8/29/19

Newest addition to our tow fleet - A & T Road Service

The newest addition to our tow fleet is truck number 32. This is a 2014 Kenworth with a Cummins 500 hp engine and 18-speed transmission. The working end of this mighty tow vehicle is the NRC Quickswap unit with tag axle. This unique design will allow us to tow almost anything on the road. We can now lift up to 20,000 lb steering axle trucks, and also buses and large RV units. The long wheelbase and the tag axle combine to allow us to tow a wide variety of units.
In addition, this truck is well suited for short and long haul jobs. With the sleeper unit, we can tow across the country if needed, or for local jobs the sleeper will accommodate extra passengers. The unit is equipped with state of the art LED lighting to light up the are needed in the night, as well as tool, equipment and parts storage to take care of small repairs, DEF issues and much more.

8/26/19

Ten Keys to Safe City Driving


Ten Keys to Safe City Driving is brought to you by http://bigcitydriver.com. Written and narrated by Ken Skaggs. 

8/23/19

5 Benefits of Having a Truck Optimized GPS on Your Phone


If you are a trucker working hard day and night, it is essential to choose a truck optimized GPS as your navigation tool while getting behind on wheels. The fastest routes navigated by the standard GPS may cause you ending with more time and money unpredictably.

Here is the list of benefits to get a GPS navigation tool that are specially designed for truckers.

  • · To Avoid Low Clearance Or Truck-Restriction Routes
  • By using the GPS tool that is intended and designed only for truckers, it certainly helps you to avoid the non-friendly truck routes, low clearance or low bridges that could crash your truck trailer.
  • · Save Money On Fuel
  • NO more feeling headaches of searching for the best deal on fuel. There are bundle of GPS navigation tool provides you the up-to-date and accurate diesel price of nearby fuel stations.
  • · Delivery Freights on Time.

The truck specified GPS tool helps you to prevent the traffic congestions. You can plan the route to an unfamiliar destination in advance according to the live weather and traffic conditions provided.

· Save Time
No doubt, you can save your precious time in searching for the nearby Truck POI locations with the truck optimize GPS. Knowing in advance where to pull over your truck, it is definitely beneficial for you.

· Convenience
Within the GPS system, you can easily find the nearby Walmart stores with truck parking, scales, truck washes, hotels and restaurants nearby. It is the most convenience way to find places to fill your stomach and take a nap or relax your mind.

The Truckbubba app is the best companion app for truck drivers in North America. This app is integrated with several different mobile app assistants such as Truck Weigh Station App, Diesel Fuel Locator App, Truck Route Planner, Speedometer, Weather Forecast, etc.

Speedometer feature is a speed limit alert that allows you to adjust the speed limit for highways and cities respectively with no speeding violation.It will automatically warn you with vivid yellow or red value if your truck is over speeding.

Truckbubba app — Truck optimized GPS with speed limit alert is the best matching solution to ensure the safety of the truckers on the road.

Learn more at: www.truckbubba.com


8/20/19

Mighty Machines Giant Tow Trucks


Mighty Machines focuses on footage of real machines (firetrucks, airplanes, freight trains, snow plows) working. Voiceovers tell the story of how the machines work together to get work done.

8/17/19

“Managing” can minimize downtime: Why trucks experience unscheduled downtime and addressing remedies

Unexpected out-of-service events, especially when they happen on the road, are always expensive—too expensive to be dismissed as being inevitable. Yet many fleets, in their busy day-to-day operations, too often fail to address how the road breakdowns that they do experience might be avoided in the future.

Dick Hyatt, president of Decisiv Inc., a provider of service relationship management software that can help minimize unscheduled downtime, said, “The traditional costs of commercial vehicle maintenance are measured in hard dollars, but while the trucking industry focuses on cost pressures and other challenges, many completely out of their control, fleets still ignore the fundamental business impacts associated with days out-of-service for service and repair events. This fundamental flaw misses the impact that this has on revenue, customer and driver retention and net profit.”

