book event that might throw off your revenue-earning plans for the day.
19. If you want to run in certain western states, tire chain laws apply and you will likely keep those chains with you all the time for that reason.
20. When driving, you have constantly in mind things like bridge heights and weight limits, and in New York especially, bridge height postings will have no relationship to the actual heights of bridges.
21. Depending on where you last bought fuel, you may have corn in your tank because farmers successfully got that law imposed.
22. If you drive with the future in mind, you are thinking about even more regulations that are coming down the pike, that have the potential to erode your profits and maybe even drive you out of the industry.
Last week, Diane and I sat in a classroom full of gym "owner-operators" and spent time with them at a restaurant after class. The conversation was totally different in that compliance issues did not come up. When we go to class and dine with truckers, compliance issues come up all the time because, for truckers, the compliance burden is higher, more frequent, and more challenging to one's personal freedom and the ability to run a profitable operation. The contrast is striking, and it's something Diane and I are seeing more clearly as we move from one career to another.
In any field, attitude is everything. In the highly regulated (and sometimes crazy regulated) trucking industry, it is wise to be aware of just how deep into your life the regulations reach and examine your attitude about it.
The way you choose to think and feel about the regs and the people who make them will carry through to how you feel about your industry, business, and self as you spend every minute of every day operating under them.
One of the things I notice now is the frequency of compliance events that truckers have. When experiencing it every day, all day, as all truckers do, I did not think much about that aspect of trucking. It was just part of the daily grind that is only now coming into clearer view as Diane and I step away.
No industry in the U.S. is free of government regulations. As we prepare to open a gym there are a number of certifications, inspections, codes, licenses, insurance requirements, permits and laws to deal with. When setting up shop in a retail location, these events happen in one place and are mostly one-time or annual events (excluding sales tax collection and income tax reporting). But when compared to trucking, this regulatory compliance feels like a walk in the park.
That's partly because the general public fears trucks more than they fear gyms. It's also partly because truckers move around. They pass through many jurisdictions and many other jurisdictions reach out to them whether they are in such a jurisdiction or not.
Example: Think about a run from a warehouse in a Chicago suburb to JFK airport in New York. How many government entities and rules apply? It's no wonder truckers feel like the world is closing in on them. It is!
I'll need help from readers to list all of the compliance and undesirable government events on such a trip. Some of them are:
1. If you wish to run in Ontario and Quebec, you will likely be in a speed-limited truck.
2. If you wish to run in California, you must spend tens of thousands of dollars to upgrade an older truck or spend the same money on the higher price of a newer truck. Even if you don't want to run in California, all new trucks come with this higher-price for EPA add-ons.
3. You will pay tolls in IL, IN, OH, NJ, and NY.
4. In IN, you will have the pleasure of driving on a deteriorating toll road that was recently leased by the state to a foreign corporation that increased the tolls but is letting the road decline. And you'll have time to think about it while you drive a few hours on that road.
5. You will pay fuel tax at different rates and collection methods, depending on where you buy it.
6. In New York, you will pay a mileage tax that other states do not charge.
7. When you cross the George Washington bridge, you will pay tolls that have increased to obscenely high levels, that have no relationship to inflation or highway operating costs, and some of the money from which goes to non-highway projects.
8. Some of the fuel tax dollars you pay to each state you drive through are diverted away from highway maintenance to politically-desirable projects that have nothing to do with transportation.
9. At any point along your route, you can get pulled into a scale or pulled over on the road for an inspection that may put you out of service.
10. Don't you dare run with a burned out marker light. That violation will taint your record for three years.
11. Because it is prohibited in many, many places, truck parking will be a challenge. And even when you are in a place where no signs prohibit it, you might get run off by a cop or private security guard.
12. If it is cold outside, you can't idle your truck engine to keep warm.
13. If you wake up early, feeling great, and want to go to work, you may not be able to do so because your log book may say you have not had enough rest.
14. If you complete your delivery in the morning, find a good parking place, and decide to run an errand a few hours later, you may choose not to, again because your log book and/or carrier tells you when you can and cannot drive.
15. As a trucker, you must report your duty status and truck location every minute of every day, whether you are "in the office" or not.
16. You cannot deliver your load to the airport unless you have previously completed a course and been certified to do so.
17. So too if the load is HAZMAT, and in that case, you must undergo a background check and fingerprinting before transporting such cargo.
18. At any time, you can be told to go in for a drug test that must be taken at your expense and will trigger an on-duty log book event that might throw off your revenue-earning plans for the day.
19. If you want to run in certain western states, tire chain laws apply and you will likely keep those chains with you all the time for that reason.
20. When driving, you have constantly in mind things like bridge heights and weight limits, and in New York especially, bridge height postings will have no relationship to the actual heights of bridges.
21. Depending on where you last bought fuel, you may have corn in your tank because farmers successfully got that law imposed.
22. If you drive with the future in mind, you are thinking about even more regulations that are coming down the pike, that have the potential to erode your profits and maybe even drive you out of the industry.
Last week, Diane and I sat in a classroom full of gym "owner-operators" and spent time with them at a restaurant after class. The conversation was totally different in that compliance issues did not come up. When we go to class and dine with truckers, compliance issues come up all the time because, for truckers, the compliance burden is higher, more frequent, and more challenging to one's personal freedom and the ability to run a profitable operation. The contrast is striking, and it's something Diane and I are seeing more clearly as we move from one career to another.
In any field, attitude is everything. In the highly regulated (and sometimes crazy regulated) trucking industry, it is wise to be aware of just how deep into your life the regulations reach and examine your attitude about it.
The way you choose to think and feel about the regs and the people who make them will carry through to how you feel about your industry, business, and self as you spend every minute of every day operating under them.
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