Post Office Wants to Stop Saturday Deliveries
According to this article from FOX News, the Postmaster General went before Congress Wednesday and requested the Postal Service be allowed to cut service from 6 days to 5. But don’t worry. The Postmaster thinks they might like to end service on Tuesday, rather than Saturday.
I must admit, I’m confused. The Postal Service raises rates once, sometimes twice a year. They are allegedly the most efficiently run government agency, and yet they are still bleeding red ink. So, their answer is to cut services. Well, whatever. I’m sure President Obama will put the Postal Service on a paying basis, just like he’s going to make the entire U.S. Government profitable.
Woooohoooo, I made myself laugh with that last one…….
Police Officer Killed On Highway Shoulder
On early Monday morning, January 19, a police officer was killed on Ohio 8, in the Cleveland suburb on Boston Heights. The full article can be found here, thanks to the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The photo below is brought to you by Marvin Fong of the Plain Dealer.
The officer had parked his cruiser on the shoulder, and was outside on the roadway, cleaning up debris. An oncoming vending machine delivery truck hit the officer. The accident is still under investigation, however, the article does say that the lights of the officer’s cruiser were on at the time of the crash.
While it is unclear at this point exactly what happened here, one of the principles of defensive driving is be aware of what’s happening 10-15 seconds down the road. If you see flashing red and blue lights, slow down and move over. Maybe it’s just a routine traffic stop, but you never know. In this case, the officer was out of his cruiser. When the lights are on, you know where the police car is, but is it an accident? Something in the road? Someone in the road? If you see it in time, you can move over.
Improvement to the Web Site
One of the reasons I took a 3 month hiatus from the website was because my webmaster was making some behind-the-scenes upgrades on the site. One of the things we want to do, is sell safety and compliance items, (probably JJ Keller material), in addition to my handy-dandy DVD Compliance Kit. By the way, the DVD Compliance Kit is ideal for beginners. The forms you need to set up your qualification files are in there, the regulations are in there, and there’s a 95 minute DVD of me explaining what you need to do.
In addition, if you purchase the DVD kit, you get access to me via telephone, so if there’s something that wasn’t clear, call me, and I can explain it on the phone. Also, there’s a money-back guarantee, although I’ve never had to use that yet.
Back to the JJKeller material, I am an affliate marketer for Keller, which means I can sell the Keller items at a discount to you, as compared to what you would pay on their website, or catalog. Such a deal. So I’m hoping that’s a reason to keep coming back to this site.
Anyway, I see we now have some ads listed on the website…. apparently largely for anxious women. I guess it’s a work in progress, I’ll have to ask the webmaster about that, I’m not sure anxious women in my target audience here.
Only the Good Die Young
This wreck happened in Syracuse a week ago on January 8. As you can see, the tractor trailer is in the ditch, killing thousands of innocent Bud Lights. Oh the humanity!!!
The road is fraught with tragedy. There is nothing sadder than seeing the good go before their time. Winter driving is especially hazardous. Ice and snow make for dangerous conditions. So slow down! As a side note: the truck driver was apparently not seriously injured.
Go here to see how the local newspaper columnist is dealing with the tragedy.
DOT will start auditing GPS data
In November, 2008, in a very brief notice in the Federal Register, FMCSA notified the world that it was rescinding its policy on GPS data. In 1997, FMCSA issued a policy to its auditors, stating that they were only to use GPS data as a last resort in auditing logs for accuracy. This was done largely to keep the playing field level. An auditor checking GPS data against a driver’s logs will obviously find a much higher percentage of falsifications, than one who is just using paper documents like fuel statements and toll receipts. The policy was also done to encourage trucking companies to buy the GPS technology.
Now, by eliminating that policy, the FMCSA has signaled very clearly they will start using the GPS data to audit your logs. Any carrier who has GPS satellites could be in jeopardy during an audit. I imagine what will happen is many auditors will just do it the way they’ve always done it, and use the traditional EZPass statements, toll receipts, fuel statements, and scale tickets. However, I’m sure there will be some aggressive field agents who are going to use that mountain of GPS data as a hammer. And guess who is the nail?
This will probably lead to multiple levels of expectations during an audit. If you do not have GPS data, or if you’re lucky enough to get an auditor who is going to leave sleeping dogs lie, nothing will change. BUT, if you get a guy who wants that GPS data, for no reason other than he wants it, you and your drivers will be held to a much stricter compliance standard. In other words, your drivers’ logs will have to be precisely accurate and legal. No fudging an hour here, or an hour there.
If FMCSA wanted everyone to run strictly legal, they would have mandated that all new trucks are equipped with the on-board recorders a few years ago, but they didn’t do that. With the on-board recorders, everyone would have been held to the same standard. Now, a carrier without the GPS can cheat more than carriers with the GPS.
Stay tuned, and be forewarned. If do have GPS, you might investigate how far off your drivers’ logs are compared to your satellite data, especially if you are on FMCSA’s Safestat list.
Eric Is Back!
Well, really I never went away, other than the fact that I stopped posting on my blog. Why? Well, a number of reasons. 1) I had a rush of other safety consulting work pile up in the fall of 2008, and 2) I was training to run a marathon. No, seriously, I ran the Las Vegas Marathon in 5:01:25.
Now that might seem like a ridiculously slow time, but consider a few things. First, Las Vegas is very dry, so it’s really hard to stay hydrated for 26.2 miles in that type of climate. Second, I weigh 210 pounds; I’m not one of these skinny Skeletor guys like Lance Armstrong. They even have a classification for it: the Clydesdale division. So, I’m pretty proud of it, although it did take a huge amount of time to train for the race. Anyway, my New Years Resolution is to keep the website current, so I will do the best I can on that end. Even though I haven’t been here in 3 months, people keep posting and emailing me, so somebody must be finding this place.
What’s happened in the last 3 months? Only the most momentous occasion in the last 25 years! No, I’m not talking about the stupid election, more on that in a minute. I’m talking about the Philadelphia Phillies! The Phillies, who have delivered us from 25 years of Philadelphia sports hell. Fantastic. I went to the parade, along with 2 million of my closest friends.
In politics, we have our first Hawaiian-American President, Barack Obama. I didn’t vote for the guy, but then again I didn’t vote for McCain either, as I really don’t think either one will be a good President. Both of them want to spend us into the poorhouse, so I guess we taxpayers just have to wait until the bill comes due. Nevertheless, I wish Obama well, as we’re all in the same boat now, like it or not. I just hope he doesn’t take my guns and Rush Limbaugh away.
Back to sports, it was another failed year for the BCS in college football. This year, it crowned the wrong team! The champion is the undefeated Utah Utes, who ended their season by whipping Alabama, on an SEC field. Yet the BCS crowned a one-loss Florida (who I did pick at the beginning of the year to win the National Championship. I will not take credit for that one, since Utah is the champion).
In the NFL, my Eagles somehow have moved within striking distance of winning the Super Bowl. Unbelieveable, after 25 years of futility, we could go back-to-back in the span of 3 months. I can’t get a feel for Sunday’s game yet. The Eagles should kill the Cardinals, but that home field worries me.
All in all, sports season is winding down, work season is beginning, so I’ll be pounding the keyboard, bringing you safety and compliance tips, and otherwise trying to entertain you.
