Followed by the usual system contractions, (spinoffs, and abandonments), jobs eliminated, and more trucks on the highways... Boxcab E50
With CP / CN pushing deeper south to gain more markets with potential coal markets being a major piece, UP and BNSF will need to take serious notice of what their norhtern competitors are doing. That would include CN / CP bad monthing them as a way to take market share away from them. :tb-nerd: :tb-nerd: :tb-nerd: :tb-nerd:
In ALL fasites of the transportation industry,the big keep getting BIGGER. 30 years ago,my friends father said there's only going to 5 big trucking co.'s in the future. Its a shame he didn't live long enough to see his prediction unfold.
I hope, from a foamer perspective, that UP doesn't borg BNSF. We have enough armour yellow around here as it is, and will someone please tell UP to either remove the waving flag from the sides of their locos if they can't be bothered to clean them. I hope, from the perspective of someone who wants more trains and fewer trucks, that UP and BNSF don't merge simply because it will reduce what little competition is left around here and then we'll NEVER get good service or rail improvements ever again. As it is, we are only served by Class I's UP and BNSF. Adam
That would, in essence, be another PennCentral. The 2 carriers are definitely incompatible. I couldn't imagine the gov't allowing something of that magnitude to happen. The ramifications are too frightening to imagine! I dont know of anyone who really thought that Penn-Central would be viable.It's detractors have been vindicated. CT
Mike- Trucking is a huge mess. My wife's younger brother was for years a driver instructor. For one of the very largest US operations. Without getting into the details of what the company was doing internally, he finally couldn't stand it any more, and left for a small independent. He is now very happy. Boxcab E50
That's why I owned my own( 3 tractor trailers with reefer units). I know I wouldn't be able to deal with some collage kid,who wouldn't know a load lock from a head lock,telling me how to do my job. I dealt with food goods. I figured no matter what,people have to eat & I'll bring it to them.:tb-wink:
A friend of mine stopped driving trucks because he was afraid that, with the nutty schedule and workload, he was going to fall asleep and kill somebody. He was working 15 hour shifts frequently, with about 8 or 9 hours off between them, and all the driving driving driving just so that he could practically run while unloading at sometimes 14 or 15 spots up and down the I-5 corridor all in one shift, shoving 400-500 lbs at a time out the back of the truck on a pallet jack with a handbrake. After hearing some of his stories I am amazed that there aren't more horrible truck accidents on the highways. Adam
There have been several pileups, during recent months, in my state. It's only going to get worse. Boxcab E50
Aren't truckers required to keep tight logbooks on their hours? Isn't there any sort of maximum hour limit?
I think there is a maximum hour limit, but even a trucking company scheduler working to the limit of the rule may not be thinking that, after a fifteen hour shift, it take someone longer than 8 or 9 hours (including commuting) to rest and recuperate before hitting another fifteen hour shift. I used to think it was ridiculous when I worked at a grocery store, and they would have me working until 11:30 PM one night and scheduled at 7:30 AM the next morning. "But we only need to give you eight hours," they would say defensively. "That's fine as long as you don't mind me sleepwalking the second half of that second shift," I would reply. A little common-sense is what I ask. I have set shifts and allocated trucks for a 23 person division of a company, and yes, it does take a lot of work, but it's important to give appropriate time for rest after a shift or you stand to get people hurt or killed.
On trucks equipped with GPS, you can keep a tight rein. However, some of the manipulations therefrom are causing a lot of drivers to become rather unhappy... Then you have government step in, and limit driving to fewer hours than at present. Which reduces income potential for most drivers. And ever more unhappiness builds up. Many leave. So, some larger companies are recruiting from overseas. Bringing in drivers with questionable skills, who cannot speak or read as needed. Paying these folks much lower wages. And..... Every time someone suggests need for new regulation, the problem gets worse! It does not improve! But those who bring in the rules, puff up, and strut around... Meanwhile, we lift more and more track every year. Leaving no choice but more trucks. Boxcab E50
It depends upon the individual, and what they have been doing, how long is required to recover. Myself, when faced with shifts such as these, it does not take long to become a near zombie. Others it does not seem to bother at all. The problem with this "eight hour" theory, is it pretends you are resting that entire time. Which is virtually impossible. The idea itself is a complete fraud. Once off shift, you may need time to travel to and from the domicile. Eat. Personal health and hygiene. Personal affairs- Pay a few bills, get a couple of grocery items. Wash clothing. And so much more. Suddenly, there are few real hours potential for actual rest. This is where the real danger comes into play. Eventually, comes the wall. WHAM. Boxcab E50
Agreed. The eight hour theory would possibly work in a situation where someone sleeps at the workplace, especially if there are provisions for doing that person's laundry and preparing some sort of breakfast the next "morning." I could see where maybe this would work in a closed system like a Navy submarine, but I don't think it's sustainable for the long-term at, say, a trucking company.
I can't see UP going with BNSF. I don't know about a UP-NS, BNSF-CSX, UP-CSX, BNSF-NS, etc. I wonder what it would take for the container traffic from LA to shift to a southern port like Norfolk, etc. As it is, I see a lot of UP traffic coming from Memphis over the old windy line into Radnor. TDOT is supposed to build up track in the Knoxville-Bristol area to give I-40/81 some competition & get some trucks off the interstate.
Another round of mergers on the scale of today's class 1s is about as mind-boggling as it gets. If it was approved by the regulators (iffy at best) and the carriers could come to terms that Wall St. would go for (probably not)...the service meltdowns, IT conflicts, layoffs, labor battles, regulatory nightmares and general bad blood between the two kingdoms would likely be an epic that would make all others before it look like a bad day at a church bake sale. Would they beat it into shape eventually? After alienating every shipper, employee and congressman in the lower 48...probably yes. Like anything else, given enough time, money, and sheer brute force, it's possible. Would it be worth it? If I knew that I'd be sitting at a boardroom table, not the right seat of a Dash 9. What would it look like when it was over? I don't even want to think about it.
