Letter to the Editor: Help Out Drivers This Winter
These Letters to the Editor appear in the Nov. 17 print edition of Transport Topics. Click here to subscribe today.
Ways to Lower Stress
It won’t be long before the holiday season is upon us, arguably the busiest and most stressful time of year for professional drivers. Weather and traffic scenarios present their own challenges for drivers, but not only are they watching out for your freight: They must keep watch over their own safety and security. Join us in promoting a low-stress work environment for the lifeblood of our industry by putting into practice these five simple things:
• Attempt to keep appointment times as close to planned as possible. This not only helps the drivers, but also those who will receive your shipments.
• Keep walkways and shipping/receiving areas clear of leaves and snow to ensure drivers are not at risk of getting injured.
• Allow drivers to come onto the property upon arrival at shippers’ and receivers’ facilities to prevent drivers from being targeted by criminals for crimes against them or your shipments.
• Keep in mind when setting up appointments to limit the amount of transit time where the load will need to be left alone or staging.
• Make sure that emergency contact information is available during nonbusiness hours for assistance at the shipper, receiver and carrier.
Remember: The holidays wouldn’t be nearly as happy without our professional drivers. Let’s show them we care!
Todd Burchfield
Director of Security and Investigations
Covenant Transportation Group Inc.
Helpful Inspectors
As indicated in the analysis written by Washington State Patrol Capt. Mike Saunders (10-13, p. 8), most people think the law-enforcement people who inspect over-the-road trucks do not look favorable upon our industry — but that is not true.
The ones I have dealt with since 1977 have usually gone out of their way to help truck drivers. You might get a bad one every now and then, but I have had bad drivers, too.
James Griffith
Vice President, Transportation
The Conard Group
La Vergne, Tennessee
