Christopher Potts: Trucker Issues

Truck Tonnage Forecast thru 2016

Tue, 07 Jun 2005 23:59:56 GMT

The forecast for truck tonnage and percent of revenue gained from truck freight services is projected to increase through the year 2016.

How much is the total truck tonnage and total truck freight revenue projected to be?

Truckers and trucking companies will receive roughly 88% of total freight revenue across this nation by the year 2016 and will haul nearly 70% of all freight tonnage in the nation.

In a time of down sizing in multiple industries, there is little doubt that jobs will be long-lasting in the trucking industry.

Age of Average truck today

Mon, 23 May 2005 15:38:37 GMT

What is the average age of trucks on the road in the USA today?

According to a report by a California government official on the age of trucks in America, 35% of all trucks on the road today are more than 10-years old.

As such, the government will be offering up to $100 million in incentives (for a period of 2-years beginning in 2006) for truck owners to upgrade their equipment (or replacement/retrofit programs with tax-exempt incentive payments).

Learn to Drive a Truck in 10-Hours

Fri, 06 May 2005 01:11:43 GMT

True or False: It's legal for an entry level truck driver to receive 10-hours of training in order to handle a tractor-trailer combination vehicle.

Apparently it's...true!

The FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association) in the last "Rules-of-Service" overhaul told Congress that entry level truck driver training should contain:
- a minimum of 320 instructional hours
- which includes 92-hours of protected off-street driving (driving range)
- which includes 116-hours of street-driving

However, the FMCSA recently issued their "Final" ruling on the matter and said that all that is required is:
- 10-hours of training
   - which includes instruction in hours-of-service
   - which includes wellness and whistleblower protection
   - which includes driving

Somehow I think that the FMCSA needs to revisit this area. Seems to me that learning how to drive a big rig involves a wee bit more training than 10-hours.

Three organizations have filed a federal lawsuit over this matter:
- OOIDA (Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association)
- The United Motorcoach Association
- Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (non-profit)

Stay tuned. This will be interesting to watch!

Driver Shortage Shrinking for Now

Thu, 28 Apr 2005 20:57:38 GMT

According to one transportation analyst firm, by the end of 2005, the shortage of truck drivers will shrink from 300,000 (total for the years of 2003 and 2004) to:

A. 250,000

B. 150,000

C. 50,000

D. 33,000

The answer is "D" -- 33,000. This assumes that the pace of freight growth will continue to slow. Hmm...I wonder how escalating diesel prices will factor into the mix?!

Commercial Cargo Theft -- What a Rip-off!

Wed, 13 Apr 2005 00:07:09 GMT

How much money is lost every year due to cargo theft?

A. Millions

B. Billions

In 1994, statistics revealed between $12-15 Billion Dollars.

Now it's estimated to be approaching $45 Billion Dollars!

That's insane.

Read more about this highly lucrative, yet very criminal, commercial cargo theft story.

What's Your Favorite Truck Stop?

Wed, 30 Mar 2005 22:41:10 GMT

What truck stops do you prefer? Everybody tends to have preferences when it comes to various things. Truckers can be particular when it comes to dining and/or staying overnight at your "home away from home." I like the following truck stops. Granted, they are national chains. However, it is the system or aspects of each truck stop's system that I like. In other words, the systems is duplicated (more or less) across each truck stop chain nationwide.

TA (Travel Centers of America)
Their wireless Internet Connection logon options are the best amongst all truck stops. You can sign up for the hour, day, month, quarter, or year. In addition, you can use your Road Star accumulated card points to logon to the Internet. That just rocks!

Pilot (Pilot Travel Centers)
They've got some good "regular" coffee. I'm particular to their Arabica roast. In addition, many of the Pilots have a fast food establishment on site so that you can fuel up as well as grab a quick meal to go.

Flying J (Flying J Travel Plaza)
On average, their showers are great--more shower space and 2 towels! I like their bathroom layouts better as well.