Ryder System Inc. is one fleet that has not fallen victim to neglecting the financial problems associated with unscheduled downtime. While it’s a call no one ever wants to get, Ryder’s management knows if it happens, getting a disabled truck back on the road as quickly and safely as possible is vital. The company also understands it’s important to determine exactly what caused the problem so procedures can be developed to minimize or eliminate such problems in the future.

According to Ryder, heavy-duty trucks often experience at least one emergency breakdown annually. Not only are such events disruptive, compromising delivery schedules, customer commitments and product safety; they also can be dangerous. Idle vehicles and their drivers waiting for assistance are exposed to the dangers of drivers who are distracted or traveling at high speeds.

Prevention via PMs

Based on experience with its more than 2,000 assets, Ryder found that the most frequent reasons for road breakdowns are tires, electrical system problems, brake issues and running out of fuel. It also found that regularly scheduled, thorough preventive maintenance (PM) routines can help pre-empt many such problems before they cause emergency situations.


Melvin Kirk, vice president of maintenance and quality operations at Ryder, said, “Traditionally, when a vehicle came in, we would execute the activities that were mandated by federal or state regulations or by our customer’s requirements. We now have intensified our focus around what we have started calling the perfect PM. This is essentially taking advantage of the opportunity, during each preventive maintenance routine, to execute all of the maintenance activities that might be required at that time.

“The objective of such activity is to ensure that the vehicle will run from that event to the next scheduled PM without any break in service. That means we execute everything from existing campaigns to any necessary repairs—doing more of a diagnostic evaluation of the vehicle at the time of the scheduled PM in order to prevent any unscheduled event midstream.”

Efficiency is important

Ryder looks upon a PM as an opportunity to improve the overall health of a vehicle. During time studies done in its shops, the company found that a maintenance technician, left only with his experience and a PM sheet, could walk as much as 4 mi. while working on a single vehicle.


“To correct this,” Kirk said, “we establish the most efficient flow around the vehicle to minimize all of that walk time. We now also have the parts readily available that will be needed for the scheduled routine based on historical PM data. For example, any filters that will be needed will be right at hand. As a result, our technicians can more efficiently execute a PM from a quality and a speed standpoint. That is one of the most significant advances we’ve made over the last two or three years in our maintenance routines. We’ve taken time and distance out of the exercise and improved the quality of it.”

As indicated above, Ryder data indicate that tire problems are the most frequent cause of on-the-road breakdowns. This is particularly true during the summer months. Kirk said, “We find tires represent a very important part for maintenance uptime; so in our PM routine we stress an evaluation of the health of tires.”

The fleet’s maintenance technicians will do everything from rotating to changing out tires during preventive maintenance events to minimize the chance of having any issues before the next scheduled PM from the tires or wheels. The entire wheel system is evaluated every time they see a vehicle. They record the wear on each individual tire on the vehicle and have protocols in place requiring the position of the tires be changed if there is an excessive variance between two side-by-side tires. They also look at the wear patterns of the tires all around, which could result in changing a tire or rotating it across the vehicle. Kirk said, “In our preventive maintenance routine, we also do laser measurements to ensure we have correct wheel alignment.”

Ryder Heavy Duty Truck Fleet program
Ryder is good, but no one is perfect, so if a vehicle fails on the road the fleet has established breakdown analysis teams in each one of its shops with specified roles in each one of our shops that are responsible for determining exactly what led to the problem.
Service island activity

Once a truck crosses the threshold of a Ryder facility, the first place it’s going to go is to a service island. At that island there will be a service attendant who will initiate the fueling of the vehicle. He or she will also do a prescribed inspection around the vehicle that will include lights, tires, windshield along with a visual inspection of the undercarriage etc. Kirk said, “We maintain a 12- to 17-point inspection depending on the vehicle type that comes into the service island. Every time you cross the threshold of a Ryder facility, we are going to inspect that vehicle as if we were evaluating it from the DOT standpoint, as well as a maintenance health standpoint.”

