Oakland Truckers Warn of Stoppage Over Air Rules

[longload]

i have no desire to purchase any new truck. my truck is a 1984 379pete with air lift triaxle powered by a mechanical 3406 beefed to 500 hp with an 18 speed tranny. it's as clean as any show truck & i built it from scratch after stripping it to the bare chassis. that's fine if you want a brand new truck i don't. i love older classics like the pete i own. it's not fine for someone to tell me i have to junk or park my truck because it doesn't fall under there approved year model. that's plain bull$#*t. it also doesn't make any difference on what i receive in the way of compensation on rates. i haul mostly machinery on container flat racks and also pull drop deck trailers from port averaging at around $5.00 per loaded mile. why should i be penalized for being an o/o in business or forced to become a company driver because some group has decided i should not be allowed to lease my own truck to the companies?

[ilovdieselsmoke]

Jul 14, 2011 11:49:00 GMT -5 @longload said:

i have no desire to purchase any new truck. my truck is a 1984 379pete with air lift triaxle powered by a mechanical 3406 beefed to 500 hp with an 18 speed tranny. it's as clean as any show truck & i built it from scratch after stripping it to the bare chassis. that's fine if you want a brand new truck i don't. i love older classics like the pete i own. it's not fine for someone to tell me i have to junk or park my truck because it doesn't fall under there approved year model. that's plain bull$#*t. it also doesn't make any difference on what i receive in the way of compensation on rates. i haul mostly machinery on container flat racks and also pull drop deck trailers from port averaging at around $5.00 per loaded mile. why should i be penalized for being an o/o in business or forced to become a company driver because some group has decided i should not be allowed to lease my own truck to the companies?

I second that motion. It's appalling to witness the attacks on our way of life by a small minority of skilled special interest spin doctors who claim the sky is falling due to the trivial emissions of a few broken down old trucks working the port. Crushing up or banning the use of perfectly good trucks that are safe, reliable and can be maintained for many more years to come is ludicrous. That thinking amounts to throwing the baby out with the dirty bath water. If this was about pollution than get rid of the few specific trucks that are the real polluters not the entire fleet of responsible truckers!!

What we have here is a lot of mis/information being spread by the same special interest folk who want to push the owner-operator completely out of the picture. What better way than to claim they're doing it in the name of GREEN because as individual O/O truckers we're out to kill Joe Q Public with our highly toxic emissions spewing from our smoke belching monsters.

_{Here's another one of those twenty year old smoke belching monsters.
Holly Crap, looks like it could explode at any moment with hot diesel soot!!!!!!}[/b][/sub]
www.customrigsmag.com/files/2011/05/Old-School-LEAD_BWS4300-copy-500x332.jpg [/img]

[crabbie]

yeah that looks like a real broke down junker. shows mentality of the port clunker program they want to expand to the east. you green zombies keep your big ideas over on the pacific coast thank you.

[kenny]

hey ilovediesel i have one of those old trucks too. it's one of the first 1974 conventional freight shakers built with a 400 cummins. i dare anyone to tell me to my face it's junk. not only do i work this truck every week at the port but have entered it and won at several trucking events. these people trying to destroy our way of life don't have any appreciation of what american pride of entrepreneurship is about. keep up the fight.

[malphus]

my truck is eighteen years old still going strong & i'm proud of it. i maintain my tractor with loving care every week. just got it painted last month after sand blasting the frame to have it ready. why would i give up perfectly good iron to start making payments on something that can't do the job any better. hope these tree huggers die a slow death.

[ilovdieselsmoke]

Jul 16, 2011 18:09:05 GMT -5 @malphus said:

my truck is eighteen years old still going strong & i'm proud of it. i maintain my tractor with loving care every week. just got it painted last month after sand blasting the frame to have it ready. why would i give up perfectly good iron to start making payments on something that can't do the job any better. hope these tree huggers die a slow death.

My truck is a 1985 model. That makes it 26 years young I'm almost sixty but my faithful truck's not going to abandon me so I'm going to return the favor. Why fix something that's not broke?
Besides it rides fine, drives great, pulls excellent, & makes me money so where's the beef

[yanis]

HEY ILOVDIELSMOKE, YOU TRUCK RIDES FINE, DRIVES GREAT, PULLS EXCELLENT, BUT I AM NOT SURE SHE MAKES YOU MONEY . NUMBERS ARE SAYING OTHERWISE. NOW IMAGINE THE PORT IS HAVING A PARTY WHERE EVERYONE IS INVITED WITH ONE CONDITION WHICH IS TO WEAR A TUXEDO MADE IN 2008 AND UP. NOW YOU GOT MY POINT , YOU WILL BE MAD AT THEM AND CALL THEM ALL THE BIRDS NAMES YOU KNOW .. AT THE END OF THE DAY THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE WHO TO LET INSIDE THEIR PARTY. WHAT IS HAPPENING TODAY IN CALIFORNIA IS GONNA HIT ALL THE US PORTS . IT IS JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE YOU EITHER COMPLY OR YOU ARE OUT THE PORT BUSINESS. TO ME IT WILL BE A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME AT THAT TIME. YOU KNOW HOW THE PORT OPERATES; AVERAGE OF 2 HOURS TO GET AN EMPTY OR LOAD OUT. ADD TIME FOR SCALE. 1 HOUR TO 1 AND HALF TO LOAD OR UNLOAD THEN ANOTHER AVERAGE OF 2 HOURS TO TAKE BACK THE EMPTY OR LOAD TO THE PORT. ON TOP OF THAT NOW THE PORT REQUIRES TO HAVE AN EXPENSIVE TRUCK. I AM SURE YOU WILL THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU BUY ANOTHER TRUCK ESPECIALLY WITH THOSE HORRIBLE RATES. I CAN ASSURE YOU HERE AT OAKLAND PORT EVERY ONE THAT I HAD THE OPPOTUNITY TO TALK TO ABOUT THIS ISSUE IS FIRM "MY TRUCK IS GOOD AND I HAVE NO DESIRE OF BUYING A NEWER ONE". IN MY OPINION THE RATES HAVE TO REAJUST TO INCENTIVIZE JOE TO BUY A NEWER TRUCK. TO ME THE PROBLEM IN HAULING CONTAINERS RESIDES IN RATES , RATES AND RATES

