ISSUE 1 2023 OPEN ROAD Nelson Landry, SLCC, Named Driver of the Year THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE LOUISIANA MOTOR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION Safety Professional of the Year: Kenny Stocks, D & J Construction Allocating Highway Funds Upcoming Elections TDC & Transportation Conference
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 5 ISSUE 1 2023 OPEN ROAD WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD IMAGES ON COVER AND THIS PAGE BY JOHN BALLANCE. Table of Contents COVER STORY 16 Landry Named LMTA’s Driver of the Year Nelson Landry, driver trainer with South Louisiana Community College, earns accolades for being the best of the best BY DAN CALABRESE 9 Stocks Named LMTA’s Safety Professional of the Year Kenny Stocks of D&J Construction earns association’s highest safety honor BY DAN CALABRESE 15 LMTA’s Transportation Conference 11 A Piece of the Pie Both the Port of Columbia and LMTA are seeking funds from IIJA’s allocation coming to Louisiana BY STEVE BRAWNER 15 An Election Like No Other Louisiana’s economy has stagnated, experts say. It ought to be one of the leading trucking states in the country. But it’s not even in the Top 10. Will the 2023 elections change all that? BY JACK ROBERTS 24 LMTA Truck Driving Championship DEPARTMENTS 6 President’s Message BY CULLY FRISARD 7 LMTA Board of Directors & Foundation Board 7 From the Exec. Dir.’s Desk BY RENEE AMAR 30 Calendar of Events 30 Advertiser Resource Index
6 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA The Official Magazine of the Louisiana Motor Transport Association Open Road is owned by the Louisiana Motor Transport Association and is published by Matthews Publishing Group. To request additional copies, order reprints of individual articles or to become a subscriber to Open Road, please contact Allison Strahan at [email protected] or call 225-928-5684. To inquire about advertising, please contact the publisher at (501) 690-9393. Publisher Jennifer Matthews-Drake Matthews Publishing Group [email protected] Executive Editor Renee Amar Managing Editor Allison Strahan Creative Director Fran Sherman [email protected] Graphic Designer Bárbara Negrón Cadíz Ad Production Douglas Benjamin Photographers John Ballance Patrick Dennis Daniel Gray Lawrence Kuzniewski Contributing Writers Steve Brawner Dan Calabrese Kevin Jones Renee Miller David Monteith Jack Roberts John D. Schulz Lacey C. Thacker LMTA President’s Message OPEN ROAD TRUCKERS STRONGER TOGETHER Louisiana Motor Transport Association Executive Director Renee Amar [email protected] Staff Sponsorship Coordinator Hailey Austin [email protected] Accounting Director Burton Comeaux [email protected] Communications Director Allison Strahan [email protected] Communications Assistant Emelie Tovar [email protected] For more information, contact LMTA at: Louisiana Motor Transport Association Office: 4838 Bennington Avenue Baton Rouge, LA 70708 Mailing: PO Box 80278 Baton Rouge, LA 70798 Phone 225-928-5682 www.lmta.la When I was inaugurated as president at the LMTA’s Annual Convention in Pensacola last year, one of my biggest concerns was the freight reduction that was starting to occur. It wasn’t a big issue for my company because we have a lot of dedicated accounts and direct contract business, but spot market rates were beginning to fall. It was obvious to industry veterans that tougher times might be coming, so one of my themes for this year has been “Truckers: Stronger Together.” Now that we’re in the second quarter of 2023, we’re definitely in a domestic shipping slowdown – whatever the economists and the government want to call it. There are just too many factors weighing down the economy. Inflation and interest rates are up, and people aren’t spending money like they were. We’re still coming down from the temporary sugar high of the pandemic recovery period. The Russia-Ukraine war sadly continues. Whenever the economy starts to slow, the trucking industry is the last to feel it and the last to recover. We’re definitely feeling it now. We’ve seen this all before, and it has “recession” written all over it. At least we knew it was coming. This ebb and flow is nothing new to industry veterans. In 2010, my dad was the LMTA’s president when the country and industry were still recovering from the Great Recession. Thirteen years later, we’re in another slowdown. (I’ll avoid using the “R” word for now.) While I’m pessimistic about the short term, I’m optimistic about the future. Our economy will recover. It always does. Our industry will remain strong. It always is. I’m confident that Americans will return to work, especially now that they aren’t being paid to sit at home. I’m even hopeful that federal government policies will make more sense and that inflation will come down. No one knows how long the slowdown will last or how bad it will be, but I do know this: The carriers that jumped into the industry to make a quick buck assuming times will always be good will not last, while those who love trucking and are willing to tighten their belts will be OK. It’s cliched, but it’s true: Tough times don’t last, but tough people do. Whatever happens, we in the LMTA must support our association. Let some of those go-it-alone, non-dues-paying carriers be the ones who go out of business. If you’re in the LMTA, even if you are my direct competitor, I want to keep seeing you at our events until times get better. Let’s keep supporting the LMTA and each other. After all, we’re already strong, but we’re even stronger together. Cully Frisard President, Frisard Companies 2022-2023 LMTA President of the Board WWW.LMTA.LA
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 7 From the Executive Director's Desk Chair of the Board Karl Mears Razorback Rentals, LLC Board President Cully Frisard Frisard Companies 1st Vice President Nataly Madden Signature Transport, LLC 2nd Vice President Brad Nelson Freedom Trucks of America Secretary Judy Smart Roadrunner Towing & Recovery Treasurer Nicole Otillio Bengal Cranee ATA Vice President Mitch Guillot Triple G Express LMTA Foundation Board Louisiana Motor Transport Association LMTA's 2022-2023 Officers of the Board Louisiana Motor Transport Association is an affiliate of the American Trucking Associations. LMTA is a Louisiana corporation of trucking companies, private carrier fleets and businesses which serve or supply the trucking industry. LMTA serves these companies as a governmental affairs representative before legislative, regulatory and executive branches of government on issues that affect the trucking industry. The organization also provides public relations services, education services, operational services and serves as a forum for industry meetings and membership relations. www.lmta.foundation Treasurer Mike Beck McGriff Insurance Greg Stewart Safeway Larry Terrel Northlake Moving Ellis Vliet Retired, Turner Industries ELECTIONS DO HAVE CONSEQUENCES In Louisiana, we often compare ourselves to other states, particularly nearby ones like Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama. Lately, there has been plenty of talk about Tennessee and Florida, as well, when we compare our tax structures and economic growth. Sadly, Louisiana usually ranks at the bottom of the good lists and the top of the bad lists. One item where I do not need to check rankings is Louisiana’s obscenely high insurance rates. Here, the crisis is not brewing, it is erupting like a volcano, and the hot lava is flowing over every single item that we touch and use daily. Truckers are fleeing Louisiana while new ones cannot set up shop because only two insurers are willing to write insurance policies for truckers. