Category: Roadkill

Riding Mass Transit Is Like Inviting 30 Random Strangers Into Your Car

Great Moments In Socialism Roadkill 28 Comments

Sara Carter;

The Seattle Times reported Monday that local authorities have stated its transit system has become “unusable.”

The Times reported the transit system has become overloaded with reports of toxic fentanyl, meth smoke and volatile behavior. It has created a toxic work environment for employees and has scared off travelers.

Seattle is tackling the issue with more of the same.

In an attempt to turn things around, the city plans to release a new “Safety, Security and Fare Enforcement Initiative” in February. The initiative incorporates surveys and comments from 8,000 people.

The Times reports that plan hopes to improve the dangerous environment, welcome back commuters, but also show compassion to those who are doing drugs, and especially homeless people, as “a necessary step on its journey to becoming an anti-racist mobility agency” according to the King County website.

“The average age of a trucker is 58”

Roadkill 126 Comments

Via email from a trucker I know personally, names withheld at request.

To my friends and family who are not familiar with the trucking industry: get a few extra essentials if you’re in a position to do so. Fill your tank with fuel.

Truck drivers have hit the proverbial wall & every tactile thing in your life is moved by them. This goes far beyond the mandate issue, that’s just the snapping point for many. There are many factors at play – truckers being the constant, proverbial scapegoat for a crumbling supply chain is front & centre.

I want to be clear that this has been brewing for decades. The horrible state on our Canadian highways is similar to what I’ve experienced traveling in third world countries. Safety has declined to where there’s almost daily fatalities. I’ve had to unfollow most trucking groups because they are just so negative & defeating showing all the daily wrecks that don’t hit the news. Real, undoctored pictures, video, & dashcam footage of “professional drivers” showing absolutely no regard for human life.

What’s the answer? Feds throw mass quantities of undocumented drivers who simply have to say they have a license or experience. They pay large sums to “handlers” that facilitate throwing them right into the fire on our mountainous, snowy, icy highways. I have personally helped drivers that had absolutely no idea how to chain up, free a frozen brake, fuel up a tractor or reefer, add diesel exhaust fluid, back up one trailer (let alone two), which airline went where, how to check fluid levels, hook up a trailer, etc. And this was in the parking lot! Now to watch them pass people on double yellows, over the crest of a hill, around a blind corner, driving loaded super B’s 6 feet from my passenger vehicle at highway speed. I’ve taken the ditch or shoulder several times this winter alone as I knew my family would be hit & perish when the loaded tailgater couldn’t stop in time. Because I have decades of off-road & trucking experience.

Unfortunately, I could no longer afford to run a viable business in transport. The rates are the same as in the 90’s but every expense has tripled. My last three months hauling grain I couldn’t even pay myself a dollar, I was just working for the bank. Mary insisting I “get out while I could” was the best thing to happen to us in years. All those long, wasted, unpaid hours of my life never to return. Then, months later, she saw her cancer return & we were very thankful a semi with a $3K+ monthly payment wasn’t sitting on the driveway.

I also knew that every extra mile I drove on the decaying state of our roads would increase the chance of my ticket being punched. Not a sacrifice my family was prepared to make. I was sick with stress every Sunday night before going to work. All so people could give me dirty looks, cut me off in the city & on the highway. It didn’t matter if I had dynamite, aviation fuel, crude oil, or apples in the trailers. The end result would be the same for them. 💥

Try and find a place to pull over and rest, eat, use a washroom in Saskatchewan. Especially a safe location with adequate room and not just a litter-ridden highway shoulder with a frozen porta potty. How many times did I stop just to see a “no trucks” sign, locked garbage bin, jugs of pee everywhere, and an out of service or locked bathroom.

Next is drivers being driven to financial ruin & physical distress with ridiculous fines and penalties. Many of those lie squarely on shitty trucking outfits & brokers that push people far beyond their limits. Shippers & receivers as well. But it all falls on drivers that are quickly thrown under the bus.