Although drivers are required to do pre- and post-trip inspections of their vehicles, Ryder does not make the assumption that either of those has been done as completely as possible nor does the company make the assumption that when a vehicle enters a Ryder facility that there hasn’t been some issue develop since its last inspection. Kirk said, “Such a policy allows us to catch many issues, for example, small fuel leakage or a light that might be out, which could draw attention during a DOT inspection standpoint or, more importantly, from a maintenance standpoint.”

Breakdown analysis and warranty

Ryder is good, but no one is perfect, so if a vehicle fails on the road the fleet has established breakdown analysis teams in each one of its shops with specified roles in each one of our shops that are responsible for determining exactly what led to the problem. Such a program has proved to be an effective method of improving the fleet’s PM and fueling station inspection programs.

Although it was not established to be so, the breakdown analysis program has also been an important contributor to effective warranty management for the fleet. Kirk said, “It forces the team to go back through the information about the event and make a forensic analysis of what happened. Was the failure related to activities we did or should have done during our PM or was it the result of a premature failure of a part? Was it possibly an engineering related issue of the vehicle itself? Once they do that, we have a fairly robust understanding of the cause of the event and if it was related to the failure of a component, which would allow us to make a warranty claim. We also share that analysis with the rest of our team members to help shorten the time required to analyze a future event.

Technology can help

Many of its customers use telematics to provide management data related to hours of service and operational safety. Ryder has taken a further step and is accessing information from the engine’s ECM via telematics on the condition of the engine itself. Kirk said, “Using this information we can alert the customer to any impending problems with the vehicle. We plan on building up, over time, more and more data that will help us better understand the on-road health of our vehicles.”

Another technology that offers fleets the possibility of addressing the causes of vehicle down time is offered by the use of service relationship management (SRM) software to measure and manage the causes, both internal and external, of service and repair events to improve vehicle uptime and availability. Decisiv Inc., a supplier of such software, has found that formal attention of vehicle’s days out of service can significantly influence a fleet’s bottom line.

Some conclusions, based on a recent survey of nine fleets attending the company’s maintenance summit, are of particular interest. These fleets averaged:

• 277 tractors;

• 9,538 revenue miles per truck per month;

• $20,695 in revenue per month ($2.17 per mile);

• 1.51 service events per month; and

• 3.19 days out of service (DOS) per month.

Using average industry financial data, Decisiv calculated that, were these fleets able to reduce days out of service by just 25%, they would achieve a monthly increase of $1,123 in revenue per tractor, a 5.5% increase in asset utilization, an increase of $685 in variable operating expense (due to increased truck utilization) and an increase of $438, or 45%, in net profit per truck. Note these are monthly figures! According to Decisiv, the use of its service relationship management software can achieve these improvements.

Unscheduled downtime can significantly deteriorate a fleet’s profits. Attention to the reasons why trucks experience time out of service and subsequent attention to eliminating those reasons can help increase a fleet’s bottom line.

Source: http://www.fleetequipmentmag.com/verizon-telematics-eld-ready-bundles/


8/14/19

FUEL SAVING TIPS FOR TRUCKS: REDUCE IDLING, SAVE ON GAS

STUDY PROVES TURNING YOUR VEHICLE OFF MINIMIZES BOTH FUEL CONSUMPTION AND CO2 EMISSIONS.

You may have heard that it takes more fuel to turn your vehicle off and back on again than it does to stay idling when stopped. One fast food chain even made a claim that it was “Greener” to use the drive-through than parking and walking in for a to-go order. With fuel costs and anti-idling laws being an essential consideration for vehicle owners and fleet managers, it’s important to know the facts.

The fact is that even for short stops, it saves fuel to turn off your vehicle. Idling for even 10 seconds produces more CO2 emissions and burns more fuel than simply turning your engine off, and restarting. This was found by a study done by Argonne National Laboratory, and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Program.

IDLING STUDY RESULTS
Engineers were tasked to study vehicles in the Argonne laboratory’s Advanced Powertrain Research Facility to determine the impacts of idling and restarting. Dynamometer tests were conducted at the facility and revealed that parking a vehicle, turning it off, and then restarting it uses less fuel and produces less CO2 than idling for just 10 seconds. In addition, the study also revealed that the fastest way to warm up a car engine is to drive the vehicle, not by idling it. Argonne found that depending on the vehicle’s size, 0.2 to 0.5 gallons of fuel per hour is used when idling.