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight. Lawmakers meeting in Baton Rouge during the 2023 legislative session talked at length about tax reform and social issues, but there was hardly any discussion about reforming the insurance system. Being at the capitol during session, you see the goods that truckers deliver. If you want to print a bill at the capitol, a trucker delivered that paper. A trucker delivered the staples. A trucker delivered the printer. A trucker delivered the ink. Truckers deliver more than 80% of the goods we use in Louisiana. Without truckers, the entire economy stops moving. But lawmakers did little to deliver for truckers. Some were too worried about their upcoming elections in the fall to take tough votes. Others chose petty internal fights that only the capitol crowd cares about. Some pandered for leadership in the next term. Yet very few stood up for the people who deliver and provide jobs for them and their constituents. We have elections this fall and must hold the incumbents in office accountable, while also asking tough questions of those seeking to gain our trust and our vote. Elected officials must have the fortitude to take on the courthouse crowd, which includes the billboard lawyers who are sucking the life out of the trucking industry one lawsuit at a time. We know that campaigns require money, and billboard lawyers have gobs of it through all our insurance premiums. Think about it: Money coming from Louisiana’s hard-working, law-abiding truckers often pay for frivolous lawsuits that target them. It is time that we elect people who are willing to take on the status quo, the courthouse crowd, and the billboard lawyers. We must elect bold leaders this fall that support the trucking industry and that will strengthen the economy so Louisianans can get good-paying jobs. The Legislature in concert with a visionary new governor can right this ship. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that we must take advantage of. Our jobs, the trucking community and the economy depend on it. Renee Amar Executive Director LMTA [email protected] Chair Tom O'Neal Hercules Transport
TRUCKING NEEDS
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 9 In 2021, West Monroe-based D&J Construction had more than 20 over-theroad accidents involving its vehicles. About halfway through that period, the company hired Kenny Stocks as its first dedicated safety officer. Stocks, who started in the industry as a driver in the 1990s, had been director of safety compliance for Lindsay Transport when he was contacted by a recruiting firm about the position with D&J and its sister company, River City Ready Mix. A personal meeting with CEO Richard Richardson Jr. convinced Stocks that he and the job were a good fit for each other. D&J had no idea how good a fit it was. In the calendar year of 2022 – just one year removed from that 20-plus-accident performance – D&J had only two reportable accidents. Two. A reduction of more than 90 percent. Given a performance like that, it’s not hard to understand why Stocks was named the LMTA Foundation’s 2022 Louisiana Safety Professional of the Year. The more intriguing question is how he did it. And, of course, Stocks will be the first to say it wasn’t him in isolation. The entire company got behind a new approach to safety, with Stocks leading the way. “I know I brought in a lot of knowledge as the dedicated safety officer that the company had never had before,” Stocks said. “But I had the backing of the ownership group, and without their blessing to what we were trying to do, it would never have been accomplished.” Stocks attacked the problem in several ways. He started by recertifying many drivers using a different training program, with a heavy emphasis on safety bonus incentives. It helped, he said that most of the company’s over-the-road equipment is relatively new – averaging only three years old. “I’m a huge believer in continual education,” Stocks said. “So it’s constantly educating drivers and operators about what they’re doing and what’s coming out in technology.” Stocks doesn’t do all the training himself, nor does he limit it to internal trainers. He has had representatives of the Louisiana State Police come in to do training on a variety of issues, including the implications of the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development (LADOTD or DOTD) taking over the administration of weights and measures for trucks this year. He also emphasized an up-to-date understanding of what the DOTD and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) expect as industry best practices. That includes training from a program offered by the FMCSA that teaches drivers their responsibilities in relation to seven basic categories: • Unsafe driving • Crash indicators • Hours-of-service compliance • Vehicle maintenance • Controlled substances/alcohol • Hazardous materials compliance • Driver fitness “It gets our scores down and helps with our risk management to where we can cut our costs and reinvest into what we’re doing Stocks Named LMTA’s Safety Professional of the Year Kenny Stocks of D&J Construction earns association’s highest honor BY DAN CALABRESE CONTRIBUTING WRITER CONTINUES KENNY STOCKS, D&J CONSTRUCTION, WITH CULLY FRISARD, FRISARD COMPANIES & LMTA PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD
10 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA key resource to transportation companies throughout Louisiana in matters that are unique to the industry. clients with their legal needs during a crisis. BATON ROUGE • NEW ORLEANS • MONROE Douglas K. Williams • www.bswllp.com here,” Stocks said. “We actually got better insurance rates, better insurance renewals and got offered a program through an underwriter that they don’t offer a lot of companies.” Not that safety is mainly a financial imperative, of course, but it’s undeniable that companies with poor safety records end up spending more on insurance and all kinds of other mitigation concerns. It’s expensive to be bad at safety, not to mention dangerous. When Stocks speaks, he knows his words carry more credibility because not only did he start as a driver, but he maintains his CDL to this day. After graduating from Arkansas State University, Stocks earned his CDL and got his first job in the mid-1990s driving for Penn Transportation. He drove over the road for 10 years before moving into driver training – first training student drivers and then becoming a trainer of the others who train student drivers. From there he moved into Penn’s office of safety compliance before eventually taking the position of director of safety compliance at Memphis-based Lindsey Transport. “I tell the drivers when we go into the safety meetings that I can relate to them because I’ve been there,” Stocks said. “I still hold my CDL to this day, with all my endorsements. I didn’t let any of it go.” He believes this should be an industry-wide standard for safety directors. “If you’re in a safety department, you should have a license too, because how can I sit there and do a safety ride or talk to them about something, only to have them say, ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about, you’ve never done this’?” Stocks said. Since he more than earned his