Petro (Petro Shopping Centers)
You can't go wrong when eating at Petro/Petro2 restaurant. I've yet to walk away disappointed.

Love's (Love's Travel Stops and Country Stores)
Most Love's have a popular fast food shop on location when you want to fuel and grab a quick bite for the road. Nothing better to see a Love's truck stop with an A&W store on location!

Honorable Mention:
Any fast food restaurant that has truck parking. Often I want to grab something quick rather than cruise into a truck stop, park the rig, and then maneuver around the facility to get what I need. That can take up to 15-minutes or longer! Many fast food places can handle my needs in under 10-minutes or less.

Special Mention:
All small "mom and pop" home-cooked dining spot that accommodates truckers. Often, you will find the best meals here for a very reasonable price. When you're in the mood for a good home-cooked meal, these establishments can't be beat! To find the best, you'll have to ask a fellow trucker which ones are their favorites.

In closing, the best truck stop at times is the one at the end-of-the-day that has one parking spot left for you! Now you can breathe a sigh of relief that you're off the road safely and can now take some well deserved rest!

So...what truck stop do you prefer (in general) and why?

Doze or No-Doze?

Tue, 15 Mar 2005 00:42:52 GMT

A new study says that under the new(er) hours-of-service rule, more truckers are getting more sleep, driving more, and dozing while driving more. Huh?

Actually there are two new studies that reveal that truckers are getting more sleep as well as getting more driving time. But they are also becoming a bit more fatigued while doing so.

Read the whole story here.

A New Wi-Fi Player in Town

Mon, 20 Dec 2004 23:07:36 GMT

In light of the recent events with TruckStop.net, a new Wi-Fi player has suddenly emerged in the news. SirriCOMM seems to be a major contender conveniently making news at the expense of TruckStop.net. Many of SirriCOMM location's are at the Pilot truck stops which TruckStop.net used to have (any may still have pending a litigation outcome with Sprint). At any rate, check out the informative Wi-Fi article entitled "Wireless Nation" by Kriten Record/Jill Dunn.

It's still hard for me to believe that "According to the American Trucking Associations, 21 percent of U.S.-based truckers carry a laptop on board, and 14 percent use the Internet while traveling." So one trucker in five carries a laptop. I find that figure rather amazing. If that is the case, I would think that the 14 percent figure would be much higher--closer to 25-30 percent. At any rate, it's a good article on the various players currently in the Wi-Fi arena for truckers to consider when considering a long/short term Wi-Fi solution for their needs.

Now if only the various Wi-Fi providers would allow a rate of $1.00 for the first hour--heck even for the 2nd hour. That would be sweet! (It would certainly boost the percent of truckers using Wi-Fi access on the road!)

TruckStop.net Wi-Fi -- A Response

Sat, 18 Dec 2004 23:46:54 GMT

Allan Meiusi, Vice President and COO of TruckStop.net did get back to me regarding my rant/rave (Nov. 2nd) over my attempt in October to use TruckStop.net's wireless service (see below).

First off: Allan, thank you for responding. I appreciate that.

Second, his message was informative. I may take minor issue with a few of his points, but over all, his attempt at setting the record straight as best he could is to be commended.

To date, I've yet to try TruckStop.net. I will make it a point to do so. Check back from time-to-time for my experience using TruckStop.net.

--- --- --- --- --- --- ---

To: chris@GoNowMail.com

From: Allan Meiusi

Date: 11/14/2004

Subject: Re: Article in iTrucker.net (Please pass on to Scott and Allen)

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the comments. Of course we're always appreciative of everyone's input and as with any effort there will be times that things run smoothly and others unfortunately there are times things slip. We care very much for the trucking market and positioned our service specifically for professional drivers. Our pricing reflects the realities and the cost of our infrastructure. First, we are at over 500 locations. Secondly, each location is back by a full TO-1 high-speed internet circuit; not a satellite system nor a frame relay. Thirdly, we use carrier grade equipment at each stop. That infrastructure is more expensive, but its been put in place in order to support future services like video-on-demand and Voice-Over-IP as well as other trucking applications. High-speed services are priced in many variations, in homes you'll see services anywhere from $25/month all the way up to $44 and beyond. In cafes, hotels, airports and so on, prices for wi-fi are more expensive then ours. We have thousands of subscribers who take advantage of the monthly or bundled discounts (i.e. quarterly or annual) and get the savings through those purchasing options.

