Educationexp

Each passing day, I am becoming more and more frustrated with the actions of those steering wheel holders that I have, not so affectionately, nicknamed doorknobs or chicken necks. It’s very sad and heartbreaking for me to see what this industry has become over the past decade alone. These people are the sole reason I have created this entire site and will keep fighting the governments until changes are made to ensure we are doing all we can to improve safety for us and for other road users.

These doorknobs somehow feel they are privileged or above the law and don’t have to follow the rules of the road. They are careless and reckless on both highways and city streets causing minor accidents and leaving the scene without reporting them. They dress like slobs and wear unsafe footwear creating a risk for personal injury to themselves and making us all look bad. I really could spend all day listing the numerous complaints I have but that won’t do any of us any good.

Here in Ontario, the number of untrained, grossly under-trained, and just straight-up ignorant chicken necks is unreal. I do understand there is a very good chance they just have not been taught anything at all. On the very slim possibility that even one person reads through these pages and changes the way they drive, I am writing 4 pages, or more, that will cover everything from A – Z. Someone who has never even been in a truck will be able to pass a road test with all that I write and a bit of practice. Once I have finished, if I ever do, there will no longer be any valid excuse to continue operating the way they do.

So let’s get started.

The only privilege you have is holding a valid commercial driver license. Yes, driving is a privilege. Having the ability to make a living by using it, is very simply an added bonus. Your license can be revoked at any time if you fail to follow the rules of the road.

The very first thing you need to do is hang up your damned cell phone. Take off the headset or earpiece and drive your truck. I don’t care about your hands-free device, who you are talking to, or what you are talking about. You are being paid to do a job, which is not a telephone operator, and you need to pay attention to what you are doing and what’s going on around you. Every time you get behind the wheel of any motorized vehicle, you have the capability of ending human lives. You have no right to risk the safety and lives of yourself or others by being on your phone the entire time you are on the road. There will be plenty of time to talk once you are parked and your brakes are pulled. Seriously, get off your phone.

When you wake up to start your day, you are supposed to be a professional. Shower, brush your hair and teeth, shave and put on CLEAN clothes. This is your job and you should dress accordingly. Many of you look like you have just spent the entire day digging through the city dump. There is no reason for this to be the case. You fuel your truck and they give you free showers. Many truck stops have laundry facilities to wash your clothes so no matter how long you are away from home, there is no excuse to look like a slob.

Flip flops are not acceptable footwear and should be illegal to wear while driving any commercial vehicle. They create a potentially unsafe situation when you are entering or exiting your truck, walking into shippers/receivers, walking in bad weather or on ice, and doing your pre-trip inspection. You need solid, enclosed shoes that can’t slip off and have rubber soles. Flip flops should only be worn at the beach, not on the job.

If you can’t do good, do no harm. It’s a very simple concept and one you need to live by. It means to clean up after yourself by using garbage bins and toilets instead of parking lots and off-ramps. If you want to act like a barnyard animal, hang up your keys and go live on a farm. You make us all look bad but you also make it disgusting for the rest of us who don’t live like animals. You are supposed to be a mature, responsible, professional adult so act like one. There should be no trace of you ever being there left behind when you move on.

You are not above the law and you need to obey all road signs, including speed limits and lane designation. If the sign says you need to use the left lane, you get your ass in the left lane and stay there. If it says no trucks in the left lane, that means you so stay out of it. You drive in the RIGHT lane unless you are instructed otherwise by highway signs. Period. This is not optional, it is the law and must be obeyed. If the sign says no passing then you don’t pass regardless of how slow the person in front of you is traveling. We will do the basic math on passing on another page but your time does not dictate how fast you should be traveling, the law does.

The very first thing you should have been taught as a car driver is that you can’t interfere with other vehicles. This means you don’t tailgate cars trying to force them to speed up or get out of your way. This is so dangerous and drives me insane every time I see it happening. If the driver of that car is a beginner or is newly licensed, you could scare the hell out of them causing them to hit the brakes hard or try to swerve out of your way. BACK OFF. It also means you don’t pull out in front of people causing them to have to apply their brake or block traffic trying to pass someone doing one mile an hour less than you wish to travel. Don’t be a chicken neck. Share the road responsibly.

You have to keep in mind that everything you do is most likely being recorded by someone. Everyone has cell phones and love to videotape and post to social media. The vehicle you drive is nothing but a giant, mobile billboard advertising your company name and unit number. Everything you do out on the road, in docks, at truck stops, and anywhere else you may be, reflects directly back on your company. You don’t just make yourself look bad, you make them look bad too.

It also reflects back on the rest of us and our industry. We used to be knights in shining armour or heroes of the highway. The general public’s perception of us has changed dramatically over the past decade and it’s because of the driver’s appearance and behaviour on the road. Change the way you look at your job and it will change the way you feel about it as well. Lead by example and help us all make it safely home to our families.