credentials on the road, Stocks can help drivers see the value of innovations like in-cab cameras. “Most of the drivers said they were safe drivers until I installed this technology,” Stocks said. “But they kept looking at those lights, and they changed their driving habits and their abilities to match what the technology was doing. It taught them to change their driving skills to be more safe, observant drivers.” The fact that drivers are listening and buying into Stocks’s program shows the credibility he brought to the effort right from the start. The number of incidents has decreased as dramatically as it has shown why D&J was willing to invest in Stocks’s position and his efforts in the first place. And the company’s efforts have also been recognized. At this year’s LMTA Foundation Safety Banquet, D&J Construction received the second-place award in the 1 million-to-3 million miscellaneous category. Renee Amar, executive director of LMTA, applauded Stocks for his innovative approach to improving driver safety and overall performance. “Kenny is a great example of the type of safety professional every company needs,” Amar said. “He has worked to create employee safety incentives and improve his company’s overall safety record. He also advocates for his industry, spending countless hours with the LMTA to ensure the field is constantly advancing.” And he plans to continue bringing in new technologies to ensure that an already excellent safety performance gets even better – to the extent that’s possible – and becomes even more embedded in the company culture. It’s all part of a determination on the part of Stocks to strive for even higher levels of safety excellence at D&J. That’s why he probably doesn’t need a fallback at this point in his career, although he keeps that CDL handy. “If this falls through, I can always go back to driving,” he mused. It seems extremely unlikely the owners of D&J will let that happen.
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 11 The LMTA and the Port of Columbia are hoping part of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or IIJA, can help address the lack of available truck parking in Louisiana. The state is receiving $5.9 billion in federal highway formula funding over five years through IIJA, which was passed by Congress and then signed into law by President Biden in late 2021. That’s about 44.6% more than it was receiving under the previous law. State and local governments can use highway funding formula money to improve parking facilities, but that funding would be coming from the same pot used for roads and bridges. While IIJA did not include any additional funding dedicated solely to truck parking, it made money available for competitive grants that can be used for that purpose. The state can compete for part of $7.5 billion available nationally through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program and also for part of the $8 billion available through the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) program, according to the American Trucking Associations. Two INFRA grants have already been awarded for truck parking elsewhere – a $15 million grant to construct approximately 120 spaces near Plant City, Florida, and a $22.6 million grant to build approximately 125 spots on I-40 in Smith County in Tennessee. Louisiana’s Port of Columbia is asking the federal government to cover $11 million, almost all of that through the RAISE program, of the total costs for a $15.3 million project that would develop 10 acres of parking surface for 50 commercial trucks and 100 cars on Highway 165. According to the port’s RAISE application, the facility is particularly needed because of its location. There are no truck rest areas or commercial truck fueling stations with parking on a 100-mile stretch of Highway 165 between I-20 in Monroe and I-49 in Alexandria. In fact, the nearest public truck parking facilities are more than 60 miles away on I-20 at the Tremont rest areas. A Pilot Travel Center in West Monroe is the closest stop for northbound traffic on I-20, and it’s 30 miles away. For southbound traffic, the nearest stop is 60 miles away in Alexandria on I-49. Port Director Greg Richardson said Louisiana Green Fuels is investing $2 billion in the port to develop a biofuels gassification process that will increase traffic by 250 trucks. The port had some property not being utilized near the entrance that would be used for the parking area. A total of 60 acres would be developed, including 10 for parking, 30 for utilities including a solar farm, and five acres for quality-of-life amenities including security fencing, a walking trail and picnic areas. A two-story administration building would include a welcome center whose bottom floor would house bathroom facilities, a vending area, and rest area. The second floor would house the port’s and the parking facility’s administration offices. Outdoor green spaces would include a food truck courtyard and recreational vehicle dump station. The planned facility also would feature six truck and six car electric vehicle charging stations. The port would be responsible for operations and maintenance costs it A Piece of the Pie BY STEVE BRAWNER CONTRIBUTING WRITER CONTINUES Both the Port of Columbia and LMTA are seeking funds from IIJA’s allocation coming to Louisiana
12 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA is estimating would be approximately $191,750 per year, but 50% of that would be covered by revenues generated by revenues from amenities, from charging stations, and from the potential lease of adjacent property. Richardson expects the port to learn the results of its submission in July or maybe September. He said the port has submitted a good application. Even if it doesn’t ultimately build the entire facility, it will build at least a yard for trucks to park along Highway 165. “When highways were built, not a lot of thought went into it,” Richardson said. “It was like, ‘We’ve got to get it from point A to point B, and we’re going to get there the cheapest way we can.’ And a lot of those highways were built through underserved communities. And whenever you have the trucks running through these underserved communities where there’s nowhere to park, they wind up parking in businesses.” Even if the Port of Columbia receives the grant and builds the facility, it wouldn’t make a dent in the truck parking issue nationwide. The United States Department of Transportation’s 2019 Jason’s Law Report found that 98% of drivers regularly have problems finding a safe place to park, compared to 75% in 2015. Jason’s Law is named for Jason Rivenburg, a truck driver who was murdered while parked at an abandoned gas station in 2009. American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear and Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President and CEO Todd Spencer last year wrote a joint letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg outlining the problem. They said there are roughly 313,000 truck parking spaces across the country for the nation’s 3.5 million truck drivers, meaning there is one truck parking space for every 11 drivers. According to a survey in 2016 by the American Transportation Research Institute, drivers were losing an average of 56 minutes of driving time each day by parking early. That was costing them $5,500 in lost income, or the equivalent of 12% of their annual pay. (It did not include the time they spent looking for parking.) Spear