GrandmK

I am going to participate in a program called "Car Fit" in the AM tomorrow. It is an AARP program. We will gather at the senior center and asks folks to come by and see if their car fits them. You would be very supprised at how many folks (Mainly ladies) who have no clue how to adjust their mirrors or even that their seats adjust. One time a lady came in with 2 phone books under her so she could see over the stirring wheel. We talk about the "trucker blind spot" also show then how to adjust the mirrors properly. When we took the training I suggested the class put the other class members through it to see how it felt. I learned a few things!!
Important for everyone but more so as we age.
If you see one advertised in your area go. We have OT's and other professionals there to help with "adaptive equipment" to make safer drivers. It is always a free service.

Dee

Driving here in the East is especially hard with a sleeper cab and 53 foot trailer. You have mail boxes, light poles, bus benches and very narrow streets to turn on. Please do be couteous and understanding in trucks making wide turns. Its because you have to judge and make sure your trailer can make the turn without running over anything. My DH drove a truck for 46 yrs. and I 10. We owned 2 trucks. Making a del. in Wa. D.C. is a nitemare.

bearisgray

Total length was? That 53 foot trailer is one foot longer than our house.

The roads were probably originally designed for horse and carriage traffic.

Dee

Total is 102 feet. Sleeper cab and 53 foot trailer.

quiltmaker

I remember the days when Truckers were the most wonderful people on the road. Remember traveling across Texas alone with my two daughters and the truckers kept us in their loop so to speak the entire way. Remember when they flashed their lights to let you know it was safe to pass....also flashing lights to let you know their was radar and police ahead. There were and I am sure still are fabulous Truckers but they sure are few and far between now. You use to be able to trust a Trucker with your life and now so many of them shouldn't even be able to drive a car. I'm talking 30 years ago or maybe a little less but have such fond memories of those wonderful men (ladies didn't drive back then if I remember correctly). The safest place for a woman alone to stop was a truckstop for food and gas because she knew she'd be protected and safe. Guess it's like everything else now....times unfortunately do not change for the better. But I've always thanked God for the truckers that made my journeys so much safer and took care of a lady they never really knew and gave me the courage to do those necessary trips because I knew they were always there for me and any other driver on the road. So to all you fabulous Truckers (man or woman) thank you for all you do for us...believe me you will never be forgotten and long respected and admired!!!!!!!!

bearisgray

Some of those changes are because of company regulations.

Some of those changes are because drivers have "been taken" by people they have stopped to help.

Some of the changes are because the laws have changed.

There still are wonderful people out there - it's just gotten so hard to know which ones they are! :cry:

chichimamma

I don't think that is quite fair, the bigger vehicle gets the right of way-not if it's not his. It's already impossible to get anywhere on good time, I know we need them, but I often wish they had their own roads.

catmcclure

Everything you eat, wear, have in your home, drive, and use is there because a trucker brought it. Without them you'd still be weaving your own fabric with wool or cotton you grew, carded, and spun. You'd also be eating only food you grew or could buy from someone within a mile or so of your home.

Being cheerful about letting someone who's trying to make your life convenient and comfortable have the right of way on the road occasionally is a small price to pay.

By the way, highways are paid for by gas taxes. Gasoline taxes (fed and state) average about 40 cents a gallon. When you fill up with 20 gallons you pay $8. That 20 gallons will last you probably a week or two, depending on your travelling distances and fuel efficiency. The trucker fills up with 200 to 300 gallons, driving an average of 2500 to 3000 miles a week, getting about 6 miles per gallon. That 2-300 gallons will last the trucker about 1200 to 1800 miles (he fills up about twice a week, averaging $160 to $240 in gas tax - every week). There is also a "road use" tax truckers have to pay (about 5 cents a mile average). Then there's the tax on tires (all 18 of them) which is about $15 or more per tire. All of these taxes go for highway maintenance and construction.

So, in the most part the truckers are the ones who pay for the highways and we pay very little for using them.

bearisgray

By the way - Getting 6 mpg for a truck is about the same as saying one gets 40 mpg for a car. That is EXCELLENT efficiency for a big rig.

buslady

It is not just the big trucks. School buses and transit buses find out how inconsiderate people can be. NO ONE wants to get behind a truck or a bus. You can't see around them and they just are not fun to follow. Unfortunately, this means they will pull out in front of, pass and then turn or stop, just plain selfish and unsafe!!! I have been in the bus business for 27 years and my DS, DH and DSIL's entire family are truckers. The stories we tell and hear about people who just didn't want to be behind one of these vehicles and the things they will do to make sure they don't get behind them is UNBELIEVABLE... I just don't see how it is worth risking your life and everyone else on the roads life just to be in front of them!! None of these vehicles stop "on a dime". Great Chat!!