As for the missed calls and the delay in getting your card to you, I'm sorry that happened. Perhaps there was a miscommunication with regard to your phone numbers. Give me your User ID and I'll make sure you get your card. We have many people that contact us regularly and appreciate that we get back to them promptly, if there was a problem getting back to you specifically; my apologies...that is not a regular occurrence.

On payment options we can take credit cards or pre-paid plans. We're working with T-Chek and Comdata to honour even more options however those do take time. Yes, we are pioneers in the industry and sometimes certain programs take longer to develop and we try our best to satisfy as much of the potential audience as possible. It hasn't got anything to do with our cash structure, it has to with coordinating the participation of partners and other industry service providers so that at the end of the day the industry can be serviced as best it can. However, we don't always have the choice of getting others to work on our schedule and, as such, we have to wait until they complete the integration that they need to get the services to mesh. I don't know what partner you may have, but they they are free to contact me at any time. Anything that is beneficial to the community of professional drivers that we can help pass on as a benefit, we're always open to those opportunities.

Again, sorry to hear that your experience wasn't the most pleasant, but I think you've acknowledged that we are the pioneer in the industry and we are available at a lot of places that benefit the industry.

Your truly,

Allan Meiusi

Truckstop.net

PS. As one of the co-founders, and a Canadian, I'm proud to say that we have representation in Canada and the United States at this time. We don't consider ourselves outsourcing since the folks that install, maintain and do most of the sales oriented work are based in the US. We actually provide much more work in the US, than in Canada. The Canadian and US economies are extensively tied together, and both countries have been trading partners for hundreds of years. Recognizing that so much of the freight that moves in North America crosses the border everyday (7,000 truck crossings in Detroit/Windsor each day alone), we wanted to make sure our network reflected both countries and eventually we will have more hotpots in Canada.

TravelCenters of America Wi-Fi - Smooth Sailing

Sat, 27 Nov 2004 22:36:44 GMT

A third option for getting online wirelessly onto the Internet is using TA's SpeedZone WiFi Hotspot (TravelCenters of America). The other two options are either with Flying J or TruckStop.net (read below). So what experience did I have using TA's SpeedZone?

Very satisfying.

I parked my rig some distance away from the building's antennae although I could still see the roofline amongst all the rigs. I opted to purchase the 24-hour rate ($4.95) by taking the 24-hour card off the rack to the checkout counter. Then I was given a paper receipt with my pin number. (Warning--don't lose the small paper receipt or you will be paying again!) Flying J has a plastic gift card that you receive and you can keep adding minutes to the card anytime you wish. I don't believe TA has such a gift card system at this time in case you're wondering.

Back at the truck, it took a couple of minutes for my computer to sniff out the wireless system. Once it did, I was on without any hitches for the rest of the day. Very cool! In addition, surfing speeds were good to very good and I didn't once lose my connection. All-in-all I had a very pleasant experience and wo uld recommend using the TA SpeedZone WiFi Hotspot system.

PostScript: A bump in the road (see December 5th comments in the daily log).

Flying J Wi-Fi - Once you're on, the "flying" isn't bad

Sun, 14 Nov 2004 00:34:52 GMT

Well I finally got connected wirelessly on the road. I decided to go with the Flying J Wi-Fi "Hot Spot" High Speed Wireless service. (See my not-so-favorable review on my attempt to use TruckStop.net)

After an hour of attempting to get it working and a good experience with one of their customer service technicians via their 800#, I finally was able to effortlessly surf the web.