and Spencer wrote that 70% of drivers have been forced to violate federal hours-of-service rules. The imbalance forces drivers to park in unsafe locations such as interstate ramps. Eightyfour percent feel unsafe when parking in these unauthorized areas, they wrote. As reported by Transport Topics, Buttigieg indicated he is aware of the problem. Speaking to senators in March, the secretary said, “I completely agree with the importance of this issue. When you talk with truck drivers, it’s one of the first things that they’ll raise. And it’s not just a matter of convenience. It’s really a matter of safety. It means that as a driver is on their route, they see that they’re getting close to the limit of their hours of service. They’re faced with a choice: either to stop short and lose income, if there’s even a space near them, or to park in a place that could be unsafe.” He added, “In terms of a dedicated program, we’d welcome a dialogue on that.” “Truck Parking” ranked first among truck drivers in the American Transportation Research Institute’s annual “Critical Issues in the Trucking Industry” survey, which attracted more than 4,200 responses from drivers, motor carrier executives and others. It ranked as the third most critical issue overall, behind fuel prices and the driver shortage. Rebecca Brewster, ATRI’s president and chief operating officer, noted that the issue CONTINUES
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 13 SOUTHERN STATES UTILITY TRAILER SALES, INC. JACKSON • MEMPHIS • MONROE • HAMMOND 1-800-844-9100 www.ssutility.com Serving the South with Top-Quality Trailers, Service, and Parts. (Richland, MS Facility) NEW FACILITY COMING SOON TO MONROE, LA (On the south Frontage Road, about 2 miles west of the Millhaven Exit) Currently, we are located at... Southern States Utility Trailer Sales, Inc. 229 Fontana Road Monroe, LA 71203 1-800-594-0761 Future address: 7460 Frontage Road, Monroe, LA 71202
14 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA not only ranked number one among drivers but was also 10th among motor carrier personnel. “It to me was finally the message getting through that this can’t just be something drivers care about,” she said. “You as a motor carrier have to care about this as well because it is impacting your workforce. It’s impacting your existing workforce, and it’s impacting our ability to recruit people into the industry because clearly the attraction of thinking that you have to spend your nights on interstate interchanges is not an appealing job prospect.” Brewster said the ATRI study in 2016 along with driver surveys for state transportation departments found drivers want bathrooms, good lighting, security, proximity to the roadway and access to food. That study found that truck parking is a major safety concern for female drivers, who preferred public rest areas over private truck stops because they said they were quieter and there were fewer opportunities for them to be harassed. Renee Amar, LMTA executive director, said the trucking industry is trying to recruit women into the field, and women cite safety as a concern. “I can’t fathom being on the road and knowing that I have to pull over because I’m mandated to pull over, and I can’t find anywhere to park,” she said. “The thought of that just sends shivers down my spine.” Congress has introduced at least two major pieces of legislation this year that would expand access to truck parking. The Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act by Reps. Mike Bost, R-Illinois, who grew up in a family trucking business, and Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, would authorize $755 million in competitive grants the next few years. The bill has bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. Earlier, House members introduced the Safer Highways and Increased Performance for Interstate Trucking (SHIP IT) Act. It would approve nearly $800 million through fiscal 2026 for parking projects. Amar said members of her association are frustrated while waiting for Congress to take action. She praised Rep. Garrett Graves, a Republican who represents the Baton Rouge area, for his efforts in this area. The LMTA in September 2021 posted comments he made at a congressional hearing in support of an amendment by Bost to increase truck parking opportunities. At the same time, she gets phone calls from elected officials because drivers are parking on roadway shoulders and getting tickets. She said Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Dr. Eric Kalivoda had mentioned to her in a recent meeting that tax incentives could be one way to address the problem. Brewster said the good news is that truck parking is now on policymakers’ radar screen. “It think it is,” she said. “I still am frustrated because the general public doesn’t appreciate it as much, and so that’s why you still get this ‘not in my back yard’ reaction when, for instance, a private truck stop wants to site a new facility or even expand an existing facility and people don’t want that. Because they want everything that comes on trucks; they just don’t want to provide a place for those men and women to rest.”
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 15 TRANSPORTATION CONFERENCE LMTA held the 2023 Transportation Conference on January 18 at the Cook Hotel & Conference Center on the Louisiana State University campus. Members were able to meet and speak directly with agency leaders, regulators, and politicians regarding issues ranging from infrastructure to logistics that affect the everyday operations and business of Louisiana’s transportation industry. The conference hosted over 12 speakers throughout the day with Congressman Garret Graves closing out the afternoon with an update from Washington, D.C. 2023 CONFERENCE Congressman Garret Graves Former DOTD Sec. Dr. Shawn Wilson Rep. Paula Davis (Center) & Sen. Mike Reese (Right) Louisiana’s First Lady Donna Edwards Stephen Waguespack Sen. Sharon Hewitt Tim Temple
16 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA Landry Named LMTA’s Driver of the Year
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 17 Nelson Landry, driver trainer with South Louisiana Community College, earns accolades for being the best of the best BY DAN CALABRESE CONTRIBUTING WRITER PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN BALLANCE Safety on the road became personal for Nelson Landry early in his driving career, and the 2023 LMTA Truck Driver of the Year will never forget why. CONTINUES
18 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA Knowledge is Power 800.228.8602 gwccnet.com Not All Trucking Companies Are Alike Trucking is all we do. When you choose Great West to insure your trucking business, you are getting over 60 years of experience in the trucking industry. Our agents work with you. Not every insurance agent can represent Great West. With a keen focus on the trucking industry, our agents are knowledgeable, dependable, and responsive. They understand your needs and work with you to match the right coverage and level of service for your trucking operation. Do one thing, and do it right. Our agents can guide you through the process and customize a plan to provide you the broadest protection possible. You can also feel confident knowing that our agents’ service begins, not ends, with the issuance of your policy. GREAT WEST CASUALTY COMPANY – No matter where the road takes you, you will discover that at Great West, The Difference is Service®.
