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FedEx Freight | Overweight on City Routes

One thing for sure, its the guy or gal behind the wheel who is ultimately responsible for the equipment and the load. If you have a problem or involved in an accident, the company is going to say they don't run over weight trailers on the road. Trust me on that one. If your on line haul, then you can't run with an over weight trailer. This is not to say I haven't knowingly pulled an over weight trailer to a close by break bulk center, when I know the trailer will be broken out. With the new C.S.A. rules going into affect this year, the feds will be tracking drivers and companies who don't comply with the rules. Bottom line, the company knowingly can not make you pull an over weight trailer. Good luck on this one. It looks like your between a rock and a hard place. TP
 
Here's a little story, on this subject. Way back when, I was a Watkins P&D contractor. I was offered work on a Saturday, 1 of our customers was moving. We were just told that Fed Ex Freight was purchasing Watkins and the future was uncertain for non-company drivers. That was cleared up a few days later. Anyways, I was told, I had 3-4 trailer loads and I was the only driver working. When I got to the customer, I was told a company driver just left and would be back for the 3rd/last load. Each load was 20 skids/ 20k lbs. After :hissy: to dispatch, and was told "contractors weren't reliable" I asked the customer to load all 40 on my wagon. I :shift:pulled that wagon back to the barn, dragging mud flaps all the way. Come Monday, I found out how much TM liked chewin my donkey. Said I was damaging Watkins equipment hauling that much freight on a 53ft van :biglaugh: After 2 weeks of 18-22 stop [$5 per stop] days and the threats to pull my lease, I saw it his way :iamnotworthy: Do it legal, every time and keep smiling on payday
 
Maybe I'm missing something here but if 20 skids equals 20K then 40 skids equals 40K. A 53 foot trailer can handle 40 easily.
 
Twice Pipes, yeh yeh he ,I, and we know. But, they brought in a company driver for the gravy run. And I was pulling it with a single axle tractor, which he failed to add ! Back in the day, Watkins would use the company driver for the quick and easy to keep their cost down. They would use the contractor for "BS" multi stop, low weight, usually labor intense and low paying. Made good sense, and once in awhile they would throw us a bone. They would try to limit how much money a contractors truck would make a week [ about $2000] and they were pretty good at it. I did it because they pissed me off with the insult and taking the money away. I just took it back ! Man was he pissed, wish I took a picture!
 
[quote author=skippy link=topic=81478.msg840727#msg840727 date=1277577249]
Quick question guys. What should a city driver do when he is overweight? I have been overweight 3 times in three weeks, but I get told I am just creating a problem. I was 7640 over on my drive axle yesterday. The trailer had 26K of freight in the first 18 feet of trailer, and only 4k in the last 30 feet! I have talked to my terminal mgr, but no solution there. What is my next step? :chairshot:
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skippy,,,A friend of mine once told me, fight the fight's you can win :duel: Skippy I don't think you can win this fight without bringing trouble and aggravation to yourself from the Red Shirt Brigade. :nono:
 
[quote author=CORNBINDER link=topic=81478.msg841125#msg841125 date=1277670179]
[quote author=skippy link=topic=81478.msg840727#msg840727 date=1277577249]
Quick question guys. What should a city driver do when he is overweight? I have been overweight 3 times in three weeks, but I get told I am just creating a problem. I was 7640 over on my drive axle yesterday. The trailer had 26K of freight in the first 18 feet of trailer, and only 4k in the last 30 feet! I have talked to my terminal mgr, but no solution there. What is my next step? :chairshot:
[/quote]

skippy,,,A friend of mine once told me, fight the fight's you can win :duel: Skippy I don't think you can win this fight without bringing trouble and aggravation to yourself from the Red Shirt Brigade. :nono:
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That's what I'm thinking too, until I got a little more information. A Police Officer friend of mine (who happens to work for the city our terminal is located) told me that if I were to get into an accident that involved a fatality while overweight, I would most certainly be charged with aggravated vehiclular manslaughter, instead of just vehicular manslaughter. Aggravated would almost certainly involve prison time if I were convicted. That is my real dilemma. I want to be safe, protect the motoring public, and watch out for the best interest of my wife and children.
 
