Save Yourself A Hassle: Read This.

[LeeNH]

Just want to let everyone know that the CSRV safety check is next week, JUNE 8,9,10.



This is the 72 hour round the clock FEDERAL safety check, where the DOT inspections are done for 72 hours straight.

Like I said, this is federal, they do it a few times a year, and I believe it involves parts of Canada as well.



If you come accross a scale/inspection station with any truck used for work/business, you are required to stop, passing the scale and getting caught will cost you a big fine and the inspection on top of that.



Just wanted to let ya all know about it... . I am sure of the dates, the specifics of where they will be are unknown until they set up.



Lee

 

[bmoeller]

Are the feds doing it nation-wide? Never have had to deal with it before in Illinois.

 

[LeeNH]

Yes and no... . It is a Nationwide requirement, but it is done by state DOT cops/inspectors.

Its not in all rest areas and all scales, but the ones that they set up in are open 24 hours, and its in all states, I know Illinois had it at the scale house on I-80 and I-55 a couple years back, I don't get to go through Ill. too much, and I try to avoid Chicago all together... once was enough for me!

 

[bombero]

As screwed up as California is a lease we dont have to deal with that yet!

 

[KBalzuweit]

Take the signs off and run under the radar I guess. They are making it harder and harder to make living. Next you will see new rv's on rail cars going to the dealers.

 

[QRTRHRS]

"Are the feds doing it nation-wide? Never have had to deal with it before in Illinois. "

"As screwed up as California is a lease we dont have to deal with that yet!"



This covers the US, Canada and Mexico.

http://www.cvsa.org/latestnews/cvsa_latestnews.html

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

HMMMmm - as much as we dislike ever increasing government intrusion into our daily lives, I've seen some pretty appalling examples of common safety violations discoverd by similar efforts in past years - and glad those rigs were taken off the same road my wife, kids and I drive on...



I somehow suspect most of those opposed to these safety inspections do so because of their own known violations...

 

[Texas Diesel]

Wonder if trucks out of Mexica (NAFTA) will have to be inspected too.

 

[LeeNH]

Gary:

While I am not opposed to an accurate and reasonable safety inspection, these checks often get way out of hand, and beyond any reasonable act of business at the very least.

True story:

I was stopped in Connecticut (known for DOT hassle for years) while I was stopped that time with a W250 hauling a small gooseneck, I left the trailer reg. in the other truck, so I was in the scale house waiting for my guy to fax it there to the DOT cop... . while I was waiting inside there, a veteran DOT inspector was giving his speech to about 8 or 10 'cadets', who were there to be broken in and learn the procedure. I stood there listening to the speech, although the muscles in my jaw and fist grew tighter the more he talked, especially when he told them that: "every one of these *******s is hiding something, you keep looking until you find it. "..... Is that the attitude you want when they pull your wife over with the kids?

All said and done that stop cost me over $800. 00, one of the items I was ticketed for was a worn drag link... . I had replaced it before I left the shop! It had less than 200 miles on it. I got off on all charges, but its an ongoing hassle.

Now as for NY, they get worse by the day... I had a custom sleeper built on a a truck I had. . I was stopped in NY, they actually had a yard stick, measured my sleeper and matterss... . They parked me for 8 hours because my mattress was 1" to narrow and not the proper thickness, so my sleeper birth time did not count. That was a private inspector they hired there, and afterwards, he said that he was sorry, but he had to write me up because the cop would give him grief if he did not. I asked him about the emissions test they were doing on the truck next to me... the inspector himself told me that it is so inaccurate, that there is no way to confirm the results and not guilty cases are thrown out.

I have a whole list of these stories, but I have vented enough here!

Bottom line... . have some common sense when doing these inspections, NO ONE, even the inspectors know all the rules, if you are stopped, there is something they can get you for.

 

[LeeNH]

Deezul:

Don't even get me going with the Mexican trucks, if you want to start another war, bring that up with any trucker that is informed of the situation.



I started doing this because I like driving, and I like to get out and around, but its a never ending feeling of 'us against them" kind of situation.

What other job/business could you be in where the government comes in, stops you from doing business with no notice and has the ability to fine you and possibly shut you down for the day, sometimes for no reason, or at the very least little cause.

Spend the time busting the guys tailgating, doing 20 MPH over the limit, loads that look unstable, and those damm tour buses that are always over 75MPH, in and out with 40 people on board!!

I am as polite as can be when I get stopped, and keep my trucks in top mechanical shape, and looking good, and one of the few guys that follows 'most of the rules', yet I still get my share of BS on the road.

