Drivers Remain Productive During the Week, Enjoy More Home Time on Weekends
The Company
Dallas-based auto hauler Moore Transport operates a 165-truck fleet from several terminals along the Eastern Seaboard, in Chicagoland and Texas. Gary Moore started Moore Transport in 2005 to support the three automobile dealerships he owned and operated in the Dallas area.
Moore eventually sold all but one of his dealerships and during the Recession concentrated the auto hauling business on transporting auctioned vehicles and completing inventory transfers among dealers as new auto sales plummeted.
As the economic recovery has revitalized the auto industry, with auto sales reaching their highest level in 15 years in 2015, Moore Transport’s fleet has tripled in size despite an acute driver shortage.
The Problem – Cars Block Access to Much-Needed Weigh Station Bypass
In response to the growing business, Moore Transport not only has hired and trained new drivers, but also has attracted seasoned drivers from other companies.
“Since I was hired about two years ago, our company fleet has grown from about 50 trucks to more than 160,†said Treasure Phillippi, safety supervisor at Moore Transport. Moore has attracted drivers by offering late model Peterbilt trucks to drive. Perspective drivers have also been impressed by the company’s commitment to get them home on weekends so they can enjoy more personal and family time.
But after the Recession ended, Phillippi said drivers began voicing concerns about the loss of off-duty time on the weekends as it became increasingly difficult for them to get home on Fridays. Increasing traffic at the ports and more congestion and longer delays for trucks entering and exiting nearby weigh stations all contributed to putting Moore Transport drivers further and further behind during the work week.
Phillippi knew the company had to address the problem when she learned in 2015 recent exit surveys conducted by HR found one out of every five drivers who left did so because the company couldn’t live up to its goal of preserving their weekend off-duty time. Drivers, whose previous employers had offered it, suggested weigh station bypass as one possible solution.
Phillippi looked into weigh station bypass, but found based on the company’s experience with transponder-based tolling systems, transponder-based weigh station bypass might not work for her company’s operation. The signal from the transponder can be blocked when cars are stacked over it on the company’s Delavan and Cottrell trailers, she explained.
Drivewyze Technology Makes Weigh Station Bypass Possible for Auto Hauler
Phillippi conducted a cost/benefit analysis of the bypass services available through EZ Pass and Drivewyze. She also compared the benefits each service offered and determined that Drivewyze provided more benefits. The biggest benefit – Drivewyze worked using cellular transmissions, which wouldn’t be blocked by the cars the hauler transported.
“Since we activated Drivewyze late last year (2015), it has offered us even more bypass opportunities,†Phillippi said. “As Drivewyze expands its service it has enabled us to receive an even greater number of bypasses.â€
The Benefits
Phillippi said Drivewyze quickly proved its worth to the company’s managers and owner when the fuel and operational savings Drivewyze generated in the first three months of 2016 more than paid for the cost of the service for the rest of the year. According to a Drivewyze-generated report, the weigh station bypass service, which was activated on 123 of the company’s fleet of 165 trucks, provided 6,281 bypasses out of 6,717 requested from Jan. 1 to May 5, 2016. That’s a bypass rate of nearly 94 percent. The 6,281 bypasses avoided about 379 hours in weigh station delays and the burning of more than 2,512 gallons of fuel to get the trucks back up to highway speed. The bypasses saved the company more than $58,000 in operating costs and lost productivity, nearly a 3,600 percent return on the cost of Drivewyze service.
“Besides the number of bypasses our drivers get each month, the most surprising thing about Drivewyze service is just how easy it is for our drivers to use,†Phillippi said. “And that’s a good thing because while our drivers are good at driving trucks, they can be technologically challenged, especially our older generation drivers.â€
Drivers who are utilizing Drivewyze have noted the ability to be able to load cars for delivery for the following day before their hours of service expire. It has also eliminated the need for drivers to work into the evenings on Fridays or on Saturday mornings as nearly as often.
“I highly recommend Drivewyze weigh station bypass service because it not only saves the company money, but also it’s a great marketing tool for driver recruitment,†Phillippi said. “Equally as important, it’s a great incentive for drivers to help the company maintain a high safety rating. The better the company’s safety rating, the more bypasses they get and the more work they can get done.â€