EMBRACE ANTI-IDLING LAWS
With these findings, and as states, provinces, and countries continue to introduce climate change action plans and green initiatives focused on greenhouse gas emissions, now is the perfect time to start embracing an anti-idle mindset in day-to-day driving and work operations. And for those that use air compressors, the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor integrates perfectly into environmentally-friendly and fuel-conscious operations.

UNDERHOOD70-GREEN SERIES AIR COMPRESSOR
The VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor produces up to 70 CFM at 100% duty cycle. This powerful rotary screw air compressor is installed under the hood of the work truck and its throttle control automatically adjusts truck engine idle speed just enough to match air demand, which reduces fuel consumption. What’s more, the easy-to-use VMAC intelligent digital controls also cut down on idling, as the control system shuts the truck off when air isn’t being used, and then automatically turns the truck back on when air is needed. This reduces fuel consumption and emissions as the vehicle is not idling when tools are not in use. Learn more about the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor.

VEHICLE IDLING STUDY CONCLUSION
Going back to the fast food chain’s claim, no, it is not greener to use the drive-through than it is to park and pick up your order inside the restaurant. Here are the facts:

  • Idling for more than 10 seconds burns more fuel, and produces more C02 emissions than turning the engine on and off
  • Idling for an hour uses 0.2 to 0.5 gallons of fuel, depending on the vehicle, and fuel consumption increases as idling speed increases
  • Warming up a vehicle by driving is more effective than idling

Consider these findings next time you find yourself idling your truck, whether working on a job site, picking up a food order, or warming up your truck this winter. And when planning to purchase a new air compressor, consider the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor.

Source and learn more at: https://www.vmacair.com/blog/


Related blogs: Going Green with VMAC: Lightweight & Fuel Saving Air Compressors

8/11/19

A&T Road Service is More Than a Towing Service!

A & T Road Service and Towing


Not only do we provide 24 Hour Emergency service, we could come out and do light mechanical work on site to our customer's fleet and avoid the truck having to come in the shop. 

We will go just about anywhere for anything, at any time. We have a wide normal service area and have been known to go beyond those boundaries by request.

See our Service Area.



8/08/19

Why do Cars Get Impounded?

Impounded cars are those placed in tow yards legally before they are returned back to their owners, recycled, auctioned or completely destroyed. Impounding agencies must have a legal right before impounding a vehicle. The agents tow the vehicle once they find it in their list of automobiles for impounding.

Police or private agencies have the right to impound vehicles that are violating the law and store them in their yards. The law allows them to store impounded cars until all the fees charged are paid. They are licensed to have your vehicle impounded. If not, find a lawyer to represent your case in court.
Auctioning of abandoned vehicle is often organized to assist in recovery of cash used during towing and the time the auto was stored in the yard. This is usually done if the owner of the vehicle is not found, the owner doesn’t want the car anymore or if the vehicle has overstayed in the yard.
Before retrieving your impounded vehicle, you first need to understand why it was impounded in the first place. This will allow you plan accordingly.

Reasons cars get impounded

    i. Driving with no license
    ii. Possession of a stolen car
    iii. Car was involved in an accident
    iv. The car isn’t insured
    v. Over speeding
    vi. Your car was found abandoned on the road
    vii. Driving under suspension
    viii. Outstanding fines for parking
    ix. Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
    x. If your car got involved in assaulting someone
    xi. If the car is not correctly parked
    xii. Your registration is expired
    xiii. If you are violating traffic rules
    xiv. Driving vehicles that are not roadworthy
    xv. If your car is exposing the public to potential health hazards or any other risks

Impounded Vehicles

Has the vehicle been impounded illegally?

In case your car gets impounded illegally, contact a criminal defense lawyer to help you fight for your lawful rights. Most people with impounded cars often make claims of ownership and get collection letters. Once at the correct impounding station, you’ll be needed to prove your identity and ownership of the car.

