Trucking News

LiberalTrucker contributed this post for Masslogics Trucking News. The recent housing crises, floods, tornadoes and the war in Iraq have not really helped the American economy. Billions of dollars have already spent on the war in Iraq and there is no end in sight. Prices of food, water, electricity and gas have all gone up. Almost every State in the country is affected by this recession and there is no solution in sight. In the US many people think it is just the housing industry that has been affected but the trucking industry has taken just as big a hit. And this is just the first signs of trouble.

The price of diesel has gone up many folds in the past few years. Almost every trucker can confirm that there is a major slowdown in business and this has affected entire communities in the US.

Current estimates from the American Trucking Industry indicate that nearly 1000 small trucking firms go out of business every time diesel fuel prices push up more than a dime.

Profits are so thin that most small time truckers have very little margin to sustain the losses. This is partly because of the millions of truck drivers available and the administrative costs. So any small increase in the price of fuel makes it difficult for the small carriers to exist. Transmitting the higher costs of fuel to customers does not normally work as the customers usually go somewhere else, see Don’t Take that Load Part II

The larger trucking companies have some leeway and are able to maintain some profits by passing the costs to shippers who eventually pass the high costs to the average consumer. However, this has not also worked since most consumers have really cut down on spending.

The future of the trucking industry is not clear and appears bleak. Unless the government eases regulations and allows more refineries, there are many more businesses that will join the truckers.

LiberalTrucker contributed this post for Masslogics Trucking News.

America has been a world leader in providing opportunities for everyone. In the last 20 years, the deregulated trucking industry has contributed to a fair share of problems both off and on the roads. There is worse traffic, more pollution, pitiful working conditions and below par safety standards on the roads. However, the California port authority is now taking control of this situation. It has banned all independent truck drivers from the Port of LA. This is the first step to regain control of the roads, remove traffic congestion and lessen environmental pollution.

Reports have indicated that pollution from trucks in the Post of Oakland have been responsible for causing asthmatic attacks in 1/5 children in that area. Since many of these independent truckers make minimum wages they are unable to afford upgrading of their trucks and maintain safety. These independent truckers are also not part of any union and thus have no bargaining power in terms of wages, rights or benefits

The ongoing turmoil over the trucks on LA roads finally led the port authority of LA to ban all independent truckers. Numerous organizations have supported the port authority in their bid to develop a clean and safe port. The port authority says they are not discriminating against independent truckers, but they in fact claim that their actions will hopefully require trucking companies to use port based trucks driven by employee drivers.

A plan to completely ban independent truck drivers from the Port of Los Angeles by the end of 2013 was approved Thursday night.

This will hopefully led to an improvement in wages, limit pollution, lead to reliable short haul trucking system and assign due to labor law rights to all drivers.

Port officials have said that the plan will hold trucking companies accountable for maintaining big rigs, while also employing properly credentialed drivers. This does not sit well with the trucking companies who claim that this will lead to higher salaries, increased cost of labor and in the end, additional cost to the average consumer.

Selecting trucking software to run your business can be a daunting task. There are lots of selections available to fit every kind of business model. With all of these choices to look at you must first narrow the field a bit. You need to determine if you want PC or Server based fleet management software that you load on your computer hardware, or web based software that you log into on the web. Here are some things to think about when making this important decision.

With PC or Server based software, the benefits are speed of execution, and age of development. PC based software tends to run faster because the functions are internal on your hardware. There are hundreds of companies that have been developing this type of software over the last decade so the programming is mature and fairly solid. However, there are drawbacks. This software must be purchased outright, and can often be expensive requiring annual updates, maintenance contracts, user fees, etc. The hardware that is required for some systems is also expensive, and requires maintenance. Not to mention that if this hardware (like the hard drive) crashes, your data could be lost forever. Many man-hours of labor must be dedicated to operating and managing the hardware.