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 19 SLCC STUDENT GEORGE SPARROW WITH NELSON LANDRY Landry was named the 2023 Louisiana Truck Driver of the Year at the LMTA Foundation’s February Safety Banquet. He began his driving career later in life – taking a job with KLLM Transportation at the age of 38. After jobs in a shipyard and driving a school bus, Landry welcomed the opportunity to see much of North America from behind the wheel of a rig and get paid for the privilege. Very early in his driving career, Landry was in Florida to deliver a load of generators to CNN in Tampa, which was setting up to cover Hurricane Andrew. But the hurricane neither knew nor cared that Landry needed to get to Tampa and approached so quickly that Landry had to divert toward Orlando. “The storm was approaching, and the winds got really bad,” Landry recalls. “So, when I unloaded and tried to leave, I was going to go north on I-75. But the winds scared me, and I made a U-turn to go south in the northbound lanes. There was no one else there.” Hurricane Andrew arrived too quickly, and Landry was forced to take refuge for three days under an overpass while the storm raged on and then during the aftermath when walls of water hemmed him in on both sides. He had very little food, but the overpass provided sufficient protection that he could successfully ride out the storm and eventually get back home. “The sound of the rain and the wind – it was terrible,” Landry said. “But I knew I was safe.” Handled responsibly, trucks are very safe vehicles. They’re designed to protect drivers and maneuver in ways that accommodate other drivers on the road. And as Nelson Landry knows, a truck might even save your life in the midst of a hurricane. But that only applies if a truck is driven safely, which is why Landry’s present position as lead examiner in South Louisiana Community College’s Commercial Driver’s License program means so much to him. Yet he almost didn’t take the job at all. After 24 years of driving for KLLM, Prime Incorporated, Louisiana Transportation, Dynasty Transportation and Acme Transportation, Landry was ready to retire at the age of 62. “I had decided I was going to quit driving a truck, and a friend of mine was working here at SLCC,” Landry said. “He asked me to come and help the younger kids learn to shift a truck and do back-in maneuvers. I figured, that’s kind of simple, I’ll give it a try.” He originally intended to “give it a try” for a maximum of two years. He’s now at seven years and going strong and has become licensed through the State of Louisiana as an examiner, meaning he has the authority to issue final exams and qualify students for their CDLs. According to Charlotte Leleux, director of transportation, distribution and logistics at SLCC and also Landry’s boss, Landry has become the program’s go-to source for wisdom about the industry. “The most special thing about Nelson is the way he’s able to connect with individuals,” Leleux said. “Each of our instructors teach and connect in different ways, but when they get a student they can’t seem to connect with, Nelson is always the one they call on. He just steps in with such care, but with authority at the same time.” Leleux said Landry is excellent at helping student drivers understand what will be CONTINUES
20 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA SAVE ASK ABOUT THE LMTA MEMBER DISCOUNT Weigh station bypassing and toll payment solutions that save you time, money, and fuel. Trust PrePass — Over 700,000 truckers already have. prepass.com/LA 866.228.1424 expected of them if they’re to make it in the industry. He does the same for new instructors as well. “Just because you’re a subject matter expert doesn’t mean you’re a teacher,” Leleux said. “So, when we get a newbie who might be a subject matter expert, it’s Nelson who will take them under his wing and say, ‘Here’s how it works in the higher education space.’” Landry said he can’t say no to anyone who asks for help, and it doesn’t take much to realize he likes it that way. “I love working with the younger ones and showing them it can be more than just a job,” Landry said. Some of his favorite tales of truck driving involve making use of otherwise discarded goods to bless someone who needs them – or would just really enjoy them. He also shared stories of bringing leftover or slightly damaged goods to food pantries. Of course, the insight into the industry’ mystique is only a bonus for Landry’s students. His primary job is to teach them to drive safely. For that, Leleux said he leans nicely on his own 30 years of experience. “He trains the entry-level individuals who are going into the field as a new career,” Leleux said. “He works here as a lead examiner, and he has three other examiners that work under him.” Many of the students Landry teaches are not from the type of environment that one might expect to lay the groundwork for a successful career in trucking. That is when his ability to connect with them becomes so critical. “The demographic we serve is not your traditional college student,” Leleux said. “These individuals come from environments and backgrounds where the majority of them already have a family they’re trying to support while they’re trying to change careers. A lot of them have never had a truly professional career in their working life. Many come from single-parent homes or from homes where the parents don’t work.” When Landry sits down with a student working to overcome challenges like that, he takes the time to let them know what it will take to make it. But he doesn’t sugar-coat the expectations. “He’ll be walking down the hall, and he’ll see a young man and tell him, ‘You need to pull your pants up!’” Leleux said. “He won’t think twice about it. He’ll hold them to different levels of expectations, and the students respect him for doing that.” Landry said it’s not unusual for him to stay several hours late into the evening working with students or going through their exams. Because of his position as the lead examiner, he gets the chance to let them know if they’ve passed and can receive their CDLs. That works the other way around as well, though. “Sometimes they make it, and sometimes they don’t,” Landry said. “It’s hard to tell them they didn’t make it.” But Landry holds firm when a driver hasn’t
