Driving on Ice

gdoggy

Member
what company rules and dot laws apply to feeder driving on ice,and whether you proceed on ice or not.I am told you can be fired for a wreck on ice as if it were on dry
pavement.Does the driver determine whether it is safe to proceed once he is out there or does the company decide.I only want to know the applicable company rules and applicable d o t laws
regarding this matter.
 
There`s no DOT laws just the laws of common sense. If a road is not safe to travel on to the extent you`re thinking odds are the authoritys would have closed it before you`d have to make the choice. It varies by region obviously. Stuff us flatlanders can drive slowly on will send anyone with hills into a pile at the bottom.

Why are you asking?
 

raceanoncr

Well-Known Member
When you're out there, you're "the Captain of the ship". (How's that for an old cliche?) YOU decide what is safe for you. Sure, you're gonna have the company tell you to keep going, well, in most cases anyway. But, YES, you CAN get fired for crashing on ice. They'll always come back with "Driving too fast for conditions".

AND, don't let other drivers intimidate you. Here, again, I say, HERE, we've had hot shots deride another for not keeping up with them in adverse conditions. Don't let em do it. YOU drive at your own pace, your own safe speed and stop if you have to. You'll never get fired for being safe.
 

dannyboy

From the promised LAND
The posts above are right on. You and only you are responsible for the safe operation of your vehicle. The company might send you out, but you must use your skills and knowledge to operate your vehicle without getting into trouble. And in some cases, that means not getting off the main drag.

Ice, true ice, is almost impossible to drive on. A few weeks ago, we came through Atlanta on Monday after that storm they had. We were on the interstate. Several 18 wheelers had tried to make it through a small dip and rise in the road, only to slide back down, and blocked the road. We got a good show when the tractor beside of us tried to move on level ground, and all he could do was slide and spin. You are better off not trying to deal with ice on its own. If it has a covering of snow, or has a rough texture, it is somewhat better. But still dangerous.

So while there are not laws on the subject, you need to focus, and avoid places where you might be able to enter, but not be able to leave. And as Cach posted, hills and mountain areas pose their own problems.

And the biggest threat is not so much the ice, as it is the other drivers on the ice. They are actually the biggest problem you will encounter. So drive defensively.

Hope this helps some.

d
 

rod

Retired 22 years
Watch out for that warm ice (ice at 32 degrees and begining to melt). Its the slickest ice of all
 

rod

Retired 22 years
You live in the land of 10,000 lakes. Any drivers ever take a short cut over a frozen lake in a pkg car?

In all honesty the only time in 30 years that I heard of someone taking a short cut across a frozen lake in a UPS vehical was when a driver sup did it. He was so proud of the miles he saved. The rest of us just thought "where was the thin ice when you needed it'? I grew up driving my own truck on the ice but never once though about venturing out on it with my package car-------(well I thought about it but that was as far as it went)
 

wannabeups

Well-Known Member
This has been a few years back. There was a driver from IBC (a bread company) that was sent out on a run and he pulled over and didn't make his run. The company fired him, reason being another driver made it. He sued the company and won a boat load of money. The judge or jury concluded that EACH drivers skills are different and the determination is up to the individual driver.

I think there is somewhere in the D.O.T. rules that states it is up to the individual driver whether or not he wants to proceed during adverse conditions
 

Covemastah

Hoopah drives the boat Chief !!
Race is correct on this one,they will always find a seeing habit to hang you !! Take your time get from point A to B as safe as you can !! It took me 4 hrs to do an hour and a half ride in a white out last month and they didn't say a word to me !! We have gotten hammered this wintah in New England and most storms started at night !! just go slow!!!!
 
Race is correct on this one,they will always find a seeing habit to hang you !! Take your time get from point A to B as safe as you can !! It took me 4 hrs to do an hour and a half ride in a white out last month and they didn't say a word to me !! We have gotten hammered this wintah in New England and most storms started at night !! just go slow!!!!
You guys have balls of steel driving those big trucks in those conditions.
 
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