Nov 19, 2018

Tips for improving your fuel economy

You know the old saying that a little bit goes a long way? Well that couldn’t be more accurate when it comes to your fuel economy. By making some simple changes and slight adjustments to how you run your truck, you can save thousands of dollars every year. Not sure how that’s possible? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. Here are our favorite ways you can improve your fuel economy:

Use cruise control. You’ll save valuable fuel when you’re not accelerating and decelerating frequency.
Watch your speed. You may think that faster equals better, but that’s not the case when it comes of your fuel. Driving faster not only causes you to burn through your fuel more quickly, but at a rate that costs your more in the long run.
Install after-market products designed for aerodynamics and fuel efficiency. The trucking industry, as a whole, has embraced the importance of improving fuel economy. There are several products on the market to help you do this, such as trailer skirts, aerodynamic mud flaps and deep angled bumpers.
Compare pricing before filling up. You can easily compare fuel prices right within your Trucker Path app.
Maximize your time when you stop. Every time you stop to use the restroom, fill up or grab some food it costs you unnecessary drive time, acceleration and deceleration. Doing all these things at the same stop will save you valuable time and money.
Minimize your idling time. Leaving your truck running for extended periods of time when it’s not necessary wastes fuel.
Make sure your tires are properly inflated. Every 1 psi drop in air pressure will reduce your gas mileage by 0.2-0.4 percent. This adds up quickly.
Inspect your truck regularly. Conducting thorough pre-trip inspections will help you catch fuel leaks, issues with your engine fan, tire misalignment and other problems – all of which can reduce your fuel efficiency.

Have you made any of these changes recently and seen a difference in your fuel efficiency? We’d love to hear what you’ve done and how it has helped!

Trucker Path Releases 2018 Truck Parking Report [p]Informative white paper provides an in-depth look at the most pressing problems and viable solutions for the widespread issue of truck parking [p]Trucker Path, the most popular app for truckers in the U.S., released the 2018 Truck Parking Report today, an annual white paper that explores the issue of truck parking in the U.S. and possible solutions. Failure to find truck parking is a significant problem with serious social and economic consequences. This comprehensive and detailed report equips trucking companies and industry leaders with the information they need to navigate the challenges of truck parking, optimize their business, and work towards a stronger, more efficient trucking industry overall. [p]“We realized that we have a vast amount of truck parking data in our app as well access to a large trucker community, so we explored the problem in depth. By surveying over 5,500 drivers and analyzing millions of data points, we have come to some useful conclusions that we wanted to share with the industry,” says Chris Oliver, Chief Business Officer for Trucker Path. [p]The white paper was crafted drawing on existing data and research, as well as internal Trucker Path survey data. Between May 8-15, 2018, over 5,500 truck drivers participated in a survey about the truck parking issue in the U.S. The questionnaire consisted of 26 questions and was distributed via Trucker Path apps. The report includes an in-depth look at: [p]Social, safety and economic implications [p]Failure to find a spot within the hours of service (HOS) limit puts many drivers at risk of parking in unauthorized areas, thus making the job more stressful with 85% of drivers citing parking as the number one cause of stress at work. Due to failure to find a spot, 70% of truckers have had to violate HOS, and 96% have parked in areas not designated for trucks. In addition, 48% of drivers spend an hour or more to find safe truck parking, which is essentially driving time that does not translate into fleet revenues. The annual loss per driver is estimated at $6,000. [p]While Trucker Path parking data suggests that average truck parking availability improved in almost every U.S. state between 2016 and 2017, there are still areas in the Eastern United States, especially around urban centers, that have a severe lack of capacity. [p]<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-4488 aligncenter" src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2018/09/truck-parking.jpg" alt="" width="468" height="288" /> [p]Solutions [p]Today, the largest impact could be achieved via spreading out the need for capacity throughout the day as the vast majority of drivers park at the same time. FMCSA is already making positive changes by revising personal conveyance rules allowing truckers extra time after the HOS limit to find parking. If that doesn’t work, capacity could be expanded by utilizing weigh stations and shipper facilities as truck parking locations. Our survey shows that truck drivers find shipper facilities almost as safe as truck stops. Building new capacity is expensive, but may be needed in some areas, as shown in our truck parking heatmap. [p]<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-4489 aligncenter" src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2018/09/truck-parking-2.jpg" alt="" width="376" height="232" /> [p]The issue of truck parking is widely recognized, and considerable effort has been applied to resolve it. This white paper contributes to that conversation with insights into where the industry is now and where it needs to go. To read the full report, visit: <a href="http://files.truckerpath.com/web/trucker-path-parking-white-paper-2018.pdf">http://files.truckerpath.com/web/trucker-path-parking-white-paper-2018.pdf</a> [p]About Trucker Path [p]Trucker Path is America's largest trucking community with over 750,000 individual truck drivers as monthly active users, equating to roughly 35 percent of all long-haul truckers. The exponential growth of the Trucker Path app led to the release of Truckloads, an online marketplace connecting freight brokers with hundreds of thousands of members truckers via the web and mobile devices. In early 2018 the company was acquired by Renren, Inc. (NYSE: <a href="http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/prnews?Page=Quote&Ticker=RENN">RENN</a>) followed closely by the launch of the Trucker Path ELD solution in March of 2018. The Trucker Path team strives to bring efficiencies to the freight transportation industry while making life on the road easier, more enjoyable, and more profitable for truck drivers.