Was it worth it?

Yes and no. Yes--from now on it should fairly simple to connect wirelessly at one of the Flying J's. No--Unless your a wireless pro used to troubleshooting wireless networking challenges, plan on spending anywhere from 30-60 minutes (or more) getting connected. Here's what when down:

After pulling into a Flying J, I fueled and then parked my rig with my trailer facing towards the main Flying J building. That was a mistake. Using a Wi-Fi access point successfully hinges upon a good-to-great connection between your laptop's receiving antenanne unit and the building's signal-sending antennae unit. What was I thinking?! But I'm jumping ahead a bit. After parking the rig, I went inside and purchased a gift card that can be used for a zillion-and-one Flying J services. Since it's rechargeable, I put a 20-spot on the card intially. To celebrate my certain success on the wireless web connection, I stocked up on a pint of Double-Strawberry ice-cream and a Starbuck's Coffee Frappuccino. Why not get wired when you're getting unwired?! Off to the truck I trotted eager with the thrill of "reconnecting" to the world. But first I had to finish my truck log for the day and then plan the route for tomorrow. Once that was accomplished, I set off to connect to the Internet.

The first thing I noticed after firing up the laptop and plugging in the wireless network card is that I had four possible access points to the Internet. Two were from the Flying J, one was from the T/A (Truck Stops of America; they use TruckStop.net as their wireless provider) located about 1/4 mile away, and the last one was TruckStop.net which came from the Love's Truck Stop on the other side of the road. Well I picked the best signal from the Flying J, hit the connect button, and waited. After being connected I opened up my Internet browser and was taken to the Flying J's log-in page. So far so good. Since I was a new customer, I dutifully began filling in 4-screens of information. However, I was interruped a couple of times because the signal was lost. And, the TA wireless login page magically appeared more than a few times. It was then that my frustration level began to mount. It was then that I realized I would need to move the truck to get a better signal from the building. So, I did a quick u-turn in the parking lot and now my tractor cab faced the building (I probably received some interesting looks from other truckers as performed that manuever). I was then able to complete the information and logon to the Internet wirelessly. Cool!

Well my frustration level managed to boil over in about 5-minutes. I called customer service (waited less than 10-seconds) and impatiently explained to the in-the-know technician my problems with the T/A login screen appearing even though I was "technically" logged on to the Flying J's wireless network. He pinpointed the problem right away (I'm using Windows XP and a box on a wireless screen had to be checked and it was not. If I remember correctly, the wireless card manufacturer instructed me not to check that box. Don't ya love how manufacturers make sure their products work together seamlessly?!) After that, I had no problems whatsoever.

So, all-in-all, it wasn't that bad of an experience although there were moments of frustration (The cold treats--ice-cream and frappuccino-- made the irritations somewhat more tolerable!). The speed wasn't exactly high-speed like I'm used to at home using my cable service's high-speed access. However, it certainly is faster than a dial-up connection. If you are planning to go surfing all over the place using a wireless connection, be prepared for a slightly slower surfing experience if you are accustomed to wired high-speed access at home.

Keep in mind with any wireless provider, the first time you try connecting to the service, you most likely will experience some minor-to-major glitches. However, once you're connected, things should go fairly smooth for you the next time around.

PostScript: Later in the evening I found myself having to log repeatedly back into the network. And more traffic (more viewers) caused the network to become sluggish at times (at least that's my guess as to why the network was at a crawl). Finally, on the Flying J wireless network you will be logged off after 5-minutes or so of inactivity (probably no different from other wireless networks).

PostScript2: The next morning (Sunday) I connected effortlessly wirelessly to the web. My connection allowed me to go zippin' around which meant that I was probably the only user on the network at the time. Yikes -- I wonder how many people logged on at the same time actually causes the surf speed to decrease dramatically. My guess is that it only takes a couple of users to develop a traffic jam (especially if those users are gaming, downloading images, etc.). Well, since we're still in the Frontier days of the wireless Internet, things can only get better!