What’s the answer? I don’t know.

• make trucking a recognized trade
• keep diesel prices in check
• insurance costs will stop escalating if drivers actually qualify for what they’re operating without the resulting chaos
• a decent wage available for competent, experienced drivers

So many of my former colleagues are finding different avenues than driving to earn a living. Or getting out of the industry entirely. The average age of a trucker is 58. Would you venture out to do this thankless job? Encourage your kids to pursue this? It’s nearly $15K just to get a 1A now. Even if you love the idea of everything the road has in store for you, good & bad, would you do it today? Maybe give a little space, sprinkle some respect, and consider what a truck driver is currently dealing with on the road before branding us all as the source of domestic terror.

I think there’s a reckoning ahead.

Update – Thanks to Rex Murphy at the National Post, there’s additional commentary from drivers in the comments. Just keep scrolling.

We Don’t Need No Frozen Sparky Cars

Alternative Subsidy Roadkill 34 Comments

E-car from VW needs 13 hours for 650 kilometers – without heating

Even under the best conditions, many electric cars are still a long way from being suitable for long journeys. As a car comparison test recently showed, no electric car can cover more than 440 kilometers at a time at a speed of 130 *. The car reporter Lisa Brack and EFAHRER.com author also had to experience this painfully. She dared an electric car long-distance experiment. Because to buy her new VW e-Up, she drove from Munich to the VW Autostadt in Wolfsburg to pick up her car personally.

Brack needed 12 hours and 45 minutes for the return journey from Wolfsburg to Munich, covering a distance of 654 kilometers. The route would normally take around six hours. But it wasn’t just the duration of the journey that was appalling – the temperature during the journey was anything but funny: the heating stayed off for almost the entire return journey in freezing temperatures: Because the colder it is, the more the operation of the heating systems puts a strain on the electric car battery. Recently, the electric car cold problem was also evident at a large German company, because in Berchtesgaden in Bavaria , Deutsche Post is withdrawing its expensive e-vans due to snow and cold and is back to combustion models for the winter months.

Lisa Brack wanted to avoid Volkswagen’s expensive service costs of 700 euros and also report on her long-distance experience. To do this, she sends her electric car straight to the endurance test, because the temperatures on the way back are freezing. At 0 to minus 5 degrees she starts the journey home to Bavaria. These are unfavorable conditions for electric cars, because low temperatures paralyze the batteries in electric cars*, especially in winter.

For the trip, Brack covered himself with a hat, scarf, gloves and generally warm clothing, because after the first full charge, the VW e-Up shows a range of just 216 kilometers. And even this information is not guaranteed, which is why Brack opts for the so-called Eco-Plus mode and, of course, for the heating to be switched off. When the windscreen is frosty, heating wires ensure a clear view, so the reporter driving the test can do without the power-guzzling fan heater completely.

In order to install an appropriate app for the model, she asks a VW employee when the car is handed over. However, he immediately blocked it: “Don’t ask me that. The digital services are not included in our training courses.” So Brack has to take everything into his own hands. Then it’s on the way home, time 2:45 p.m.

We Don’t Need No Flaming Sparky Cars

Alternative Subsidy Roadkill 47 Comments

Following a tumultuous year for Tesla including a company relocation helmed by CEO Elon Musk, viral reports of cars on fire and other self-admitted quality control issues…

The electric car manufacturer now ranks 27th out of 28car brands on Consumer Reports’ list, above only Ford-owned legacy luxury brand Lincoln. Much of it has to do with the overall instability of electric vehicles in general — especially SUVs — which Consumer Reports’ Jake Fisher said during a presentation are the “absolute bottom in terms of reliability,” according to Reuters. […]

Among the concerns Consumer Reports had for the Tesla Model S, X and Y lines, according to CNBC, were issues with “heat pumps, air conditioning” and notoriously, misaligned panels. It’s also worth noting that Tesla’s Model X ranked dead-last among all cars for reliability, scoring a 5 out of 100.

h/t Raymond

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