Ross Transportation Services, 36790 Giles Road in Grafton, recently honored two of its truck drivers, Duane Asmus and Ron Berkel, for reaching one million and two million miles driven without a traffic incident.
Chris Fada, general manager at Ross Transportation Services, credited Asmus and Berkel for their dedication and care for their trade, which involves transporting toxic materials.
“The level of commitment to make the decision to every day put safety first in the skilled trade that it truly is, is an amazing thing,” Fada said. “Truck drivers get a bad rap, but for them to deal with hauling what they haul in a way that puts their own safety and the safety of everyone else on the road as their number one priority, is a testament to their dedication.”
Fada also noted the extra skills required to manage the large vehicles that Asmus and Berkel operate.
“It takes an 80,000-pound vehicle 10 times as long to come to a stop than it does when I’m driving my van down the road,” Fada said.
Fada said Ross Transportation Services drivers usually amass about 100,000 to 130,000 miles per year, which he said is not a huge amount in the trucking world.
The one million or two million safe driving mile marks are so impressive because of the years of commitment it takes, he said.
Asmus, who was hired in September 2013, took 10 years to reach his first million, while Berkel, who was hired in May 2001, took nine years to reach his second million, Fada said.
The pair also joined a small group of Ross Transportation Services drivers to reach such milestones.
Asmus became the 17th driver for Ross Transportation Services to earn one million safe driving miles, while Berkel is the third driver in company history to reach two million, Fada said.
“They’ve joined a pretty elite group,” he said.
Fada also said experienced drivers like Asmus and Berkel play a big role in preparing new hires at Ross Transportation Services to be just as safe.
“The most important part of our onboarding process is the time that new hire drivers spend with our veteran drivers, and Ron and Duane are a part of that,” he said.
Experienced drivers accompany new hires in the cab for about a month, if not longer, Fada said.
“Nothing takes precedence over being safe and compliant, and these guys are a part of preaching that message to our new drivers,” he said.
