Emergency Conditions

[Packmule]

So, I finally gave up trying to get my management team to either obtain contact information or RTS a pair of packages to a house with a very bad road and nearly no turnaround. Had nightmares last night after the near-death of my career experience I had sanding ice, chaining up and trying to get the truck back onto the road and stay off the telephone pole. Needless to say, I a bit angry right now.
Don't we post card people like this anymore, and if so, what happens if we just cannot get contact info, and it is absolutely a don't-go-there situation?

 

[Notretiredyet]

Just EC it till driveway is safe to use, we took the service out of UPS a few years back.

 

[Orthello]

I am right there with you. Had 46 resi after 6 last night in an area with other drivers EC all the time. I took the courtesy to call the center. Oh no.. You have to at least try. Mngt was going to send me help, but I told them no place for 2 UPS trucks to be. All my manager did call around 740 and told me to EC the rest. In all my 27 years I thought I was going to slide into cars parked on both sides. I had more work this week then all of Christmas. Safety first. Not when the$$$ is in the picture. I am so tired of lack of direction!!! Hang in there.

 

[Packmule]

I did get these delivered. No one home, so I wrote a note on package in BIG letters that they need to contact us with info for future deliveries. If I don't see something in the notes next time, I'll will not deliver ever. Summer or winter. One vehicle or piece of equipment, and there is no turning around in this hell hole! People are so stupid when building houses in these places!

 

[browniehound]

Here we are told if you don't think you can't get out E.C. it. I guess that's fine (I guess?) for most houses that can be delivered the next day, except I have this one house that is 1 mile off the road and will be impossible to get in and safely out of there until May. 2 years ago I went down there in early April and got stuck. I had to be towed out. No snow anywhere else in the continental US and I get stuck. This particular spot gets absolutely no sun and there was still some ice in the dirt turnaround. Needless to say my tires spun half the truck off the ice and the back wheel got buried in the mud. I tried everything for 30 minutes to get out.

This was the most embarrassing phone call I have ever made in my life and the OMS had to ask twice if I really said I was stuck. It was almost 70 degrees when this happened. So, I call this person now and he is more than happy to meet me on the main road to get his parcel. My point is, I think EC is ok for 1 day but if you want to do it on day 2 you should call the number on the package to ask him to meet you half way.

I understand we don't have time to call people like this, but its the only way these packages are going to go away.

 

[Catatonic]

Here we are told if you don't think you can't get out E.C. it. I guess that's fine (I guess?) for most houses that can be delivered the next day, except I have this one house that is 1 mile off the road and will be impossible to get in and safely out of there until May. 2 years ago I went down there in early April and got stuck. I had to be towed out. No snow anywhere else in the continental US and I get stuck. This particular spot gets absolutely no sun and there was still some ice in the dirt turnaround. Needless to say my tires spun half the truck off the ice and the back wheel got buried in the mud. I tried everything for 30 minutes to get out.

This was the most embarrassing phone call I have ever made in my life and the OMS had to ask twice if I really said I was stuck. It was almost 70 degrees when this happened. So, I call this person now and he is more than happy to meet me on the main road to get his parcel. My point is, I think EC is ok for 1 day but if you want to do it on day 2 you should call the number on the package to ask him to meet you half way.

I understand we don't have time to call people like this, but its the only way these packages are going to go away.

The biggest obstacle to doing what you suggest is that you (drivers) get paid way too much to tie yourself up doing this.
Probably better to postcard and have an alternate delivery point IDed and redirect package.

 

[barnyard]

Our center wants to know about driveways that are a guaranteed stuck. In the cases that I am aware of, they have talked the homeowners into either putting a box at the end of their driveways for delivery or arranged to have all deliveries AC'd to a work address during the winter. Sometimes, it is on the route holder to talk to the addressee about it, most of the time though, a manager gets involved, especially if they are reluctant to put a box or tub at the end of their driveway.

All you have to do is ask how much total cost is a stuck car. It is significant. There is the tow, the phone time for everyone involved, inspection (any car that is towed, has to be inspected by mechanics) and more. When you look at the margins on a package, unless a person is getting 100's of NDA every day, there is no profit in getting stuck.

