Seven-million miles – and not one accident!

A North American transport and logistics operator recently proved that there are professional truck drivers out there who could teach everyone else on the road a thing or two. Contract Freighters, Inc. (CFI) recently recognised five professional drivers for millions of safe miles on the road.

The company celebrated two drivers for reaching two-million, and three drivers for reaching one-million, safely driven consecutive miles (3,2 and 1,6-million kilometres respectively) during their careers with the company – adding up to seven-million consecutive safely driven miles (or 11,2-million kilometres)!

The Missouri-based transport and logistics operator has a fleet of 2 400 company tractors and 7 000 trailers, in addition to an independent contractor fleet.

In order to be eligible for CFI’s Million Mile Safe Drivers programme, CFI’s professional drivers must have a consecutively spotless safety record on the road. An accident of any form, even if the driver is not at fault, will reset their safety mileage count.

Two-million Mile Safe Drivers:

• Danny Robinson of El Paso, Texas, began his professional driving career in 1999 after serving 14 years in the United States Army. He began working for CFI in 2001. He enjoys the solitude and freedom that professional driving has to offer and encourages other drivers to strive for perfect driving records, emphasising safety on the road.
• Also from El Paso, Armando Rodriguez began driving for CFI in 2000. His favourite aspect of the job is making it home safely to his family and providing a quality income for them. He recommends that other motorists stay alert and off their cellphones when driving.

One-million Mile Safe Drivers:

• Veronique Boyd from Kyle, Texas, began her professional driving career with CFI in 2007 after working in the landscape-irrigation industry. Her advice for staying safe and successful on the road is to always treat everyone with honour and respect.
• Russel Cocheu of El Paso began driving professionally in 1996 and joined CFI in 2008. He loves the freedom of the open road and encourages other drivers to pay attention to everything, including their own health, the truck equipment and working conditions.
• Jim Rhodes, from Pace in Florida, began driving professionally in 1996 and joined CFI in 2010. He most enjoys driving through Utah and plans to achieve his goal of retiring without a safety incident by looking ahead and anticipating the actions of other drivers.

“Road conditions, other drivers’ actions and weather are just a few of the obstacles our drivers face on the road every day,” says Tim Staroba, president of CFI. “We couldn’t be more proud of our recent class of one- and two-million milers. Their dedication to safety is something to be admired and we are grateful that they represent CFI.”