Tag Archive for: intermodal truck driver safety

Maintaining Driver Safety in the Midst of Winter Storms

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Calhoun Truck Lines has a relentless focus on driver safety. In a variety of ways, our safety department strives to maintain high levels of our trucker’s safety on the roads. Check our blog for details on these driver safety measures.

Trucking-WeatherAnd when the weather conditions and driving conditions become a detriment to this safety, it becomes important to share our insights into keeping our drivers safe from poor weather-related driving conditions.

Last week’s frigid temperatures’ across the middle of the United States had a forceful impact on our Midwest trucking operations in Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus and Omaha. Our shipments decreased, and drivers were on extra high alert for any mechanical equipment failures with their trucks.

Weather of the fierce magnitude that hit the U.S. recently can also have a serious economic impact on trucking and the U.S. freight transportation industry. In a recent study “The Weather Business” an insurance company found that it cost U.S. airlines and trucking companies anywhere from $3 billion to $3.5 billion for the cost of weather-related delays.

But more than the economic impact that’s high is the potential toll of the human impact. It is the responsibility of our Calhoun Truck Lines safety department to make sure we maintain a high level of safety for each truck we put on the road. That’s important in all types of weather, from extreme summer heat to below-zero winter cold. Our trucker’s safety and condition of our cargo was first and foremost on our minds, in the most recent winter cold that gripped Midwest and much of the rest of the US.

Thankfully, our drivers and the trucks they drove in sub-zero temperature came through OK. We stayed in contact with our drivers, and found that close communication was essential in getting our cargo to its chosen destination. By working with good working trucking equipment, knowledgeable drivers and key coordinating staff, we found that you may not be able to beat Mother Nature, but can do well enough in spite of her ferocity.

 

Calhoun Insights into Truck Driver Resources and Retention

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The issue of truck driver pay and industry retention of the drivers is the focus of a new three-part series at Commercial Carrier Journals.

The article, “Weighing demand for drivers, Part 1: Shippers prepare for capacity crunch“ looks to cover the reasons behind the industry’s driver shortage in the US, and the impact it’s having on shippers, fleets, truck drivers, capacity and more. Writer Kevin Jones (Senior Editor, Trucking Media) sees that the simple solution to increasing the numbers of drivers should be to raise their wages. But it’s not that easy. He writes:

“Though pay in some trucking niches has surged, it has been comparatively flat for trucking as a whole. Since 2003, wages for the entire for-hire trucking industry have grown 32 percent, slightly less than the entire private work force, at 34 percent.”

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The article describes reasons besides stagnant wages why there has been what it calls a ‘persistent’ driver shortage:

  • Older drivers: A large number of long-time drivers are approaching retirement age;
  • New regulations: Many drivers have left because of new regulations like the Compliance Safety Accountability program, have pushed many drivers out of the industry;
  • Productivity losses: losses due to new hours-of-service regulations will increase driver demand, and;
  • Reluctance: Fleets are reluctant to add capacity in a sporadic economic recovery.

Let’s face facts: The last five years have not been great for the trucking industry as a whole. It’s been a prolonged period of stagnation on the economic recovery front. And moreover, driver pay won’t dramatically increase unless the trucking business costs lower or the industry as whole increases the volume of moving shipments. Under the current administration, it’s not an entirely promising outlook.

But in the midst of these difficulties, Calhoun Truck Lines has increased our driver fleet 35% this year.  Much of our firm’s success relates to allocating more resources towards driver retention and driver education. We spent more time training our drivers and using a variety of incentives to retain our fleet. Yes, the overall regulatory environment and an evolving intermodal sector is difficult to manage in the midst of these changes. But we feel that this environment can present many opportunities for drivers to succeed and stay close to home.

If you’re a truck driver and interested in driving for one of the leading intermodal trucking firms in the Midwest, please contact us. We’d be happy to learn more about you and see if you’re ready to go trucking with us.

Driver Safety with Calhoun Truck Lines

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In the intermodal trucking business, getting the cargo to one’s destination on time and in budget is probably the most important need for a client. On its heels, though, is the safety and focus of our truckers while delivering intermodal cargo in the Midwest.  

At Calhoun Truck Lines, we take safety of our truckers and the cargo very seriously. We work with all our drivers in the Federal Motor Safety Administration’s Compliance, Safety and Accountability (CSA) BASIC program. It’s a program designed to provide a threshold of safety for intermodal trucking companies and their drivers. It is Calhoun’s goal to go above and beyond the minimum threshold of safety and reduce driver violations.   

Below are some of the requirements we have laid out for our drivers under the different categories in the CSA BASIC program. You can be assured we are actively focused on creating policies and actions to accomplish these goals.  

Unsafe Driving

  • No cell phones or other use of electronic equipment while driving
  • Provide continuing education on managing driver speed and space
  • Test drivers for proper backing techniques
  • Provide extreme weather driving education and best practices  

Fatigued Driving

  • Hours of Service training for dispatchers and drivers
  • Audit all driver logs and maintain consistent records
  • Consult with industry experts for improved training
  • Continuing education at all quarterly safety meetings  

Driver Fitness

  • Track driver CDL expirations
  • Random drug testing
  • Mandate pre-employment drug testing
  • Monitor mandatory annual driver physicals  

Vehicle Maintenance

  • Random DOT truck inspections (in addition to the required annual inspection)
  • DVIR received daily from all drivers
  • Maintain and manage the maintenance of leased chassis
  • Mandate monthly maintenance reports from all drivers  

Cargo-Related

  • Zip-tie Policy for container securement
  • Continuous hazmat training for managers, dispatchers, and drivers
  • Continuous education on equipment inspections and cargo securement for all drivers  

Crash

  • Follow Great West Casualty’s guidelines for accident reporting
  • Equipment control education (during orientation and quarterly) for all drivers
  • Participate in the Great West Casualty “Value Driven Driving” program    

As a Midwestern leader in intermodal trucking, Calhoun Truck Lines is committed to being proactive about truck driver safety. Our company stays up to date on all communications from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. In the states in which we operate, we work directly with drivers to ensure Department of Transportation compliance and support our field operations to enhance working relationships with our truck fleet.

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