This may be bringing or have brought a change in the way the guard(s) check you out at Charlotte (CLT). Noticed Friday morning (end of Thursday HUB) that the guard didn't go in between the set. He walked to the back and then just waved me on. Was thinking he must be getting pretty familiar with me but then read the news presented to us here.
What would be great is if it was a UNIFORM procedure for all gates that use a guard to send you on. I go to Charlotte (CLT), Greensboro (GBO), Atlanta (ATL), and Knoxville (KNX) and all have different ways of doing it and then also different guards have different ways of doing it. One night in ATL the guard may want you to pull forward and then stop when they are at the back of each trailer, another night and another guard may make you shut off your truck, set the brakes and hold 'til they come back to you with bills. Some centers take your bills and no cover sheet, others take just the cover sheet. Some centers like CLT you sign out at the dispatch desk and then at GBO you sign out at the guard shack while the guard is doing his/her hot lap. KNX doesn't even have a guard so out into the world you go, on your own as a big boy/girl. I'm all for shut off the truck, set the brakes, hand the BILLS to the guard and then wait. If there are two or more guards circling....then make sure YOU have a head count.
If there is a backup of trucks at the gate in CLT (affectionately known as the Prison Break) and more than one guard is working, I've seen guard number two walk the lengths of two or more sets to speed things up. Thing is that at CLT when trucks are snaked at the gate, you lose the line of sight and have no idea if the second guard is still with you or has moved on back or is walking back to the shack.
Surprised this type of accident isn't a daily occurrence.
Talked to and calmed down a CLT city driver the other night in the fuel lane when he told me a story of what just happened to him at a customer's checkout gate. Supposedly the a guard told him to inch up to get out of the path/sensor of the gate so it could close. I understand that another guard approached/stepped between the set from the passenger's side while he was under the direction of the first guard. Luckily the guard in between was wearing his sneakers but went on to tear our driver a new "one" for being inattentive. Poor kid was a mess when he got back to the center.
We all have to put ourselves in every situation we encounter as if we were going to be on the losing end.