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 21 PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF TRUCK DRIVERS AND INTERESTS OF TRUCKING COMPANIES FOR OVER 30 YEARS. AMERICA'S MOST EXPERIENCED CDL DEFENSE LAW FIRM driverslegalplan.com/learnmore shown the ability to handle a truck safely on the road. He remembers his early days driving and recalls that safety was the first thing he learned, which opened an entirely new way of experiencing the career he started in his late 30s. “Once I got out, I really understood what trucking was all about,” Landry said. “It wasn’t just hauling the material. I was able to see a part of the world that I would never have been able to afford on my own, like traveling to Canada and the Midwest, and the mountains. Oregon and Washington State are beautiful.” He confessed that there is one part of the country he doesn’t care for, which is northern New England in the winter. “It changes too often,” he said. “You never know what you’re going to get from one day to the next.” Even though he is not employed by a carrier today, Landry maintains his CDL, saying he doesn’t want to ask students to do anything he could not also do. According to Leleux, that’s part of the philosophy that makes him stand out as an instructor – and simply part of who he is. “I did speak with several individuals from his past, including some past employers,” Leleux said. “I spoke with his colleagues in the field, and everybody seemed to have the same perspective of Nelson – and it doesn’t matter what his job description is. I even had someone say that he may not be the janitor, but if he sees a piece of trash in the yard, he’ll stop and pick it up. That’s just who Nelson is.” Landry lives in St. Martinville, the same small town where he grew up on a farm. While the farm didn’t own its truck, Landry took an interest in the trucks that would show up to deliver sugar cane to the farm. It was his first inkling that trucks might become a bigger part of his life. Landry has two children and 10 grandchildren, along with four siblings. And while he is proud of his family and his accomplishments, he made it clear at the LMTA awards ceremony that he didn’t think he deserved the award. It did not appear that many other people agreed with him. “Nelson Landry is an outstanding instructor and an excellent driver, and we are thrilled to see him recognized as the LMTA Foundation’s Truck Driver of the Year,” said Dr. Vincent June, SLCC Chancellor. “He is a true professional who embodies the highest standards of the industry, and we are proud to have him as a member of our faculty.” Renee Amar, executive director of LMTA, said the industry needs more drivers like Landry. “Nelson is the epitome of a professional who wants to see his industry grow,” Amar said. “The countless hours he has spent, not just driving but helping others shows his unwavering resolve to the industry. His dedication is shown through his commitment to teaching the next generation of drivers.” But no one knows Landry’s contributions to the industry better than his boss, and Leleux held nothing back. “Having worked in this industry for more than 20 years now, I know there is no one more deserving of this award, and I know some great people,” Leleux said. “Nelson is so deserving of this, and so humble.” Deserving and humble. But also, not afraid to let you know when you need to get it together to make it in the trucking industry. Young drivers are wise to listen to a man who rode out a hurricane in his truck, but who also discovered the blessings the trucking industry can offer to anyone who cares enough to learn to get it right. Congratulations, Nelson!
22 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA The economic revival sweeping the Deep South seems to have passed Louisiana by, experts say. The state has stagnated when it comes to economic growth. Its infrastructure is crumbling. New businesses are taking a pass on setting up shop in the Bayou State and setting up shop elsewhere. And its population is decreasing as natives leave looking for more opportunities and better lives elsewhere. This isn't a new storyline for Louisiana, we have heard it for decades. It's an untenable situation that desperately needs to change for the better. But luckily, industry experts say, the state’s elections to be held this October offer a once-in-ageneration opportunity to enact sweeping reforms badly needed to put Louisiana back on a positive economic track. “Given its resources, location on the map, and geography, Louisiana ought to be one of the biggest trucking states in the country,” says Andree Miller, director of political action committees for the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. “In fact, Louisiana should be near the top of every economic list in the country. But we have held ourselves back. We have many issues in this state that are particularly hurting trucking – insurance rates and a hostile legal climate, just for starters. What trucking company wants to relocate here when they can just go a bit further down I-10 and have a much better business climate,economic and education options for your employees?” A TOXIC BUSINESS CLIMATE Economic and business climate problems exist on both a micro- and macro-scale, Miller explains. And the combination of problems is reaching critical mass not just for trucking – but for virtually every business and industry in Louisiana. “Unfortunately, Louisiana isn’t about to win any awards for having a business-friendly climate,” she notes. “And I understand that people don’t like change: The old saying often applies when it comes to Louisiana politics: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But things are broken. And we need to fix them fast -- before we are left behind on the economic front.” Among the macroeconomic issues the state is dealing with today, Miller says is an exodus of young, qualified workers. Which means it is not only losing people, it's losing jobs, too. “We are one of the Top 10 states in the country for outbound migration,” Miller says. “We rank in the bottom third of states nationally in annual growth rates. And you don’t have to be an economist to understand An Election Like No Other Louisiana’s economy has stagnated, experts say. It ought to be one of the leading trucking states in the country. But it’s not even in the Top 10. Will the 2023 elections change all that? BY JACK ROBERTS CONTRIBUTING WRITER
