Has anyone else notice the trucks dumping their sewage in the parking lots of the rest areas. I witnessed this at a rest area on I-10 in Fla about 2 pm. He dumped it, jumped into the cab and took off. I informed the security people working at the desk, gave them the truck numbers/company. Don't know if anything was ever done about it, probably not. There was a dump station at the end of the lot too. Here in the Southeastern US I have noticed a sewer-age smell in the Truck/RV parking areas of the Rest Areas especially in the HOT summer months. I've also noticed small piles of old toilet paper packed on the asphalt. It never crossed my mind what was happening untill I saw the trucker dumping his holding tank. This practice is disgusting and un healthy. I am concerned that the RV community will get the blame for this. For those of you who are not aware, most of the trucks out there have toilets just like RV's. If you see this get the truck information and report them.
That is disgusting.Don't worry I'll report them.Thanks for caring enough to post what you saw. :angry:
I am a retired truck drive of some 30 years and I have never seen a truck with toilet facilities. I agree that there are some piggy truck drivers out there that leave bottles of urine laying around and throw all kinds of gross stuff out their windows but I never seen one with a holding tank. Where on earth did you ever get the idea that most trucks have toilets in them?????
I tend to think Big Ben is correct in that I doubt that large trucks have toilet facilities. Think about how many times you have stopped at a rest stop and have seen truck drivers going inside to use the toilet facilities. It doesn't make much sense. Those of us in RVs need to cultivate the respect and friendship of 18-wheelers, not do things to alienate them.
I hate to say this but a lot of new trucks have toilets now. I have found drives at the Flying-J dumping the small tanks. I think most truck drivers are good people and I have never found one yet who dumped a tank on the ground. I have saw all types of junk come out the window of trucks, food items, drink cans, etc. You will only see toilets on the new trucks and ones with large sleeping cabs.
I can see truck manufacturers installing toilets in there larger units. Some of the new high end trucks out today have a ton of room. Kind of like a mini RV. They should still be required to use a dump station though. A few years ago I heard that Fl had a problem with urine filled bottles being thrown onto the highway medians. Then the they would explode when the lawn mowers hit them. :angry:
Well, all PC aside, I have been RVing fulltime for 3 years and frankly I have seen a deterioration of truckers attitides in those three years that has been rather dramatic. My attitude is to remember these folks do this for a living and I am lucky to be at leisure. I treat every trucker with deference and courtesy, but increasingly I find I am not treated the same. I have not only experienced discourteous attitudes, but downright hostility for no reason except I am driving a motorhome. I have pulled into a rest stop to witness a trucker standing on the outside of his truck with his pants down taking a whizz ... not a pretty sight mind you. There are all kinds that make up this world... good and bad and that includes truckers. Nothing surprises me anymore. I am not responsible for their behavior regardless of how they act toward me, but I will continue to uphold my end and treat them with courtesy. But I am not surprised, that they represent a part of the population who thinks they do not have to be concerned with dumping their garbage all over the place, just as everyone else who litters does. RVer's are also represented in this group. How many times have you stepped in dog poop that some RV dog owner doesn't feel like picking up??? So let's report any abuse like this we see, so they can be punished regardless of who they are.
QUOTE(travlinrose @ Apr 8 2005, 01:15 PM) Well, all PC aside, I have been RVing fulltime for 3 years and frankly I have seen a deterioration of truckers attitides in those three years that has been rather dramatic. So let's report any abuse like this we see, so they can be punished regardless of who they are. truck drivers used to be called 'Knights of the road', but now ? I can't repeat on a family web site. I have truckers force me off the road if they thought I was trying to cut them off when all I really was doing was trying to merge, I've had them tailgating me, flipping me off, blowing their horn if they think I'm not going fast enough or there's nowhere to pull over safely. Truckers on the west coast routinely blow by me at 80+mph. They're rude, they're not the same high class people that we used to know as truck drivers. And as I deal professionally with truckers everyday, I know that their business ethics leave much to be desired. Buit that's another subject for another day.
My FIL has been a trucker for a number of years and I can assure you he doesn't have toilet facilities in his rig, and I can also tell you he is the most courteous and cautious driver you'll ever meet. It's too bad that truckers have gotten such a bad name, but please remember they're not all bad apples--still a few who care about their job and obey the laws.
QUOTE(skippy102162 @ May 7 2005, 04:55 PM) My FIL has been a trucker for a number of years and I can assure you he doesn't have toilet facilities in his rig, and I can also tell you he is the most courteous and cautious driver you'll ever meet. It's too bad that truckers have gotten such a bad name, but please remember they're not all bad apples--still a few who care about their job and obey the laws. my step dad is a truck driver, long haul. He is one of the cautious, courteous drivers behind the wheel of a truck. You're right, classing them all together isn't fair to the few who are good drivers and good people.
I think that there are both good and bad truckers. I had two truckers try to hit me because I passed one of them and for some unknown reason it pissed him off. They got me on either side and wedged me in. Fortunately I was able to put the petal to the metal and get past them before we were hurt. Perhaps it was the Texas heat creating road rage. My husband was with me and as confused as I was as to what I did to piss them off :unsure:
From the information that I have gathered there are no big rigs that come with a toilet as a buy off the floor standard. A representative of a company that manufactures big rigs told me though if a client would want space to put a porta-toilet, they could customize the sleeper area in order for a small one to fit. He has only come across 2 people who have ever wanted this done and it was actually for use for the truckers' wives and children who at times would travel with them and would need more potty stops than their schedules allowed and it was convenient, but from what I was told these are your standard Coleman-type porta-toilets that you actually have to remove the entire toilet and dump manually. They're not hooked up to any pipes or anything that would allow them to drain from the truck. Concerning truck drivers and their attitudes in general, having a career that keeps me on the highway constantly, I can honestly say, I have met up with more rude drivers of cars and SUV's then I have ever encountered with truck drivers. And, the few times where I have run into problems on the road, i.e., car trouble, it has always been a truck driver who would stop and help me out while other cars would be whizzing by.
There is a reason that the trucker is not the same as years past. When I drove a rig the company had very strict rules. When you filled out the application for the job, they could tell by your answers whether or not you were their kind of driver, and we all wore uniforms and were very proud of our professions. Today? Most companies couldn't care less what kind of character you are. If you have the licenses, they will hire any sleazy lard ass that will sit behind the wheel and make a profit for them. Don't try to distinguish the good from the bad. Most are sleazes. Always err on the side of caution.
I used to work for CF years ago, but now run a warehouse. A great many of the 'Express' companies that team freight have installed what amounts to a small RV in the sleeper. I have seen this equipment. A typical unit consists of a bunk and equipment (frig, stove and toilet) that you would find in the larger Coleman popup units. These rigs only stop for fuel otherwise they keep moving. Roadway, Yellow, ABF, etc do not have this equipment nor have I see it in Bowman, Swift etc rigs. Phil
My brother and SIL drive an over the road truck and they do have a porta potty in the cab. You probably have witnessed them flicking their cigarette butts out the window. They were flicking them all over my driveway during a holiday party when I handed my brother a flashlight and told him to start picking them up. I think he was shocked at me but no one on my street smokes and I told him how low class they were to trash up my yard and street. So even though he is family I won't defend him. There are all kinds at there, hopefully there are more nice ones than not.
