The Demise of the Trucker’s Lifestyle

First of all please note that this isnt my own work, but i was so impressed with it i thought i had better share it, as truckers it affects us all ......................

By Timothy D. Brady
Aug 8, 2007 1:59 PM

The lifestyle of a trucker has changed significantly over the past 30 years. Back in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, the life of a trucker consisted of hours of driving broken up with time spent in the truckstop.

Truckstops were the centers of the truckers’ business and social network, the place where the communication of logistics took place. Drivers would contact dispatch through the banks of pay phones lining the driver’s lounge. Other drivers, mostly owner-operators, would watch the load board screen for the next load; or be waiting for a return call from dispatch, or hanging loose ’til time to head down the road. In this environment, the restaurant and driver’s lounge were the centers of an over-the-road trucker’s business and social life. This is where business contacts were made, stories told, the scuttlebutt of the industry was shared and friendships developed.

Fast forward to 2007. Today many of the business and social networking opportunities have all but disappeared from truckers’ lives. Truckers have lost the time to interact with other drivers in the social atmosphere that used to exist in the industry. With the use of satellite text messaging, cell phones, refrigerators and microwaves in their trucks, along with the disappearance of the sit-down home-style cooking restaurant and driver’s lounges, the chance for drivers to socialize is quickly disappearing. This is creating an environment of even greater isolation for truckers. Figure in the shippers’ expectations of ever-faster deliveries plus the constantly changing HOS rules, and truckers have real time-management problems.

Humans by nature are social beings. Family and friendships are at the top of our lists. If we can’t have family time or be around friends, we will search out some place to be around other people, even if they’re strangers. How many truckers, while they may have food in the truck’s refrigerator, will opt to eat in a restaurant just so they can be around other people?
At first glance, current studies of human social and business interactions are apparently unrelated to trucking. But look closely at the studies’ findings. There is significant: research that shows longer commutes by workers cause greater isolation and longer periods of stress from dealing with traffic, resulting in negative societal, mental and health problems.

Georgia Tech researchers discovered a direct correlation between longer commute times and obesity. In the study they found every thirty minutes of a commute increased one’s likelihood of becoming obese by 3%. Do you know any truckers who are overweight?
Longer commutes have also been linked with greater occurrences of high blood pressure, ulcers, strokes and heart attacks. Do you know any CDL holders who have any of these symptoms or have had a heart attack or stroke?

Combine the Georgia Tech findings with Harvard political science professor Robert Putnam’s observation in his book, Bowling Alone, that every 10 minutes of commuting results in a 10% reduction in social connections. Even first year psychology students know the more isolation an individual endures, the less happy or even depressed he becomes. If this happens to commuters for every ten minutes of isolation while they’re driving, what are the effects on truckers who are isolated for days and weeks at a time? Add to this the HOS 14-hour rule which causes many truckers to forego a sit-down meal and eat on the run, trying not to lose any needed hours to complete both driving and delivery requirements (including waiting several hours to be loaded or unloaded).

This eventually will wear down even the best of truckers, creating the likelihood that they will become unhappy or depressed, adding to the already evident heath risks.
Other risks that can develop when human beings are isolated from positive social contact with others are: apathy, anger and the inability to have constructive interaction with others. This all can lead to many other anti-social behaviors that would make truckers experiencing this to be safety hazards on the road. Extreme examples would be road rage or worse. Remember a few months ago when a trucker drove through a neighborhood with his tractor running over yards and automobiles in driveways near Albuquerque? Could this have been the result of isolation along with other possible contributing factors?

According to Dr. Sheryl Youngblood, an industrial psychologist and trucking expert, “A strong social network is required to help reduce stress. It is absolutely necessary people have daily conversations with peers, family and friends in order to maintain a social equilibrium. It’s these social interactions which help keep our anger from going out of control.”
According to other research on the effects of isolation on human beings, continued and consistent isolation can lead to alcohol and controlled substances abuse for at-risk individuals, leading to more health and safety concerns for truckers.

In my research of the studies DOT and FMCSA have done concerning truckers, I have not found a single study on the effects of isolation on over-the-road truckers.
Fatigue is an important consideration when looking at HOS reform, but shouldn’t isolation also be considered when developing the Hour-of-Service rules truckers must obey? Is it possible this increased isolation could also be a major contributor to the driver turnover problem?
Something to think about.