Drivers Wanted- - Road King has it right! (P.S. Dispatchers will make or break your company.)

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 05:01:45 GMT

Lisa Waddle's commentary in TA's Road King Nov-Dec 2004 issue www.roadking.com/ (p. 4) is right on the money.

Allow me a short introductory digression....One interesting aspect of the Internet Revolution is the demand that E-Commerce is placing on the transportation industry. You can now buy virtually anything and have it delivered to your doorstep. Transportation logistics will never be the same again! Hence (back to the article) the need for drivers.

In her article, Lisa states that although the trucking/transportation industry is growing, the number of drivers is not. Why?
1. The veterans are retiring (or will be forced to retire if they can't get their blood pressure lowered as a result of the new Govn't regs.)
2. The turnover rate for new drivers is extremely high due to time away from family, lifestyle, etc.
3. Dispatcher goofiness (more about that in a minute).

So...what is the transportation/trucking industry doing about this?

Recruit, recurit, recruit! Throw more bodies at the problem...er...challenge and some of those bodies will stick and last at least 1-year in the trucking industry (if I recall correctly, a company recoups its investment in a new driver after 9-12 months). I've just re-entered the trucking industry after decades away from it. The reason I left it 20-years ago was that I just got plain bored with it. I moved on to other things with good results. Yet, I've never completely gotten over my attraction with the big rigs. I still remember my brother and me playing a game on one of our annual family vacations. We each chose a trucking carrier and counted the numreber of trucks we saw during the vacation (me thinks it was Yellow Freightways and CF-Consolidated Freightways). I forget who won, but the game underscored my fascination with "18-wheelers". Heck, I even recall playing with my Howard Johnson small-scale tractor-trailer truck when I was growing up. It was made of die-cast metal and had real rubber tires that rolled! (By the way, anyone know where I can get another one?) So, when I had to re-evaluate my carreer track recently (for the upteenth time!), I decided to give the trucking industry another shot.

One thing that amazed me this time around was that in the early 80's I had to claw my way into a semi driving job (because of my youthful inexperience). This time around, recruiters came looking for me once I let it be known that I was in the market for an 18-wheeler driving job. (Hint: if you're just getting into the industry, make sure you do your homework and start with the carrier that suits you best. Otherwise, you will probably not last very long in this industry due to bait-and-switch tactics!) [As a side note, the other thing that amazed me is that tractors nowadays don't require the higher revolutions to shift gears.] But I digress....

You know what? The mid-size and large trucking carriers have figured it out--if they are going to grow or even remain the same size they are currently at, they will need new blood in the driver's department and quick! So for the past several years, recruiting has become a big-time focus for carriers who want to stay in business. In fact, if you're a mid-sized to large trucking carrier and you don't have an active recruiting program, you will not last. You'll either get bought out (eventually), go under, or simply close up shop to avoid going under. I have heard it said more than a few times that some of the nations biggest carriers aren't in the transporation business anymore, but rather, in the recuriting and training business! Although I don't think I'd go that far, I do wonder about our government giving huge training $$ subsidies as incentives for the carriers to make sure that the nation's transportation needs are met. In other words, the more people who are trained as drivers, the more money specified carriers receive from Uncle Sam. Not a bad racket! and In addition, new drivers cost less. So a carrier can save more money by having a newbie drive a route that a veteran might normally take. Even worse, veteran drivers at some point become a liability for the carrier because they simply cost more to the company's bottom line (E.G. health care, pay, etc.) Of course no carrier will admit that, but sadly, that is where we're at in the 21st century way of doing business--stay profitable at all costs even if it means somehow ignoring, sacking, sticking it to our guys and gals who helped get us here in the first place. But I digress yet again.