 

[MMiller]

Amen LeeNH.



My dads been driving truck for years, and I help when I can. He keeps his truck up for his saftey and everybody elses. If it ain't right, then its getting fixed. He does however get pleasure from DOT not finding anything wrong.



Two years ago dad was hauling grain for the neighbor. The neighbor had scales on his auger wagon. When the grain was unloaded from the wagon to dad's truck he new exactly how much his truck weighed. Two weeks he made 2 trips a day. The scales on route were open 24 -7 those two weeks. Dad made every trip within about 200 lbs, all just under 80,000. The last day dad didn't think he was getting out of there, the scale guy was so MAD!! Dad just grinned all the way home!





Just got a new service truck, and I mean BRAND NEW. Stopped at the scales and the guys had the coveralls on. . He laid under my new truck looking for stuff, checking steering and stuff. Did not find anything, but crap, a new truck with less then 5,000 miles on it!!



Michael

 

[JRMora]

Originally posted by LeeNH

Deezul:



What other job/business could you be in where the government comes in, stops you from doing business with no notice and has the ability to fine you and possibly shut you down for the day, sometimes for no reason, or at the very least little cause.

Every business in our country from the smallest to the biggest.



I work for a company that does $3 billion in sales each year and we are subject to unannounced visits and inspections everyday. We just had one a month ago.



Did we get shut down? No

Did we get fined? No.

Did they have a reason to visit? No.



Why did we get through this without any problems? We stayed within the rules (not just "our interpretation", but THE rules).



Why am I even venting? Because every day driving to work and back (~100 miles) I see private trucks and commercial trucks running unsafe loads in unsafe vehicles at unsafe speeds, and all I can do is just shake my head.



All it takes is one "little" accident to wipe out a family or worse:



There was a story here recently of a commercial service truck carrying some old disk brake rotors back to the shop when one "fell out" of the back of the truck (pickup with no tailgate). The rotor hit the pavement, bounced back up, and went through the windshied of an SUV following the truck. The rotor glanced off the drivers head, hit the car seat (with child) in the back seat center, and went out the back window.



Guy who got hit in the head required stiches (nothing else)

Baby in back seat was uninjured (car seat was broken in two)

Two windows destroyed.



Lucky family?



Anyway, follow the rules and don't say "oh, I'll never get stopped". Accidents don't "just happen", they are 99. 99% of the time cause by a failure to heed warnings and instructions and usually involve a major lapse in judgement.



my 2¢ worth. I'll get off my soapbox now.



Juan

 

[John - K5AWO]

... ... . All it takes is one "little" accident to wipe out a family or worse:.....



I agree with you Juan. Another "thought less" thing I have seen a lot of a pickup loaded with people in the box. Kids too. Last summer here my neighbor (cop) had to go investigate an accident report on one of those. It had turned over trying to make a corner to fast.

 

[LeeNH]

JR:

I don't know the business you are in, but do you get random inspections more than once a week?

I am the owner of 3 small businesses, I do the driving part only because I don't like being stuck in one place. I have a retail store, and a Used auto sales lot, both on the books, registered legit businesses. I have NEVER been inspected by any agency or regulating organization on either of the other two businesses. I have had a car dealers license for 5 years and never had a complaint or inspection of any kind.

The trucking industry has been on a down hill cycle for years now, and just keeps getting worse, like anything else, you don't hear about the guys running legal and courtious, just the ones pushing the limits. How about some safety support for the cars that pull in front of trucks? How about the mini pickup towing a large camper? The bikes doing 90+, tow dollies with no brakes... . the list goes on. Why not stop and inspect ALL vehicles? At least commercial drivers have experiance and knowledge of various driving situations, the 'weekend warriors' who are lucky to drive a normal car, get themselves in trouble with anything more behind them.

My point with DOT is... . it is impossible to follow all the rules, because you could not know them all, unless you have a law degree, in which case, you would not be driving a truck!

So:



Do I speed: No

Do I run unsafe loads: No

Do I run legally: Yes, to the best of my knowledge

Do I get stopped for no reason: Yes

Do I get shut down: Yes

Do I get fined: Yes



People who drive commercially, along with any other profesion, should be judge or critized as a group.



Both examples given by you guys are people driving pickups... they are not regulated by DOT, unless they are over 10,000GVW, so how can you use that against commercial drivers?



OK..... soapbox available now...

