Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/34944
Dozens of new smart- phone apps can save you money, time and hassles. Best of all, many are free. BY TODD DILLS F rom electronic logging to word on whether a shower’s available at that next truck stop, trucking applications for smartphones have emerged to meet needs large and small for owner-operators. Since the iPhone’s introduction in 2007, competing phones have followed, as have thousands of apps that can be downloaded easily in seconds, usually at no cost. Michigan-based Miguel Dunkelberger, leased to L&R Trucking of Dearborn, Mich., has been using Mobile Warrior’s IDDL log book and inspection-report app on his iPhone for more than a year, he says. The feature completely replaced his paper logs. While not a federally approved electronic onboard recorder, the application affords Dunkelberger, for the $9.95 a month he spends for the service, not only the simplicity of push-button logging but also a significant boost in record-keeping ease. When his carrier was audited by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, he was asked to provide three months’ worth of logs. All he had to do was log into his account and send an email. Dunkelberger also utilizes Pilot Travel Centers’ store locator app, which can quickly find the nearest Pilot or Flying J location. TravelCenters of America’s new TruckSmart app does the same for TA and Petro locations, as well as providing parking availability, fuel price and other data. JULY 2011 OVERDRIVE 27