Refuse to pull it...We dont pull over weights on the road..Nor did i when i was a city driver...one of our meet drivers drove through a un-maned scale on the way back home. He was over weight twice. He told dispatch one more time and he was leaveing the trailer there...it happened and he did..he left the trailer..it has not happened sense..its your driveing record..the feds can pull your CDL if your driver rating is to high..All companys can get your driver rating..Good luck finding a job if yours is bad...Call HR and if that dont work get a lawyor.
 
The east still has differant rules than the west they do not intinadate us at all out west. The east management needs to pull their heads out where the sun doesn't shine.
 
I don't know what we are going on and on ..on this for. Just back it to the dock and tell them its overweight/over axle.
It will get fixed ... just in case it doesn't .. call safety .. you can take it to the bank ..it will get fixed.
 
or just get a scale ticket and take it to the scale house. Tell them whats going on. They wont ticket u. You will get a warning. But the bottom line is they will red tag that trailer right there and it will be unloaded and corrected till its legal. They can do much to u. You told them it was over. " I dont know boss they pulled me in and said i was over" In another example this week speedometer was broke I refused to drive it. Line haul manager said yes u will. He said the other drivers drive it. I said thats not right either I went to TM and said its a saftey issue. He called LM told him to give me another truck. When i got the key he said why u go over my head. I said you know its wrong and so do I. LM gave the truck to the next guy to drive. Guess what? He got pulled over for speeding. The driver told the cop thegy wont fix it. Showed him the VIR write up. Gave him a warning ticket and told him if he see that truck again he pulling it over and will red tag it. We both got back and went in to TM. LOL Truck is red tagged now. Remember its your ass on the line not theirs
 
PFG was rated at 54,000, the McAlester shuttle drivers kept getting busted at the AR scale, they finally gave them a twin screw rated at 80,000, they had to drop the kite at the scale drive to Roland OK, go back and get it and re-hook, all in all about 2 hrs lost and late route starts..LOL, in OK we can pull long combos, so most of the routes that Sysco has are on 36',42' or 45' trailers, in the 2 weeks I have been there I have only seen triples hooked once, the 2 routes I have done have been on a 42' and a 36' trailer, plus there is no danger of the DOT in Tulsa for the most part, they go after the rock haulers mainly, at least we don't have to worry about the CSA thing, I went trough the AR scale almost ddaily with PFG and always got passed through the bypass lane, but the CSA deal worried me alot.
 
[quote author=fed875 link=topic=81478.msg841275#msg841275 date=1277701976]
Never heard the joke. But have heard people say it though. Please tell
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Back when I ran OTR that was always the solution for the Billy Big Riggers at the horseshoe table at the truck stop. Any time they ran into trouble they always "called the US Marshals" to save the day.
 
"That US Marshall chewed on that scale masters butt I tell ya" all with white gravy (I hope lol) dripping out the corner of his mouth. Its your CDL guys. Never got a "thattaboy" for being illegal. You get unemployed.
 
Keep a little notepad with you. When you talk to your manager, and he tells you you're just creating problems, pull it out, look at your watch, turn around and walk away writing.

That should get his attention, if it doesn't, he's an idiot.

But, don't pull it. Ever. It's your a** like everyone here has said. If you suffer retaliation, document every instance and everything said to you, who said it, the time & date. Lawyers love this kind of s**t and if you have proof, even if it's just your say so, and the company does not, the lawyer might actually drool a little.

So, if you were to lose your job over something like this, you have a case.

Sounds like your manager is an idiot anyway.
 
Make sure you send a message to dispatch on your intermec and have them reply those are kept on a server so if you have to go to court your lawyer will be able to get them. REMEMBER IT IS YOUR CDL in some states overweight tickets go as a moving violation and will go on you personal driving record and can raise your ins. rates.
 
[quote author=2.0 link=topic=81478.msg841999#msg841999 date=1277864201]
Make sure you send a message to dispatch on your intermec and have them reply those are kept on a server so if you have to go to court your lawyer will be able to get them. REMEMBER IT IS YOUR CDL in some states overweight tickets go as a moving violation and will go on you personal driving record and can raise your ins. rates.
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Yes, Yes, Yes. Let their own technology protect you. (But still keep the notebook!!!!!)
 
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