Web based software is much newer as an available option. This is the clear next step in the trucking software world. Since high speed connections to the internet are more common, web based software has become more attractive. The speed is close to that of PC software, and the amount of functionality can be better depending on the packages you are comparing. Add that to the affordability of monthly subscriptions instead of buying the software up front, and you have a very powerful combination. To top it all off, data backups are done automatically and included in the subscription. You no longer have to worry about hardware upkeep, saving valuable man-hours of company time.

In summary, unless you are ready to shell out thousands or tens of thousands for your business software, you should consider web based packages first. They are easier to purchase, easier to maintain, and quite simply offer more bang for the buck. Before you make a decision, take the Masslogics free trial: Free Trucking Software.

Well, you might first ask yourself, “Should I hire more drivers?”  Not every trucking business is ready for expansion.  Having additional drivers means more management responsibility resting squarely on your shoulders.  Not only will you have to deal with keeping your customer happy, but keeping drivers happy.  Keeping drivers happy can be a full time job sometimes.  And if they aren’t happy, chances are they will not treat your customers very well.  You will also have the added liability of these drivers doing something wrong on your company’s behalf so you want to make sure that you don’t just hire any warm body to fill the seat.

Once you’ve decided to move forward and expand, you have a couple options.  You can either lease on other owner/operators under a contract that are paid with a 1099, or you can hire company employees that are paid with a W-2.  Depending on the size of your business, and administrative resources, either option has its advantages.  With 1099 contractors, you only have to pay them when they work, and you don’t have to worry about employee benefits such as health insurance and paid vacations.  Contractors also tend to be more reliable since their pay is dependent upon their reliability.  On the other hand, W-2 employees are more readily available, and are generally easier to keep happy as long as the benefits are present, but require more support with payroll.  My rule of thumb has always been this:  if you have enough business to afford new trucks and have office staff, then buy trucks and hire employees.  If you are smaller and would need to purchase used equipment to expand and have limited or no office staff, then use owner operators.  The fewer headaches you have, the better.

The constant rise in diesel fuel prices is pushing the small independent trucking companies out of business.   With the independents dropping out like flies¹, what else could they possibly have to endure?

Well, with the help of a new regulation proposed by Department of Transportation (DoT) officials it looks like the independent trucker is about to get reamed yet again.

Big Rigs may be getting their speedometers clipped.  The DoT bureaucrats are proposing to mandate devices on commercial trucks that limit a truckers top speed to 68 mph.  This idea has support by many of the corporate trucking giants, but is strongly opposed by many independent truckers.

Todd Spencer, Executive Vice President of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) said “Most truckers are paid by the mile, so the financial pain of slower limits would be felt mostly by the drivers while the benefits would be reaped by corporations represented by the ATA (American Trucking Associations).”

OOIDA believes the legislation to be completely misguided and outrageous when you examine the safety data.

“There is nothing desirable about turning trucks into rolling roadblocks and obstacles for other drivers,” Spencer said.  “Slower isn’t safer. Every year, NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) accident data shows that cars are far more likely to run into the backs of trucks than the other way around.   Real highway safety experts have always known that highways are safest when all vehicles travel at the same speed.” says Spencer.

The largest trucking conglomerates favor the 68 mph speed limit, since it will force even more of the smaller, independent carriers out of business.  The collusion between transportation authorities and corporate trucking lobbyists is stomping the life out of the entrepreneurial trucker. 

The speed control campaign is led by Road Safe America, an Atlanta advocacy group that was started by a couple whose son was in an accident with a tractor trailer in 2002.  When moms get involved in road safety it’s only a matter of time before the proverbial hammer gets dropped.

Road Safe America has a history of pushing legislation for emotional reasons while ignoring the facts. The facts are split speed limits decrease road safety².

Forget common sense. Big business and big government are about to kill independent truckers with irrational legislation.  So grab your ankles my fellow independent truckers, it’s going to be a tough one to take.

References:
¹ Landline Magazine
² Safety Testimony