Having been in the long haul transportation industry as a solo-driver for 2-months, there are 2 things that irritate me. The first issue is time away from my family. This goes without saying. Sometimes I get tears in my eyes as I think that my kids (ages 7 & 6) and I are not connecting enough. We're both missing out on the things that really matter when it comes to family, raising kids, and of course marriage (it's hard for my wife as well--she's become a single parent in addition to running her own business). The trucking industry is discovering that the new breed/batch of drivers want more home time. Hmmm...perhaps it's because when these drivers were growing up, their fathers were home not often enough due to their sales job, driving job, etc. These drivers do not want their kids to experience the same thing as they experienced--namely, daddy not being home enough. At any rate, I chose to be in this great and worthy profession--one that requires extensive time away from home--I knew that when I signed on the dotted line. Still...maybe there's a better way. It may very well be that the days of the long-haul dispatch is numbered. Everything will become regional, relayed or both. Who knows, the long-haul trucker may in the process of going the way of the dinasaur.

The second issue mentioned above is dispatcher goofiness. Mark my words: a company's growth and reputation will be directly tied to how well their dispatchers treat their drivers. Why is that so important? Let's answer that by looking at who a company's customers are. You have two basic types of customers--the external customers (those who buy the product/good/service) and the internal customers (those within the company who provide the product/good/service). Who's more important? On the surface we tend to say something like "Well duh--the external customers--they buy our stuff." However, when you think about this for a while, both the external and internal customer is crucial to the success of the business. Yes, a company needs customers who buy stuff to survive but they also need good employees who can actually deliver on what the buyer of the product/good/service wants. We've all heard the saying "The customer is King/Queen...always!) So who's the most important internal customer? Those on the front lines. In other words, those who have a direct impact on the customer's perceptions on the company. In the transportation industry, below is a way that describes this. (IMPORTANT: Please keep in mind that everyone within a company is very, very important to the success of the company. Everyone has a role to play. Although everyone's role is crucial for the company to "score" and win, those individuals who deal directly with customers on the "front lines" are key to the ongoing success of the organizaiton.)

1. Front Line players
    - Sales (Gets contracts with external customers)
    - Drivers (Delivers the goods to/from the external customers)
2. Secondary Line players
     - Mechanics (Makes sure the equipment is ready to roll so that the external customer's expectations are met)
3. Tertiary Line players
     - Dispatchers (Assigns drivers to loads)
     - Customer Service (goodwill ambassadors and medics who patch things when things go wrong)
     - HR (payroll and benefits!)
     - Everyone else (and you ARE important!)
4. Corporate players
    - Corporate players are in a different league of their own. They make the really tough decisions on every aspect of the company (including doing some of the selling to the company's biggest clients). Their decisions impact both the external and internal customer relationships and processes. So although they are listed last here, they really are separate from the previous lists of players. Note: "Separate" does not mean aloof!   It means they are team players with a special and keen sense of their responsibilities and decision making abilities on behalf of everyone in the company as well as the direction the company is heading.

Granted, some will disagree with me. However, here's the challenge facing companies today: if drivers and fleet managers don't get along (not so much due to personality aspects, but rather to company processes with respect to how drivers are treated in the field), drivers will either switch to another carrier (more bucks; same headaches) or drop out of the transportation industry for good. Of course, either option won't benefit anyone with any good. So what do I mean about "dispatcher goofiness." Well...if you're a driver you know what I mean. If you're a dispatcher, you know what I mean. If you're a corporate decision-maker or board member, I hope you know what I mean because if you don't, you better get a clue! I'll leave it that (for now) and sit back and watch the "opinions" come pouring in. (Please keep your comments clean, concise, and try not to exaggerate too much!)

Lisa backs me up on this (or I back her up) in her column when she says:
"But attracking and keeping drivers is about more than pay. A recent survey by the online driver recuritmenht site www.truckdriver.com found that dispatch was the department with the most direct impact on driver turnover. That means how dispatch treats--or mistreats--drivers goes a long way towards their decision on whether to stay or leave a company."

