Checking Your Vehicle Periodically While Doing Long Hauls is Essential for Proper Safety and Maintenance.
Your yard trucks are hauling cargo destined for a dangerous journey. Are your long-haul truck drivers prepared to make it to their destination safely?
Experienced Long Haul Truckers Share Their Top Driver Tips
Truck driving is a lifetime skill that requires refinement over time. Here are a few lessons from seasoned veterans for those new to the arena:
Look at your truck after leaving it.
Are your hazard lights or blinkers on? You’re not done after parking.
Know where your trailer is at all times.
Drive your trailer like your cab. If it wanders outside the lines, you aren’t driving safely. Lives are at stake.
Don’t shirk pre-trip inspections.
Check the lights, tires, pins, valve stem covers, the fifth wheel, and be mindful of inspection dates. You never know when a DOT officer will be verifying your work.
Have an exit plan.
As you exit for a truck stop, take the time to look at signs to see how you get back on the highway, otherwise you could miss it and end up lost after taking a wrong turn.
Don’t swerve to miss that animal.
Not only is it often a safety department policy, that animal is not worth your life or that of the family in the vehicle next to you. Your vehicle is 80,000-lbs, and the odds of swerving quickly enough to miss it are stacked against you. It’s a sad reality, but holding the wheel tightly and slowing down are sometimes the best you can do.
Ask for help when you need it.
No one is in it alone, and it feels good to pay it forward when others are in need.
Keep your employees safe. Learn more about yard trucks from DJ Products today.