Laredo and No Training!

Morning Gang! Today we will head down to Laredo, Texas to check out our next truck. No cameras on the drive down there, let’s just go and see what condition our new ride is in. Now, are you ready for a shock? The FMCSA is the government group that makes all of our laws that the commercial drivers live by such as Hours of Service, and all those rules we are required to follow such as 11 hour rule, blah blah blah. You have heard me mention them on a daily basis. All those rules are designed to increase safety while driving an 18 wheeler. The goofiest rule of course is the 30 minute mandatory rest after 8 hours…..because the FMCSA believes that 30 minutes will give drivers more rest, thus not drive so tired. Um, yeah, ok, whatever. So, the group that is responsible for safety for commercial drivers has come up with a new rule now. Can you take a guess what it is? I suggest you sit down. Ya sitting down? This new law goes into effect Feb 6th, 2017 with full compliance by 2020. In a nutshell, it states that there is now NO MINIMUM “behind the wheel” training for new CDL trainees. Huh? Yup, just book and classroom training. There are things that books will never show a truck driver. Things such as…                        what it feels like to feel 40 tons going up and down the mountains,  250 different types of turns and backing into tight spaces, Properly and safely reacting to traffic and the movements of other drivers on the roads, Weather changes and how to maneuver a 72 foot long, 13 foot 6 inch high truck that is also 102 inches wide! Just learn by books and classroom training. No real world training or time behind the wheel required now! So, how much sense does it make for the FMCSA to demand and require a driver to get a 30 minute nap in the middle of his workday and scream it will make drivers safer, yet turn around and drop any behind the wheel training for brand new commercial drivers????? Over the years, I have seen many, many new drivers putting themselves into dangerous conditions and circumstances simply because they did not have experience behind the wheel. Get ready for a new crop of drivers that jump behind the wheel and hit the highways….all without ever getting a single hour behind the wheel with a trainer! This writeup is my own opinion based upon how I read the new FMCSA ruling and law. I suggest you do your own Google researches and determine your own thoughts.