In conclusion, let's hope that wise decisions are even now being implemented across the boardrooms in truckingdom land so that the driver dilemma becomes a non-issue -- fast. Decisions that embrace both the newbie driver as well as the veteran driver. Decisions that will address the driver-dispatch relationship for the good of everyone in this great industry.

TruckStop.net Wi-Fi - Not impressed.

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 05:01:37 GMT

If you want to get jacked into the Internet wirelessly, there are really only 3 options at the present time for truckers (well maybe there's a couple of more, but these are the only two options that make sense for my situation). The Flying J and Travel Centers of America truck stop chains have plans that are only good when you're in one of their truck stops. Hmmm, can you say monopoly? TruckStop.net has a better way. They inked contracts with a number of well known truck stops. Purchase their high speed wireless plan and you have more options across more truck stops in North America. However, I was not impressed with the service I received when I attempted to sign up with TruckStop.net.

I decided to take advantage of their plan where you buy a minimum of a 3 month service plan (auto-renewing or non-auto-renewing) and receive a free network card for your laptop. By the way, I found out the hard way that the built-in attennae on my laptop screen is not strong enough to access the wireless network at the truck stops (Funny, it works fine in coffeeshops and airports. Note to Truck Stop Wireless Providers: Boost your broadcast power!). So I needed to buy a wireless access card so that I could access TruckStop.net's plan (Hey us truckers have tons of money to spend don't we?!) After ordering everything online (E-commerce rocks!), I left the house for my 9-14-day trip. When I returned, no wireless card had arrived in the mail. A message was saying to call TruckStop.net. I called the number and talked to Ms. T. She said that their online banking system went down and were unable to process the order. Interestingly enough, they had all my credit card information on file, but they didn't know which option plan I had chosen. (Note to TruckStop.net: Usually it works the other way around if the banking part of the transaction fails). After informing her of my chosen plan, she then apologized and said that the free network card was only available if I chose the auto-renewing option for the 3-month plan (Note to TruckStop.net: please make sure that your employees know exactly what kind of options you are offering on your Website. Truckers can actually read what we're signing up for on the Web). She said she would double-check with the proper corporate executive and get back with me before the promotion would be expiring in a matter of days. I left my cell phone number and told her to call me on that as I was leaving on another 9-14 day trip. Well she called...my home number...and left a message. Talk about exceeding customer's expectations - NOT! By the time I got around to calling her, I received her voice mail and left a message. By this time I was home from my second trip. I then called their general customer service number (800-854-8732) and talked to a good customer service rep (sorry dude, I forget your name). He said that only Ms. T could help me out on my problem. I asked him to please have her give a call by the end-of-the-next business day on my CELL PHONE or I would forget about signing up with TruckStop.net. He said he would definitely do that and encouraged me to call him back if I experienced further problems (sorry dude, if Ms. T ain't calling me back, I ain't calling anyone from TruckStop.net back). And off I went on another trip. Sure enough, Ms. T left a message on my HOME PHONE (she a is predictable ditz, I'll give her that) to say that I should call her. Yeah--in her dreams! So what did I learn from all of this?

Here's a thought: TruckStop.net may be in financial trouble. Why else would they not honor my request the first time around? It sounds like the game "Stall the customer so that he gets irritated and buys what we want him to buy." Or perhaps, TruckStop.net is an incredible inept organization. Or all the above.

I recently read a glowing article in the Ontario Trucking (OTN) October, 2004 (Vol. 2) issue on TruckStop.net. This was after I attempted to sign-up for service with TruckStop.net. Here's some interesting tidbits with my opinions thrown in:

"There are more than 550 locations in North America...with 20 of these...'hot spots'...in Canada" using a 802.11g network in most of these places. Bravo! I commend Scott Moscrip (President & CEO) and Allan Meiusi (Vice President and COO) of doing a great job in rolling out a well-thought out network.

