Top Ten Concerns of Trucking Industry

 At an American Trucking Association’s meeting in Las Vegas last year, the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) released its 2012 top ten issues in the trucking industry, displaying ongoing issues while debuting new concerns.  Below are the top ten issues identified by over 4,000 trucking industry stakeholders participating in ATRI’s survey:

1. CSA  (Compresive Safety Analysis): See next weeks's blog (1/10/2013) on this issue in www.truckingalong-markperkins.blogspot.com)

 

 

2. Hours of Service

 

3. Economy

 

4. Driver Shortage was predicted a few years back. Did the transportation industry and trucking companies leaders put their head in the sand? More on this topic to come.

 

 

5. Fuel Issues/Prices: Perhaps education of drivers to achieve better MPG, education of dispatchers to dispatch with MPG in mind, and a bonus or pay program that shows a driver can make the same or more money by slowing down.

 

6. EOBR (Electronic On Board Recorders): Is cost the only legitimate reason for a company or driver not to use a EOBR?  The "big brother" argument is not valid because with traffic cams, fuel receipts, and the other numerous ways a driver can be tracked if needed. EOBR can make the playing field more fair by forcing companies that are running illegal, hauling cheap freight or running illegal logs.

 

 

 7. Driver retention: Do companies want a cheap and quick fix for their retention problems instead of making changes in pay, home time, dispatchers education, equipment, and health benefits? Some would argue that company leaders know how to keep drivers but don't want to make those changes. We will talk more about this in future blogs.

 

 

8. Truck Parking: Do federal and state governments   care about the transportation industry or drivers by closing rest areas and failing to support more truck stops?  Do Shippers and Receivers have care about drivers safety and well being by refusing to let drivers take breaks in their lots when drive time has ran out?

 

 

9. Driver health/wellness:  One truck driver  recently complained that a large trucking company built a  gym for their over the road drivers, but assumed that drivers would not realize that this was only  capital investment with tax deductions. As over the road drivers,  how often they would they be at the home terminal to use the gym?   How about paying for gym membership instead?

 

10. Congestion and Highway Infrastructure

 

 

I will try to address each of these issues in the weeks to come. If you have any thoughts or comments on any of them, please leave a comment here. As always, if there is anything I can do for you in north Louisiana or northeast Texas, please don't hesitate to call.