[ilovdieselsmoke]

Jul 17, 2011 13:30:41 GMT -5 yanis said:

HEY ILOVDIELSMOKE, YOU TRUCK RIDES FINE, DRIVES GREAT, PULLS EXCELLENT, BUT I AM NOT SURE SHE MAKES YOU MONEY . NUMBERS ARE SAYING OTHERWISE. NOW IMAGINE THE PORT IS HAVING A PARTY WHERE EVERYONE IS INVITED WITH ONE CONDITION WHICH IS TO WEAR A TUXEDO MADE IN 2008 AND UP. NOW YOU GOT MY POINT , YOU WILL BE MAD AT THEM AND CALL THEM ALL THE BIRDS NAMES YOU KNOW .. AT THE END OF THE DAY THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE WHO TO LET INSIDE THEIR PARTY. WHAT IS HAPPENING TODAY IN CALIFORNIA IS GONNA HIT ALL THE US PORTS . IT IS JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE YOU EITHER COMPLY OR YOU ARE OUT THE PORT BUSINESS. TO ME IT WILL BE A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME AT THAT TIME. YOU KNOW HOW THE PORT OPERATES; AVERAGE OF 2 HOURS TO GET AN EMPTY OR LOAD OUT. ADD TIME FOR SCALE. 1 HOUR TO 1 AND HALF TO LOAD OR UNLOAD THEN ANOTHER AVERAGE OF 2 HOURS TO TAKE BACK THE EMPTY OR LOAD TO THE PORT. ON TOP OF THAT NOW THE PORT REQUIRES TO HAVE AN EXPENSIVE TRUCK. I AM SURE YOU WILL THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU BUY ANOTHER TRUCK ESPECIALLY WITH THOSE HORRIBLE RATES. I CAN ASSURE YOU HERE AT OAKLAND PORT EVERY ONE THAT I HAD THE OPPOTUNITY TO TALK TO ABOUT THIS ISSUE IS FIRM "MY TRUCK IS GOOD AND I HAVE NO DESIRE OF BUYING A NEWER ONE". IN MY OPINION THE RATES HAVE TO REAJUST TO INCENTIVIZE JOE TO BUY A NEWER TRUCK. TO ME THE PROBLEM IN HAULING CONTAINERS RESIDES IN RATES , RATES AND RATES

OH but my truck does make money. It either makes good money or like a few other pieces of equipment I have it'll stay home parked. I don't haul in volume nor compete for (as some industry folk like to say,) competitive wages . No I don't work just to be working. I have plenty to do elsewhere to keep me busy. Why waste valuable time on something that is not going to produce. I don't donate time to the port or any trucking company. Why should I or anyone else? I know up front what pays or doesn't pay to fit my criteria. I don't move the bad with the good as I hear some companies tell their drivers. That's nonsense. You don't buy equipment to run it into the ground doing favors for people that can support their own weight. Either I'm able to make a good living or I find something else to do. If my truck is to become a non-profit hobby it'll be my decision to make not their decision for me. Take your truck and go make you some money doing something else if things are hopeless there but as far as the east coast I don't see it that way because the green coalition of shame has a lot of hurdles to leap before making my choice of ride obsolete here in the southeast.....

[yanis]

They knocked at the first door and got him. I said it won't happen to me I am not a communist.
They knocked at the second door and got him. I said it won't happen to me I am not a jew.
They knocked at the third door and got him. I said it won't happen to me I am not black.
Then the came and knocked on my door . that's when I realized it was too late.
In my opinion the problem is the rates , we need to speak up about them before it becomes late .the rest is accessory.

[dallas]

that is problem everywhere. reason why we are have meetings in sav,ga. drivers are mad and look to do something. at same time we don't need people messing with are trucks.

[gene]

i dont need a new truck. i need mo money for my own truck. problem is not with clean air in virginia but dirty laundry at trucking companys. we need a super size box of washing powder to clean out the port grime living off our sweat.

[rocky]

we already had enough problem without these jerks trying to put the o/o trucker out of business. this is why no one trust union. we need to stick together to make them raise rates. shut b@st@rds down. pick a date & everyone do it same time.