I really hate to give people like this any free advertisement, but silly shit like these need to be stopped.
I have made two attempts to comment on the-post, with both attempts failing as they were removed and not posted.
So, I figure I would post it here. As you can tell, if you follow me on twitter @Truckdrivernews or this website, I post news articles/links about the latest Trucking Industry news. I use Google search a lot, and it is getting harder to sort through all the “trash articles” to get to the legit news articles.
This “Trash Article” from the Virginia Trucking Accident/Injury Blog really got to me. As many of you know there is a huge parking problem across the United states. Virginia closed nineteen out of thirty-nine rest areas just a couple of months ago. And the ones they left alone did raise the parking limit from two hours to ten.
The name of the post is: Why are Any Tractor-Trailers on the Road in a Blizzard anyway? BTW, the map posted above explains why Tractor and Trailers were on the road in Virginia during a blizzard. But, since this “lawyers group” wanted to be asses about removing my comments twice I will tear his post apart for you.
Now, back a couple of weeks ago in the earlier part of December the northeast was clobbered by a snowstorm for a couple of days. Richard N. Shapiro, Attorney had planned a family ski trip to the Seven Springs ski resort in Pennsylvania, which required that I drive through Virginia, Maryland and then into Pennsylvania because the resort is just east of Pittsburgh according to the website-post.
According to this site: By Friday night it was well publicized that about a foot and a half of snow would fall and that you should only drive if absolutely necessary, and as we drove into Northern Virginia many trucks including tractor-trailers, 18 wheelers, and even some snow plows, had slid off the road due to the black ice and ice covered conditions as the temperature hovered around freezing. Taking your family out on roads with a foot and half of snow on them is necessary because of a skiing trip? Now I agree that a foot and a half of snow on top of ice, is something I would not want to be driving in…in a four wheel drive vehicle let alone a tractor trailer.
From the website: At times, I was surrounded by semi’s and big rigs and I wondered what in the world these huge tractor-trailers were doing trying to drive in the treacherous conditions. Only reason I was still on the road was because I had a four-wheel drive vehicle. First off, semi’s and big rig’s are one and the same. Secondly, the reason you were surrounded by trucks and wondering why they were on the road in the first place, is simply because the state of Virginia closed the rest areas, and other than that and a few truck stops which BTW fill up really quick, there was nowhere to park.
You go on to write that you did see a few trucks parked on the shoulder of the roads, but for the most part the trucks were trying to make it to their destinations “Probably the dispatchers and owners” pushing them to continue on in such bad weather. No, it is because there is NOWHERE to park.
Then you amazed me by actually looking something up in the FMCSA by posting this:
The Federal motor carrier safety laws have special provisions relating to hazardous conditions. Section 392.14 states:
“Extreme caution in the operation of a commercial motor vehicle will be exercised when hazardous conditions, such as those caused by snow, ice, sleek, fog, mist, rain, dust, or smoke, adversely affect visibility or traction. Speed should be reduced when such conditions exist. If conditions become sufficiently dangerous, the operation of the commercial motor vehicle will be discontinued and will not be resumed until the commercial motor vehicle can be safely operated. Whenever compliance with the foregoing provisions of this rule increases hazard to passengers, the commercial motor vehicle may be operated to the nearest point at which the safety of passengers is assured.”
As can be seen, a part of the rule applies to passenger vehicles such as buses, but other portions apply to all tractor-trailer operators.
§392.14 Hazardous conditions; extreme caution. This is not a law like a law enforcement law per se. This is only a suggestion for the driver, so he can legally log for inclement weather, or “shut down” against what his dispatcher and or owner is telling him to continue on. If the driver has a “proper parking” and safe spot to park in. Otherwise, where do you suppose the trucks should have parked, and got off the road? I am safe to say that all those trucks you seen would have much rather been parked and safe as to have to deal with people like you.
Then you had to make this statement:
The bottom line was that under the Federal motor carrier safety laws and regulations, these tractor-trailers had no business ever getting on these interstate highways in the middle of black ice and blizzard conditions-they made a bad decision before they ever were on the interstate.
It is my understanding that the roads were not closed, or you would not have been out there as well. I understand your frustration because you had to sit for a few hours on a road you say was unsafe for trucks to be on. Your lawyers group works in the state of Virginia, so you undoubtedly know that the state closed all these rest areas. But then you asked why they are out on the road in a blizzard? And you say the drivers of these trucks made a bad decision before they were on the interstate? Trust me, it was NOT the decision of the driver to be out and about in those conditions. But they had to be out there because there was nowhere to park.
Again you make an accusation by saying:
In this particular blizzard, every tractor-trailer operator who was on the road on Saturday, knew at least 24 hours before operating their tractor-trailer that the blizzard was coming, so there was no argument that they were facing sudden changing conditions.
May I ask, how YOU know every single tractor and trailer driver knew this? Also, doesn’t the same apply to you? Trucks have to be out on the roads in Virginia, because of no parking, making it a dangerous situation without adding a blizzard in. I mean the way you wrote your post, is like well they (the truck drivers) could have just pulled over anywhere. But, you don’t want to know the truth why, trucks were on the road in Virginia that night per you removing my comment two times. BTW, here is the second comment that has been removed.
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I’m not surprised by this; lawyers know everything after all. They are getting as useless as unions.
I have been trying for years to remind drivers of their clout by suggesting they do the one thing that would impact EVERYONE in these ‘anti-trucker’ States. DON’T STOP in the State for any reason. No fuel, no food and when there is an option, no delivery ! If you can refuse a load to VA, do it. If you can refuse a pick-up, then do it. Make it hard on the State to ship and receive goods and make their tax base from fuel. Make sure your dispatch understands you will only go to VA under THREAT and explain WHY. ABSOLUTELY REFUSE to buy fuel ! It’s a shame that the ‘modern’ trucker has no – - – backbone to stand on. I still have my self respect, honor and principles that I live by, and will not compromise them for the sake of convenience. All it would take is for a concerted effort from the “DRIVERS” to BOYCOTT any one State for a period of 2 months to make an impact. But, whenever I’ve suggested this, it was like spitting in the wind. Seems no one is any longer concerned in the best interest of the industry. Guess I just “old fashioned”. Oh, and by the way, you can tell the 4-wheeling Lawyer for me that the interstate system was designed and built for the transportation of the military and ‘goods’ by the government and commercial vehicles during times of emergency and was not originally meant for the convenience of travel by the general public. If anyone has a “RIGHT” to be on the interstate systems, especially during inclement weather, it’s the American trucker. It is they who the public depends on for the everyday necessities they have come so accustomed to having at their finger-tips. We risk our lives to make theirs comfortable and they complain about us being in their way and having to ‘share’ THEIR roads with such abominations as TRUCKS !!! I’d like to remind this ‘vacationing’ Lawyer of how his BMW, gas, auto parts, skis, boots, socks, gloves, pants, sunglasses, and even the tissues for his snot-nosed kids was able to be so easily purchased. One of these “inconveniences” may have literally put life and limb on line for this “GREATER THAN THOU” JERK ! (Sorry, guy’s, just venting. I could write a book, but only truckers would would read the damn thing ! Know what I mean?)
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Its there business and we can’t anything about it, can we? We just hope it will not cause farther more serious problem.
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