Sometimes, you might not be able to retrieve your car by yourself due to unavoidable circumstances. If you’d wish to send someone on your behalf, let them bring with them a letter of authorization signed by you, a copy of your driving license and an insurance certificate to prove your identity.

The cost of retrieving your vehicle

Getting your car back for free is almost impossible; there are fees that must be paid before you get your car. The police or private agencies charge you storage and towing fees. All your outstanding charges and fees must be cleared. Abandoning your vehicle because you don’t want to pay charges is not advisable.
It might result in your car being auctioned or completely destroyed. Afterward, you won’t have any claim for that car. The impounding agencies would benefit from auctioning your car. Even so, the municipal or companies you owe debts for years would still want you to pay them.
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8/05/19

When Your Truck Is Down, You Can Depend On A&T Road Service and Towing

Our Service Area

Call 800-434-1205

This  map indicates our approximate service area. Our goal is to get to you within 1.3 hours and most often, on a clean run, we can be there in just under an hour. Although we have sometimes gone further than this circle--and we will still--this approximate 50-60 mile radius from our home base in Fairfield, CA is what we call our call area.

Of course, most of our calls are probably within 25 miles and we get there even sooner, but rest assured that we will do everything within our power to be there as quickly as possible because when your truck is down, time is very important.



We are centrally located in Fairfield CA which is approximately 45 miles from San Francisco or Sacramento and about 50 miles from Stockton. We regularly service Fairfield, Vallejo, Rio Vista, Napa, Vacaville, Travis AFB, Winters, Dixon, Davis, Benicia, St. Helena, Calistoga, Suisun City, Green Valley, Crockett, Hercules, San Pablo, Richmond, Concord, Walnut Creek, Martinez, Boyes Hot Springs, Sonoma, Allendale, Cordelia, Pleasant Hill, Pittsburg, Antioch, Novato, American Canyon, Truck Scales and much more.

We've even gone as far as San Jose, the South Bay and the Peninsula because we always answer the phone 24/7. Solano County is our home turf, but readily service Napa County, Yolo County, Contra Costa County, Sonoma County, Sacramento County, and San Joaquin County, Alameda County and Marin County. We also have been known to travel to San Francisco County, Santa Clara County and San Mateo County. In fact, if you need immediate service, we will travel where ever we need to in order to take care of your problem. We are at your service and we mean that sincerely

8/02/19

What You Need to Know If Your Car Is Towed After an Accident

A car crash can mean a lot of work for you. As you navigate your medical needs, report the crash to your insurance company, and work to protect your legal rights, you also have to deal with the headache of getting your car back if it’s been towed and paying the towing fees. When your car is towed after an accident

The police will likely order that your car be towed if it cannot be driven from the accident scene. You may have no choice as to where it is towed and may later need to have it towed again from a storage lot to a mechanic. Often, a storage fee is assessed for every day that your car remains in the storage lot. For these reasons, the cost of towing your vehicle can quickly add up to hundreds of dollars or more.

Who Pays for Towing Costs After a Crash?

The answer depends on the actions you take and the terms of the insurance policies that are applicable after your crash. Many insurance policies that include collision coverage will cover reasonable towing and storage fees. The term “reasonable” may be defined in the insurance policy as a number of days. It is important to comply with the terms of the policy, so you don’t end up paying the costs out of your own pocket. If you are physically unable to take action, it is important to have someone do it on your behalf.

Additionally, it is important to have the necessary insurance adjusters come look at your car before it is moved from the storage lot. They will want to assess the damage before the car is moved. You should document every attempt to contact the insurance company, so you have proof of any insurance company delay that costs you money. You may also consult with your lawyer about what actions you can take to protect your rights if this type of delay occurs.
Getting Your Car Back After It’s Towed

The first thing you need to do is determine the towing location. You can ask for this information from the police and the towing company at the scene of the crash. If you are unable to do so, someone acting on your behalf should find out as soon as possible after the accident. You can then contact the storage facility about getting your car yourself or getting it towed to a mechanic of your choosing.

Learn more at: https://www.kffjlaw.com/blog/what-to-do-if-your-car-is-towed-after-a-car-crash.cfm