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 23 that if you’re losing people and you’re losing jobs it’s a clear sign that your economy isn’t working. States around Louisiana are growing and we’re not. That’s why we –and other business groups in the state like LMTA – are doing a deep dive into the data to understand what’s causing these problems and what we need to do to turn these negative economic trends around.” Things aren’t any better on the microeconomic front, either, says Renee Amar, executive director, LMTA. She says that a toxic legal environment for trucking, a non-competitive insurance industry and crumbling infrastructure are hindering growth for trucking fleets in the state. “We badly need reform of our legal system on top of the watered-down bill we got in the last legislative session,” Amar explains. She says that although Louisiana laws currently limit the number of situations in which punitive damages can be awarded, trial lawyers have figured out an end-run around these limits by introducing evidence based on a company’s hiring and training procedures in ways that inflame juries. “We really need to clarify this law and return things to the way they’ve been for decades,” Amar says. Another big problem for Louisiana truckers is the fact that there are now only two insurance providers for commercial vehicles in the entire state which is not only creating problems for fleets, but also scaring off national companies that – in a positive business climate – would be flocking to the state. “We have the Mississippi River, the Port of New Orleans and the I-10 corridor connecting us to the entire Deep South,” Amar notes. “But national and international companies are being scared away by our toxic legal climate and the inability to obtain good insurance to protect themselves in the event of an accident.” “We’re very much in alignment with Renee and LMTA and their concerns,” adds Brigitte Nieland, governmental affairs director, Stand for Children – a Louisiana political advocacy group. “The insurance crisis is driving businesses out of the state because they simply can’t afford to operate here. They don’t want to leave. But financially, they have no choice if they want to keep their businesses alive.” There are also vexing taxation issues that are making the business climate even worse, Nieland adds. “We desperately need legislators with the courage to fix the Louisiana tax system,” she says. “We have double- and even triple-taxation on a company's inventory. It’s never ending.” Worse still, Nieland says, Louisiana’s quirky tax code allows each parish in the state to establish it’s own suite of business taxes without any overall uniformity. “So, if you’re doing business in more than one parish – which many trucking companies do – you could theoretically be required to fill out as many as 64 different tax forms to operate your business. It’s things like this that are not only keeping new businesses from coming to the state, but they’re driving long-established businesses out of the state.” “I think the Louisiana business community recognizes the magnitude of issues affecting our economy,” Miller adds. “We’re losing our people and our work force. And a major driver for that is crime and how it relates to economic development. Companies are not going to relocate to Louisiana or open up branches in our state if we have a poor legal climate, bad insurance options, a bad tax climate, but also a poor education system, high crime in our cities and an infrastructure system that is falling apart. We need a holistic approach to solving all of these problems and putting the state on a solid economic footing.” AN AGGRESSIVE VETTING CAMPAIGN FOR TRUCKERS Luckily, both Amar and Miller say the 2023 statewide elections this Fall offer an unprecedented opportunity for Louisiana to CONTINUES
24 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA do just that. Thanks to term limits, a good majority of state House and Senate seats, as well as the governor’s office, are up for grabs. And Amar and Miller both say this offers Louisianians a rare opportunity to correct the state’s current economic course. “The election this Fall is one of the most pivotal in the history of the state,” Miller says bluntly. “We have an incredible opportunity for change because we have tremendous legislator turnover because of term limits. We’re talking about a completely new state government from top to bottom, including a new governor, insurance commissioner, attorney general, and secretary of state. And statewide, we’re looking at the possibility of having 30 new faces in the legislature. We made great strides in helping pro-business candidates win in the 2019 election. And my hope is we can complete that transition this Fall and make substantial changes to our state economy in the coming years.” “It’s going to be a fascinating year,” Amar agrees. But there’s an obvious problem for LMTA that is now a top priority for the organization: Figuring out which candidates among the many new faces on the Louisiana political scene will do more than just talk about supporting the state’s trucking industry. Which ones will actually work with the industry to improve the state’s business climate, infrastructure and the insurance and legal headwind holding Louisiana trucking back. “We’re aggressively vetting as many of these candidates – both newcomers and established politicians – to find out what their real views on the trucking industry are, and what we can expect from them should they win their elections,” she notes. Toward this goal, for the first time ever, LMTA is sending out a trucking questionnaire to candidates to hone on their specific views and policy proposals should they win their elections. “We’re looking for candidates with pro-trucking policies,” she adds. “And we’re sending this questionnaire out to all candidates – especially gubernatorial candidates – to understand if they will be an ally to Louisiana truckers if elected. They always say they support your issues before an election. But we often see something totally different when it comes to casting votes.” Amar says her biggest hope heading into November is that the new governor – whoever that is – understands just how harsh the current insurance and legal climates are for Louisiana truckers. “We’re down to just two insurance providers in the entire state,” she says in disbelief. “That’s why I strongly believe that we need bold, aggressive, reform if our state is going to stay afloat economically. That’s how serious things are. We are surrounded by states that have enacted bold economic reforms. And the new governor in Arkansas is doing the same thing. We’re now being outpaced by our neighbors. And if we don’t act, Louisiana will eventually be left behind economically. And we cannot allow that to happen.” 401 Market Street Suite 900 Mark Perkins PERKINSFIRM Bulk storage options available through 55 gallon drums, totes and hand or electric pumps are available. Madison N. Bigott David Newman We are a wholesale distributor of Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF). Madison Oil Company provides clean and compliant DEF at a competitive price for fleet, retail and commercial applications. Please message or call for more details at (985) 863-8145. CUT YOUR DEF COSTS IN HALF! (985) 863-8145 “Your DEF Supplier”
