With increased interest in providing last-mile delivery services, many trucking companies are investing more into straight trucks. However, straight truckload boards come with compliance issues, which every trucking company must follow. Since there are thousands of straight trucks used for different tasks, your company must understand what's required for each truck in whichever operation. Therefore, consider these four compliance tips when working with straight load boards for your trucks.

Working Interstate or Intrastate

While this tip might seem pretty straightforward, there's more to it than you expect. If you will be shipping goods out of your current state, it means you are proceeding with an interstate movement. For instance, when collecting or dropping cargo from a seaport, airport, or warehouse. That's crucial to note because when dealing with interstate transportation, various federal laws apply. However, when running your business intrastate, state regulations become applicable.

Understand Your Load Capacity

When working with straight truck load boards, the gross weight shouldn't be your only concern. You must be aware of the truck's weight rating and registration as well. Besides abiding by the legal limits set, understanding your truck's weight will help you determine the types of regulations to follow as per the three standard definitions of commercial vehicles. For instance, some definitions require straight truck drivers to adhere to the set Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMSCA), including driver's qualifications, operational safety parts, truck inspection, and service hours, among others.

Understand Your Trucking Equipment

Whether a straight truck driver isn't subject to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, they must know safety vehicle operation and equipment handling. Being in utter disregard of safe vehicle operation can carry serious consequences, including hefty fines. Therefore, it's crucial always to understand your straight truck equipment and safely operate them when running your trucking business.

Know Who to Call and When

Depending on their roles, straight truck drivers must think and act professionally and independently. Sometimes, when trucking problems run from bad to worse, drivers can make poor decisions. Uninformed decisions often result from not understanding your available options and the need for a quick solution. Therefore, it's crucial to know the perfect professional to call when making a straight truck load board purchase or after an unfortunate accident on the road.

Never consider straight trucks as equals to tractor-trailers. Operating trucks with straight boards require skills, training, and safe handling. These four compliance tips are critical in ensuring you run your trucking business as per the necessary intrastate and interstate regulations. Contact a straight truck load board for more information.