10 March 2009
"Use of Unapproved Compression Brakes Prohibited"
Sign on 840 south of Nashville. My question--How do you know if your compression (engine) brake is one of the ones that are approved? I'm assuming that ALL engine brakes are prohibited and this is just another example of convoluted bureaucracy and legalese. Sigh, I wanna be on the approved list.
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4 comments:
Me too!! If I happen to find an application for getting us on that list, I will let you know!!
:)
I just HAVE to comment on this in a couple of ways!
First of all, for mine, if it's a big hill and I am rart up thar (sorry - right up there)in my weight, then I would sooner have a ticket then smoking brakes - it is simple as that.
Smoking brakes equals someone's life. Noisy Jacobs is a mere bagatelle at worst and an inconveniece.
In the old days when you were flat out having 36 tons (whatever that is in pounds) it was one thing and you could just go right down in the gears and sneak down a hill.
THESE days when you are 68 Ton, or 50 Ton in my case, you just do not have enough retardation in a motor without Jakes or foofer valve exhaust brakes.
As both of you are experienced operators, I am telling you bugger all - but I just had to vent!
Next thing is this:-
In this country, they changed the regs a few years ago such that we had to have a tarping system on a tipper such that you could access (tarp) from the ground. No worries! So they invented what is known as a roll top tarp. Trouble is, it made it so that the handle of this new fangled device extended beyond the width of the truck.
Thus, to comply with the NEW regs, you had to break an OLD reg!
Beauty!
No worries to the authorities.
They introduced a FREE permit that you can download via the internet that you MUST carry called the "roll top tarp and tanker arrester permit"! Seriously!
This magic bit of paper means that your truck is now perfectly safe to be over width, PROVIDED you carry the permit! Without it, you will be donating $1150 to the State coffers and,somehow or other, become a far more dangerous hazard on the roads - or so it would appear!!
Now that, ladies, is beaurocracy (spelling??) on steroids!
Indy, I'm like you, if it's a safety issue then I'm going for the ticket. Unfortunately here in the states we have these idiots that want to run their engine brakes 24/7, no matter their location, time, or conditions because they think it sounds cool and/or are too lazy to use their service brakes. As a result, many communities have taken to putting laws about not using them at all.
Laughing at the free permit! Aggravating isn't it (and ridiculous)?
I got a ticket in Oregon for the trailer mud flaps being attached to the back of the ICC bumper (wasn't screwed up, just how that particular style of trailer was set up) instead of directly behind the tires right after I started driving. HUGE money maker for the state, DOT officer was bragging about how many tickets he'd written to out of state truckers just that day for that, grrr.
ICC bumper?????
Translation please?
I have a simple plan for the authorities for the wankers who needlessly use Jakes (and have the mufflers removed to have them sound "kool" - note spelling).
Arrest the wankers and leave the poor old, half honest bloke who is just doing his job alone.
It can't be that hard - can it?
Same with logbooks and the like.
IF an individual has an exemplarary record, issue them with an exemption notice (and have it recorded on the NATIONAL computer system - probably the DOT over there. If you are checked randomly, you produce exemption and away you go.
If, however, you have a bad crash, get written up for a ridiculous speed of light, negligent driving or similar offence (and it is PROVEN in a court of law) you lose the exemption. This way the system becomes a REWARD and punishment system, rather than a belt you over the head system.
It works with dogs, horses and children, one would assume that it would even work on "Neanderthal" truck drivers!!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS way, people would have a level to aspire to, rather than just trying to avoid the knocks. Straight punishment hasn't worke in the last 80 years so I wonder what makes them think it would suddenly work now??????
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