 

[barnyard]

Our center covers a very suburban area. Lots of McMansions with people that have no idea how to plow snow off a driveway. Many think, "I have 4wd, I do not have to plow, I'll just drive in and out and few times and it will be fine."

Those are the driveways I do not attempt.

 

[nocturnalbuck]

just ec'd first 3 stops all winter yest. freezing rain ALL DAY til 4. then near white out conditions at 5. spun out 90° on main county rd once. slid past many stops. ended with 93 stops and 263 mi. the 3 ec's saved me 20mi too! not fun

 

[3 done 3 to go]

just ec'd first 3 stops all winter yest. freezing rain ALL DAY til 4. then near white out conditions at 5. spun out 90° on main county rd once. slid past many stops. ended with 93 stops and 263 mi. the 3 ec's saved me 20mi too! not fun

I have an area very much like yours. I probably hang 20-25 bags to trees in driveways. The people don't complain. They are just happy to get the package. If too big. I spend the nice weather months gathering phone numbers. For the customer to come meet me or to let them know where their box was left

 

[barnyard]

I probably hang 20-25 bags to trees in driveways. The people don't complain. They are just happy to get the package.

I do that too.

My fave is on garbage day, if their can is empty, I'll roll it to the middle of the driveway, 30-50 feet off the road and leave the package on the house side of the garbage can. The can is blocking the driveway, so they cannot get in or leave till they move the can. I have a couple of people that leave their cans up by the road all the time now and prefer that I DR that way. They know there is something there, without even having to look. Win, win.

 

[3 done 3 to go]

I do that too.

My fave is on garbage day, if their can is empty, I'll roll it to the middle of the driveway, 30-50 feet off the road and leave the package on the house side of the garbage can. The can is blocking the driveway, so they cannot get in or leave till they move the can. I have a couple of people that leave their cans up by the road all the time now and prefer that I DR that way. They know there is something there, without even having to look. Win, win.

I used to do that too till the garbage man took a package. Then I started hanging trees

 

[browniehound]

The biggest obstacle to doing what you suggest is that you (drivers) get paid way too much to tie yourself up doing this.
Probably better to postcard and have an alternate delivery point IDed and redirect package.

I agree 100%. I was just suggesting an alternative to sheeting EC because our ignorant customers don't understand how the weather affects the supply chain. Obviously we as drivers can't do what I suggested in my prior post for more than a couple of deliveries, but we can't just EC everything because of some snow either. It will just create many customer concerns that you don't want the center manager to see everyday.

If the company wants to stand by its service standard then they will have to allow us drivers to take long walks to delivery points instead of EC's and live the over allowed time this will produce. Its a no-win situation for UPS when it comes to the weather, but its this way for everyone else and has been for the length of human history. You can't control the weather even if our customers think we can.

 

[cosmo1]

I agree 100%. .....Obviously we as drivers can't do what I suggested in my prior post for more than a couple of deliveries, but we can't just EC everything because of some snow either.....

I don't know.

My last route had a lot of Amish farms with long lanes. They wouldn't plow until necessary (the milk truck coming in for a pick-up). Once I explained that to my center manager, he was cool with me holding them as long as I had to.

 

[Anonymous 10]

Good thread. How do you five star a thread now days.

 

[jumpman23]

If its real icy out everywhere including the highways and its going to be below freezing after dark, i will deliver til 415 or so and be back to center by dark. I will ecd the rest when i get in. If they have a problem with it oh well tough luck. My life and safety is way more important. I dont play that game, just not worth it and its dangerous and not safe as i already live 45 to 50 min from work anyway.

 

[Brownslave688]

I don't know.

My last route had a lot of Amish farms with long lanes. They wouldn't plow until necessary (the milk truck coming in for a pick-up). Once I explained that to my center manager, he was cool with me holding them as long as I had to.

I thought this is what dr bags were for. Bag it and leave at the end of drive.

 

[PT Car Washer]

Done that before. Either hanging from the gate or from a tree branch.

 

[cosmo1]

I thought this is what dr bags were for. Bag it and leave at the end of drive.

They didn't come out every day.

 

[PT Car Washer]

And so does that mean they did not pick up their J C Penny socks or T shirts that day. Ever been in an Amish community? They are out everyday. Have to take care of the livestock before school. Even when it is 20 below zero.