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 25 Getting Down to Brass Tacks... Enjoy a little lagniappe of services, products and noteworthy news from your Open Road advertisers. For more details, contact Jennifer at [email protected] Getting Down to Brass Tacks... Take control of your corporate message and participate in this advertiser-exclusive editorial section where you get to write your own earned media. Just send us 200 words of text on the topic of your choice, plus an image (or your logo) and we'll design it for you. Big things are happening at our firm, and we couldn’t keep it from you any longer: We are proud to announce the addition of Ghazal Ullah and Tami Harrell to our team here at Perkins & Associates! Ghazal, licensed in Texas and Louisiana, will work with Mark Perkins and Adrian Stull in defending the industries that move America. Her undergraduate degree is from Georgetown University, and her law degree is from the University of Houston Law Center. Before coming to Perkins & Associates, Ghazal’s legal career gave her valuable experience in immigration and healthcare law. If you’d like to connect with Ghazal, feel free to reach out to her at ullah@ perkinsfirm.com. Tami has thirty-three (33) years experience as a paralegal with a great appreciation for diversity and the phrase “get in where you fit in.” Her husband’s career at times required relocating to South Texas, the Pacific Northwest, Wyoming, Colorado, East Texas, and Alabama. In all of these areas, she worked with many brilliant and successful attorneys, judges, paralegals, and support staff from diverse experiences. We are fortunate to have them both on our team. For more information on our entire team, please see our updated website, www.perkinsfirm.com. In addition, don’t hesitate to contact us if we can be of assistance with any legal issues. We’re always here to help. What Are Your Goals in 2023? How about Saving on Truck Tolls! Trucking fleet managers walk a financial tightrope. Even small missteps can create big shortfalls, especially if you choose to operate on toll roads. The good news is PrePass can help keep your balance sheet healthy. We all see the rise in tolling rates, fees, and violations, but with PrePass technology, you avoid higher tollby-plate fees. Even better, the same PrePass device you use to bypass weigh stations also delivers lower toll costs. With PrePass Plus, you not only receive the lower cost benefit, you also receive one invoice for all the toll facilities you use, with toll charges posted online no later than the next day. No more waiting for multiple invoices in the mail. Manage your toll costs in near-real time at a f raction of the administrative cost. PrePass Plus automatically passes on all applicable toll volume discounts to you. It comes with powerful INFORM Tolling software at no extra charge, giving you a heads-up on questionable tolls. PrePass can even help you dispute violations and max tolls to get quick relief from billing errors. Tolls are going up. Stay ahead of the curve with PrePass Plus electronic toll payments. Visit PrePass.com or call 1-800- 773-7277 – Opt. 2. • Shreveport, LA 71101 • (318) 222-2426 M.COM/RAPID-RESPONSE SAVE ASK ABOUT THE LMTA MEMBER DISCOUNT Weigh station bypassing and toll payment solutions that save you time, money, and fuel. Trust PrePass — Over 700,000 truckers already have. prepass.com/LA 866.228.1424
26 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA MARCH 3-4, 2023 | BATON ROUGE, LAOVERALL AWARD WINNERS 1 2 3 4 1 TROOPER OF THE YEAR: Master Trooper David Bruce 2 TROOPER OF THE YEAR: Master Trooper Brett Davis 3 SAFETY PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR: Kenny Stocks, D&J Construction 4 LOUISIANA GRAND CHAMPION: Eric Courville, FedEx Freight 5 MECHANIC’S AWARD: Corey Mitchell, FedEx Freight 6 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Benjamin Harvey, Old Dominion Freight Line 7 PRESIDENT’S AWARD: Presented by Great West Casualty Company Sabel Steel Baton Rouge 8 TEAM AWARD: XPO Logistics 9 MOST IMPROVED AWARD: Presented by Great West Casualty Company D&J Construction 10 TRUCK DRIVER OF THE YEAR: Nelson Landry, SLCC ERIC COURVILLE 2023 Louisiana Grand Champion
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 27 CONGRATULATIONS WINNERS! 5 6 7 8 9 10 NELSON LANDRY 2023 Louisiana Truck Driver of the Year
28 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA 2023 DIVISION & CLASS WINNERS STRAIGHT TRUCK 3 AXLE 4 AXLE STEP VAN 1ST 2ND 3RD STEP VAN Place: Michael Brian, FedEx Freight Place: Nicholas Burgess, Walmart Place: Dana Hill, Fed Ex Ground 1ST 2ND 3RD STRAIGHT TRUCK Place: Gary Tyler, John N John Truckline Place: Leroy Williams, XPO Place: Corey Mitchell, FedEx Freight 1ST 2ND 3RD 3 AXLE Place: Jon-Taylor Moreau, FedEx Freight Place: James Maxwell, FedEx Freight Place: Brad Wederstrandt, XPO 1ST 2ND 3RD 4 AXLE Place: Brian Landry, FedEx Freight Place: Michael Lewis, Walmart Place: Robert Carter, FedEx Freight 1ST 2ND 3RD TANK TRUCK Place: Dale Bodden, Ergon Trucking Place: Xavier Theriot, FedEx Freight Place: Collie Shaw, FedEx Freight 1ST 2ND 3RD FLATBED Place: Mark Collins, Walmart Place: Warren Little, FedEx Freight Place: Larry Smith, XPO 1ST 2ND 3RD SLEEPER BERTH Place: Eric Courville, FedEx Freight Place: Shaun Brown, Walmart Place: Joseph Guidry, Walmart 1ST 2ND 3RD 5 AXLE Place: Donald Glover, Walmart Place: Chad Rudesill, FedEx Ground Place: Joseph Vital, FedEx Freight 1ST 2ND 3RD TWIN TRAILERS Place: Damien Hebert, XPO Place: Dennis Jameson, FedEx Freight Place: Marquis Phillips, ODFL 2023 DIVISIONAL WINNERS
WWW.LMTA.LA ISSUE 1 2023 | OPEN ROAD 29 5 AXLE TANK TRUCK SLEEPER BERTH FLATBED TWIN TRAILERS ALL FIRST PLACE DIVISION WINNERS ARE ELIGIBLE TO COMPETE AT NATIONALS
30 OPEN ROAD | ISSUE 1 2023 WWW.LMTA.LA CALENDAR OF EVENTS ADVERTISER RESOURCE INDEX This publication was made possible with the support of these corporate advertisers. They support the trucking industry by enabling Open Road to provide this publication to its members, prospective members, elected officials and the business community at large. They deserve your consideration and patronage when making your corporate purchasing decisions. Please visit www.lmta.la to see the digital version of Open Road with live links to advertisers’ websites. ISSUE 1 2023 OPEN ROAD Beazeale Sachse & Wilson ....................... 10 Higginbotham Insurance ..... Inside front + back covers Drivers Legal Plan.................................... 21 Kenworth of Louisiana............................... 8 Madison Oil............................................. 24 Perkins & Associates .........Inside back cover PrePass Safety Alliance ............................ 20 Roadrunner Towing ................................... 3 Southern States Utility Trailer ................. 13 Southern Tire Mart..................................... 4 COMPLIANCE SEMINAR June 20, 2023 June 15, 2023 CVI: DELTA July 13 -15, 2023 2023 LMTA ANNUAL CONVENTION July 13, 2023 BILL CLARK MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT For registration details about each event, please visit https://members.lmta.la/eventcalendar July 10 -16, 2023 NATIONAL TRUCK DRIVER APPRECIATION WEEK
WE DEFEND TRUCKERS AND TRUCKING. TRUCKERS TRUST US. WE KNOW TRUCKING. 401 Market Street Suite 900 • Shreveport, LA 71101 • (318) 222-2426 Mark Perkins PERKINSFIRM.COM/RAPID-RESPONSE 670 Albemarle Drive, Suite 1200 • Shreveport, LA 71106 • (318) 222-2426