Autoblog

Fallen Kansas City tow truck driver honored with impressively long procession

Jeffrey N. Ross — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 14:59:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Safety, Videos, Work

Blake Gresham, an 18-year-old tow truck driver in Kansas City, Missouri, was tragically killed on August 27 while he was helping a stranded motorist. Gresham's death brings attention to the "Move Over" law that has been passed in most states, and to further raise awareness for this law and honor the fallen driver, a procession of tow trucks traveled from Grandview, Missouri to his final resting place in Liberty, Missouri.

While "Move Over" laws differ state to state, they are meant to move traffic away from or slow down vehicles passing vehicles parked on the side of the road. In Missouri, the law only applies to vehicles with red or blue lights, which means it doesn't apply to tow trucks equipped with amber lights. Gresham's family, owners of GT Towing where he had worked, have started a nonprofit organization called Move Over for Blake with the goal of making the roads and shoulders safer for tow truck drivers and emergency personnel. Making Gresham's incident even more dangerous, the vehicle he had responded to was located on a bridge, meaning the shoulder had even less space for him to work safely. No information was released on the driver who hit Gresham or whether he or she will face any charges.

Close to 200 tow trucks made the procession which was captured in the 13-minute video. Scroll down to see the entire procession (which starts at about the 2:00 mark of the video).

Continue reading Fallen Kansas City tow truck driver honored with impressively long procession

Fallen Kansas City tow truck driver honored with impressively long procession originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Sep 2012 14:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Truck driver shortage means a longer wait for your packages

Chris Shunk — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 08:27:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Etc.

The news may be flooded with stories about the lagging U.S. economy and disappointing jobs reports, but it appears there is at least one profession that could use a few more applicants. USA Today reports that there is a genuine shortage of truck drivers, and the problem is leading to pricier deliveries and longer waits on packages.

There are plenty of reasons for the driver shortage, with a raft of retiring baby boomers and the $4,000 to $6,000 price for a six-week training course being among the main culprits. Another potential issue is a requirement for trucking companies to publish their safety records, which has reportedly led to some companies looking only for drivers with clean records. And the problem could become worse in the next year as the federal government enacts strict federal limits on the time drivers can spend behind the wheel of a big rig.

The good news is that drivers at least 21 years of age have plenty of opportunities for employment. Pay has gone up as well, with compensation jumping five percent year-over-year to an average of $50,000 per year. And with pay jumping that fast, a few thousand dollars worth of training becomes more of an investment.

Truck driver shortage means a longer wait for your packages originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This is what a lifetime of sunshine can do to truckers

Jeff Sabatini — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 16:57:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Safety, Work

This picture of a 69-year-old trucker in The New England Journal of Medicine is striking. You can clearly see the effects of his 28-year career behind the wheel, with each wrinkle plotted out across his skin like a road map. The left side of his face got this way due to sun exposure, what those dermatologists who read NEJM call dermatoheliosis, a "thickening and wrinkling of the skin."

But what's really surprising is to see the full image of both sides of his face, and just how different the right side looks. Since UVA rays pass through window glass, those long hours in the saddle led to enough sun exposure to cause the more pronounced skin damage, according to the report.

Northwestern University dermatologist Jennifer Gordon, who is treating the man, told Fox News that he didn't wear sunscreen. Fortunately, the man has not yet developed skin cancer, according to the report. To keep yourself from winding up with similar skin damage, the American Academy of Dermatology suggests using sunscreen with at least an SPF 30 rating. And to this trucker, might we suggest considering evening out his skin's fortunes behind the wheel of a big rig in Australia?

Click here to see the full image at The New England Journal of Medicine website.

This is what a lifetime of sunshine can do to truckers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 07 Jun 2012 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Safety groups file lawsuit against new U.S. trucking standards

Zach Bowman — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 08:31:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Government/Legal, Safety, Work

A range of safety groups are calling for judicial review of federal rules for truck drivers' hours of service. According to a lawsuit filed by Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Public Citizen, the Truck Safety Coalition and two truck drivers, the new rule doesn't protect the public from tired truckers. The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently ruled drivers could only work 70 hours within a seven-day period, down from a previous limit of 82. Truckers must also take a break of at least 30 minutes after an eight-hour shift.

That's a step in the right direction, but drivers are still allowed to travel up to 11 hours in one day. Those who reach their hourly limit in a week may then restart the clock by taking a 34-hour break, but that may only be done once within a seven-day period.

The concerned parties want a judicial review of the rule to eliminate the 34-hour restart provision and cut consecutive drive hours to 10, saying that truck crash fatalities increased by nine percent in 2010.

Safety groups file lawsuit against new U.S. trucking standards originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 09 Mar 2012 08:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: This truck driver has got something on his nose...

Chris Shunk — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:59:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Etc., Safety, Videos, Work

Click above to watch the video after the jump

Is this a highway or the set of a new Bruce Willis flick? What appears to be a cell phone-wielding cameraman has captured some timely highway footage of a truck driver hauling more than just a few dozen tons of potentially hazardous liquid. We have no idea how a vehicle, apparently a Renault Clio, could possibly find itself in such a precarious and perpendicular position, but we're even more puzzled as to how the truck driver could possibly pass other vehicles in traffic without noticing a 3,000 pound vehicle on its nose.

Assuming this is real and not some sort of staged stunt, we're sure hope the driver of the Clio escaped this unfortunate incident unharmed, because otherwise we would feel really guilty about the fact that we laughed at the fact that the brake lights were flashing on and off. Like that was going to do anything. Check out the video for yourself by hitting the jump. The video footage is admittedly less than great, but we feel the bizarre nature of the subject matter is worth a look.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: This truck driver has got something on his nose...

Video: This truck driver has got something on his nose... originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: Euro trucker sought by police after releasing drive-dancing footage

Jonathon Ramsey — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 15:28:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Europe, Videos, UK, Humor

Follow the jump to see the video of the dancing trucker

It gets lonely in a semi cab, long hours of doing little more than light bouncing and trying to stay in your lane. But on the bright side, it does provide a lot of "me time," and with a little background music and the urge to shake it, the cab could be a great place to... dance! One truck driver, a Romanian Happy Feet, did just that. Then he filmed it and shared his passion with the world. Predictably, police aren't as amused, and they are seeking to have a few words with the twinkle-toes trucker, distributing the video across Europe in order to catch the offender. Follow the jump to see him get his groove on.

[Source: Telegraph]

Continue reading VIDEO: Euro trucker sought by police after releasing drive-dancing footage

VIDEO: Euro trucker sought by police after releasing drive-dancing footage originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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