Old timer at the yard made me miss the paper Bill of Lading days

Was waiting for a pickup at the lot in Newark last week and this driver, must be 60, starts talking about how he used to carry a binder full of paper bills of lading. Said now everything is on a tablet and he can't even see the load details till the app updates. Made me think about how I've been shipping since 2012, back when I'd fax over the rate confirm and the driver showed up with a clipboard. Sure, it's faster now, but there was something about that paper trail that felt solid. Anyone else miss the old way or am I just stuck in the past? How many of you still print anything out for a haul?

2 comments

2 Comments

blairtaylor21d ago

Gotta ask though, what happens when the app glitches or the signal drops in the middle of nowhere? Paper never had a dead zone. That old timer probably saw more real problems than I have, but I've had enough load boards eat my info to know that a printed page at least proved what I agreed to. Is your dispatch still cool with you printing a backup copy, or is that seen as some old-school flex that gets you side-eyed now?

ray36321d ago

Wait, are you saying some dispatchers actually make you print it out now?