 

[dpuckett]

I'll step up on the box, now......

i couldnt agree with you more, LeeNH. It is absolutely STUPID how much "regular" people get away with. They can speed, tailgate, pull a 25ft TT with a Ranger or 1/2T pickup (often with no lights, and definitely no brakes), dont have to get their brakes and other safety systems inspected at all (you mention your state inspections- how many of them are worth the time they take? Most here in MO just walk around, honk the horn and check the lights, and give you your sticker). I'l tell you what the problem is- cops who have no power in ANY area of their personal lives, all of a sudden given the authroity to shut the big guys down for days on end for no other reason than that they can. There is no system of checks and balances. Oh, yeah, judges. Plead your case, and His Honor will see the light. BS- money has to change hands for that to happen. Bsides, what about the time lost in court, and being shut down? HTere is no means to make up the lost time and profit to you. AND I absolutely HATE the cops who tell us to drive safely, when they run with no headlights in a grey patrol car on a cloudy day, going 35 over the limit (remember, they've been TRAINED to drive their cars, they are above the LAW), and not leaving enough space between them and you to fit a Harley sideways between the two of you. But having that badge gives them some unseen ability.



And you farmers can pipe down right now. You get away with more s*!T than you need to. You can be a certain amount overweight hauling grain from the farm, dont have to have your DOT inspections like the regular truckers. Heck the lights on half the trailers around here dont work, along with the brakes, bald tires, etc, etc. All because you "feed the world" you think you should be above the law, same as the cops and judges. Well, if if you cant afford to keep your trucks and equipment safe, maybe you should try another line of work.



And Mrs Public, learn to drive first, THEN get a full size SUV. Of course, if you have no one to teach you how, how the heck are you supposed to learn? Driver's ed is a crock and bigger waste of time than shopping. Why the heck should you NEED a rear camera on your Escalade? if you were a decent driver, you'd KNOW where your vehicle was, and thus not need it. Then after learning to drive, you can put down the cell phone, skip the Big Mac (you dont need it, anyway- you're fat enough), and exercise some discipline with your little prom night accident, so he wont yell, cry, scream and distract you from keeping your $40K bucket-o-bolts in your lane and out of my tailgate.



I am by no means against running safely, but if you have maintenance logs, or reports where you passed an inspection in the last week or so, you should be allowed to go free. I have yet to be pulled over, but I fear the day I do; someone may not survive... ... . esp if he is a typically rude swampeastern redneck.



Passing the box to someone else.



Daniel

 

[RollOver_Pete]

42... . Daniel... Ya could'nt have said it better. Oh, and how about the medical card thing... ... Should'nt everyone who uses public highways have to take time off of work only to stand in line to pay someone to check for a hernia and see how many jumping jacks they can do? I always feel much safer after a cough or two. And paying the money assures me and the D. O. T. that I am a safer, more responsible human for the next two years. Isn't this what it's all about anyways? Safer highways? Then we can't forget the good ol' pi$$ test. Everyone should have to prove that they are clean (innocent). Hmmm... . maybe thats a bad idea. I don't the public needs to know just how many bad(sour) cops with attitudes and sedated soccer moms on vicodan (quiets the screaming kids down) share the super slab with us... .

 

[jimnance]

Originally posted by JRMora

Every business in our country from the smallest to the biggest.



Why am I even venting? Because every day driving to work and back (~100 miles) I see private trucks and commercial trucks running unsafe loads in unsafe vehicles at unsafe speeds, and all I can do is just shake my head.



All it takes is one "little" accident to wipe out a family or worse:



Juan

Although there are some "bad apples" out there, a far bigger cause of accidents is the failure of other non truck drivers to allow the trucker adequate following distances, or flat out cutting them off.



I've seen this lots of times, and the sad truth is that many auto drivers just don't understand that a big truck doesn't handle or stop like the family sedan.



Just my $. 02

 

[Doubleclutch]

I drive a black 4x4 with a silver camper shell. I now know why I get the left-right wobble on the commercial truck in front of me, as the driver looks down the mirror and lifts the pedal. My Dad drove truck, and I rode with him, learning lots of things that have kept me wreck/ticket free. It's too bad that more kids couldn't learn this way. This thread is an eye opener!

Greg

 

[Joe G.]

It goes both ways. My dad drove truck when I was a kid in the 40s and 50s. Lots of stories about really unsafe trucks and crazy car drivers causing truck wrecks.



My favorite is the time I was with him going through Stockton. He was driving a truck loaded with lumber pulling a trailer loaded the same way. We passed a local deliverly bread truck. As soon as the truck passed it the bread truck changed lanes. The trailer tore up the bread truck.

 

[DPelletier]

A woman in a Fiat did a u-turn on the highway in front of my dad's gravel truck. Tandems flattened everything from the windshield forward. She was lucky.



Dave