Sep 28, 2018

Must-See Movies for Truck Drivers Which night is movie night for you? Is it Wednesday evening, when you’re relaxing after a long day on the road? Or do you wait until the weekend to chill on your couch at home? Whichever represents your ideal movie night, rest assured that we have the perfect must-see movie list just for truck drivers like you. We’ll start with one of the most obvious: [p]Smokey and the Bandit (1977) [p]Starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason and Mike Henry, this action comedy film is about two truck drivers who take a dare to deliver a truckload of beer. After they pick up a hitchhiker - a runaway bride - they soon find themselves being pursued by the jilted groom and his sheriff father. [p]Smokey and the Bandit II (1980) [p]Did you even know there was a sequel? In this one, the Bandit returns to transport an elephant from Florida to Texas. [p]Armed and Dangerous (1986) [p]Starring John Candy, Meg Ryan and Eugene Levy, Armed and Dangerous is about a disgraced cop and an inept lawyer embark on second careers as security guards. The pair quickly discover corruption within their union and security firm. In this movie, John Candy’s character hitches a ride with a trucker who plows through cars in a traffic jam and ignores the rules of the road to prevent a robbery. [p]Big Rig (2007) [p]A documentary film, Big Rig follows several long-haul truckers as they discuss life on the road and challenges truckers face in the industry. [p]Black Dog (1998) [p]This thriller, starring Patrick Swayze, is about an ex-con truck driver who discovers he’s unknowingly transporting a truck full of illegal weapons. [p]Convoy (1978) [p]A group of trucker friends use their CB radios to warn each other about police nearby until a sheriff tries to foil their plans with his own radio broadcasts. [p]Flatbed Annie & Sweetie Pie: Lady Truckers (1979) [p]Two women team up behind the wheel of a Mack Super-Liner to keep it out of the hands of a repo man and hijackers. [p]The Great Smokey Roadblock (1977) [p]After a truck driver gets his rig repossessed, he steals it back to make one last cross-country run. [p]Hijack! (1973) [p]Two truck drivers are tasked with transporting top-secret cargo from New York to Houston. A terrorist group tries to hijack their freight along the way. [p]Over the Top (1987) [p]A struggling trucker, played by Sylvester Stallone, uses arm wrestling to earn extra money. When he takes his estranged son on the road with him, he tries to use the World Arm Wrestling Championships to win back his son. [p]Snitch (2013) [p]Dwayne Johnson plays a father whose son is accused of distributing drugs. In order to help his son, Johnson’s character goes undercover with the DEA to infiltrate a drug cartel. You won’t want to miss two major action sequences that involve a big rig. [p]Steel Cowboy (1978) [p]Trucker Clayton Ray Davis, played by James Brolin, agrees to haul some stolen cattle to avoid getting his truck repossessed. [p]They Drive by Night (1940) [p]Starring George Raft and Humphrey Bogart, two brothers try to make a living as wildcat truckers. [p]Thunder Run (1986) [p]A truck driver transports plutonium from Nevada to Arizona, unaware that there are terrorists waiting to steal his freight. [p]Time Bomb (1984) [p]A truck carrying plutonium gets hijacked by terrorists and it’s up to the truckers to save the day. [p]One of these has to sound good to you! Which film are you planning to see on your next movie night?

Oct 24, 2018

Oct 16, 2018