Best Fleets to Drive For Contest Brings Pride, Unity and Money

Best Fleets to Drive For Contest Brings Pride, Unity and Money
Posted: Sep 5, 2013 03:35 PM | Last Updated: Sep 5, 2013 04:10 PM

ALEXANDRIA, VA. — The Truckload Carriers Association has opened up nominations for their popular Best Fleets to Drive For survey once again.

The survey-slash-contest requires owner-operators and company drivers to nominate the fleets they drive for — that's not only a good way to get on your boss's good side, it could also be good for your paycheck as the annual driver pay at past finalists has risen by at least 10 percent over the past five years.

But it ain't no pick-a-winner-out-of-the-hat type contest.

After a company is nominated and chooses to continue with the survey and contest, its "policies and processes are scrutinized, from benefits and professional development, to driver and community support, to safety record and company culture," TCA explained.

Last year's Best Overall Fleet for Company Drivers was Grand Island Express out of Nebraska. According to Grand Island President Tom Pirnie, the competition "forces a carrier to examine, in depth, its recruiting, HR policies, procedures and benefits. A review of maintenance and safety practices and results is also necessary."

And that's a good thing, even if you don't win. "The whole process will give you a benchmark as to how you compare to your competition. It will bring positive change to your company," Pirnie said. "The competition can supply renewed energy and focus on company improvements. Setting goals and working on improvements can upgrade the communications and morale of all the associates, including the drivers themselves. Winning or placing in the top 20 creates company pride and unity."

The deadline to nominate your company is November 1, 2013, and you can get the forms here.

And don't forget about the all-Canadian version of Best Fleets to Drive For, expected sometime in 2014. 

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Driver CPC? Nobody Needs to Tell Me How to Drive!

When the Driver's Certificate of Professional Competence (Driver CPC) was introduced in 2009 it was greeted with cynicism and disdain my many professional drivers. Personally I don't blame them. If all of a sudden the government decided that I needed periodic training in order to continue working as a copy writer, and I'd have to fund this training myself, I'd be furious. One of the main arguments in favour of the driver CPC is that some drivers tend to develop bad habits after gaining their license, and being in control of a truck weighing 40 tonnes or a coach carrying 50 passengers then some of these bad habits really should be ironed out.

For example, how many drivers do you see indicating at the very last minute before turning into a side road? How many times do you see drivers at a roundabout who don't seem to know who has the right of way? How many times have you flicked through the Highway code since you acquired your license? Are you aware of the 29 new rules which were introduced when the highway code was revised in 2007? The way the roads are being used is changing and all drivers, both private and professional need to be aware and alter their standard driving practices accordingly. His is especially important in central London where the congestion charge has led to huge increases in the numbers of cyclists on the roads at peak times.

Maybe CPC training courses would be more widely accepted if they were required for all drivers and not just those who drive large vehicles for a living, as it's not just professional drivers who either pick up bad driving habits, or are not aware of the rights of other road users, such as cyclists and pedestrians. For example, the current highway Code advises drivers to stay behind a cyclist if they are planning to turn left, rather than overtaking the cyclist and turning into their path. This is the single biggest cause of cyclist fatalities on Britain's roads and one of the reasons we see more cyclists 'taking the lane', also known as 'riding in the middle of the road' in built up areas. Many drivers, especially those who passed their driving test many years ago assume that cyclists belong in the gutter, but this simply is not the case.

It's issues such as this which makes driver CPC courses necessary. The roads are evolving, becoming more congested and there is always going to be a situation which one has yet to come across. For example, have you ever realised that your vehicle has started aquaplaning in torrential rain? Do you know what to do in such an event? Do you even know what aquaplaning is? If the answer is 'no' on all accounts then it's issues such as this which driver CPC training courses aim to address. I agree that CPC courses are a bone of contention for many drivers; being an added expense and 35 hours out of their life every 5 years. However the reason's behind driver CPC courses are sound and have all the right intentions. If only they were for all drivers and free of charge, then they'd probably be welcomed more widely.

Carl Liver

For Information on CPC Training courses, then make sure to visit us and we can provide you with all the information of CPC courses.

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A Look at the Typical Rear Wheel Drive Power Transmission Configuration

If you're someone who tends to work on their own vehicles when problems come up you're likely already familiar with this information but for those of us who've typically had a mechanic work on our vehicles this could be some new information. Today we'll take a look at the ways in which most vehicles on the road typically get the power produced by the engine, transferred to the wheels and into the forward motion we all use to get us from point A to point B on a daily basis.

If you think about how a car is configured you have the engine mounted in the front -except on some more exotic or unusual models- and either the front or rear wheels are powered by the engine and propel the car. There are All Wheel Drive models but this is a little more unusual and certainly was not a common variant until recently.

For our first example take a rear wheel drive vehicle: the engine is in the front and the powered wheels in the rear. The power doesn't magically flow from front to back so how is it transferred? Usually you will find a automatic or manual transmission mounted behind the engine. The transmission allows you or the car's automatic system to select the best gear ratio for the current road conditions and load. The engine can work more effectively under heavy load when in a low gear whereas to move at maximum speed you would want a gear that minimizes engine revolutions-per-minute- while maximizing wheel speed.

In rear wheel drive models a drive shaft is attached to the rear of the transmission -typically this attachment point is roughly under the center console- and runs back to the final drive on the rear axle which apportions power between the two rear wheels. Since the drive shaft needs to have some flexibility to move up and down as the suspension compresses and extends over rough roads there are normally a couple joints at certain points in the drive line. These are usually U joints which are a bit different and often longer lasting than the CV joints you will find in the drive systems of front wheel drive cars. U-joints are probably a bit easier than the typical CV joint replacement as well.

If you are curious to find out exactly how this system looks one of the simplest and easiest ways to get a visual picture of it is to find an older truck like a 80s or 90s model Chevy pickup truck. These types are usually tall enough that you can easily take a peak underneath and see the drive shaft attachment points at the transmission end and the rear differential.

Ready to learn more about vehicle drive-line systems and the typical CV joint replacement cost? If so you can read more about CV joints and how they work right here.

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