"We think 24-28% of drivers have laptops and will make use of this type of Wi-Fi service. That percentage might be even higher when it comes to owner/operators." Really? 1-in-4 truckers carry a laptop with them in the truck? I'd put that figure closer to 1-in-10. Granted, I agree that owner/operators will have a higher percentage of laptops in their trucks. Still, 1-in-4??

"We are just under the 10,000 client mark." Interesting. Are these individuals who signed up for the 3-year auto renewing plan or higher? Or are these one-time only users? On the one hand, I bet your long-term subscription rates would increase dramatically if you lowered your short-term rates further. (Hint: many truckers do not have deep pockets. Can you picture this scenario with your average Joe Trucker in mind? "I'm bushed--it's been a long day. Hmmm...should I get a nice meal and relax or grab a snack and spend some bucks on the Internet tonight? I really can't do both because my wife would absolutely kill me for going over my over-the-road budget! Sure wish TruckStop.net would lower their hourly prices.") On the other hand, TruckStop.net is one of the pioneers in providing wireless accessibility in truck stops and most likely doesn't have the cash available to lower the prices dramatically in order to attract customers (ala Amazon.com getting into the DVD rental business to complete with NetFlix.com). Thinking of getting any rich partners to help you out in the cash department? I know a few people in high places who might be interested....

"We've got about 40 people working in our Toronto office." Guys, if you're based in San Antonio, TX and you're main market is the United States (approx. 510 hot spots), why do you have 40 people based in Toronto, Canada (only 10 hot spots)? Cheaper labor? If so, then you've probably got a skeleton staff in Texas with the bulk of the staff in Toronto. I guess that makes sense in today's outsourcing economy.

Allen, you were quoted as saying "For us it is about the service to the trucker and making sure we are doing a good job. We take the bad comments with the good comments. We don't shy away from the bad times. If we have a customer who has had a bad experience we talk to them and straighten it out because we want to totally responsive (sic) to what the experience has been out there." Allen, all good and fine. But what about the potential customers? You know--the customers with credit card-in-hand who land in corporate beauracracy policy snafu land and never even get the chance to try out your service?

Is a proud member of the professional trucking community, I'd sure appreciate a response from either Allen or Scott on why I had such a rotten month-long ordeal with TruckStop.net with nothing to show for it.

What has your experience been with the wireless access on the road with TruckStop.net or with any of the wireless carriers? (Please keep it clean, concise, and try not to exaggerate too much!)

Check back here from time-to-time to see if either Allen or Scott has gotten back to me on my wireless-less-wired fiasco. And no, to date, I have yet to use TruckStop.net's wireless services.

Retread Tires - Retreads will save you 30% a year on your tire expenses

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 05:01:09 GMT

TRIB (Tire Retread information Bureau) has lots of good information on tire retreading like:
- Add a retread process to your tire program and save 30% (!) a year on tire costs.
- Proper inflation of tires prevents premature tire wear and tear. (E.G. Running a tire at 10% under suggested manufacture tire pressure can lead to a loss of 16% of the lifespan of a tire) As we all know, underinflation of tires contributes big-time to tire failure, blowouts, and tread separation. But hey, it only takes 20 minutes to gauge all the tires on an 18-wheeler and thus prevent the curse of the UTS (Underinflated Tire Syndrome)!
- Don't wait to retread a tire when there is less than 4/32's showing. In fact, retread a tire before the wear bars begin showing up. This helps for the new tread to adhere securely to the existing rubber base. If the overall casing is still good, you could get another 100,000 miles by retreading the same tire another 2 or even 3 times!
- A new tire contains approximately 22 gallons of petroleum-based (oil) products. Most of that is in the tire casing. It only takes 7 gallons of oil to retread a tire. Consequently, 15 gallons of oil is preserved. According to industry experts, more than 400 million gallons of oil are saved every year in North America as a result of retreading.

Check out more information at www.retread.org