DOT compliance services in Fort Worth, Texas
Many Fort Worth carriers are young companies hauling distribution center freight on I-35W. That's a good market and a hard first year. We help new and small Fort Worth fleets set up their compliance before the audit letter arrives.
Fort Worth freight and the carriers who haul it
North Fort Worth is built around AllianceTexas, where BNSF's Alliance Intermodal Facility in Haslet has operated since 1994. I-35W carries that freight north and south through the city, and I-20 and I-30 run east toward Dallas and west toward the rest of Texas.
The distribution centers along those roads ship a steady flow of 53-foot dry van and reefer loads, and they draw a lot of new authorities and one- to five-truck fleets. Those carriers face their New Entrant Safety Audit within the first 12 months, often while they are still learning the business.
A first-year compliance plan for a Fort Worth carrier
This is the order we usually work in with a new authority.
Drug and alcohol program
Enroll in testing, including random testing, register in the Clearinghouse, and run a pre-employment query before any driver's first load. Having no program, or no random program, fails a new entrant automatically (49 CFR 385.321).
Driver files
Build a complete driver qualification file for every driver, including yourself if you drive.
Supervisor training
Whoever supervises drivers takes the reasonable-suspicion training required by 49 CFR 382.603.
Vehicle files
A maintenance file and a current annual inspection for each truck and trailer you control, with proof of the annual inspection on the vehicle (Part 396).
Hours and logs
A registered ELD, the in-cab information packet, and a habit of keeping supporting documents.
Practice run
A mock audit a few months in, so the real one finds a company that's ready.
Dock time and the 14-hour clock
Distribution center freight comes with appointment windows and waiting. Under the hours rules, a driver may not drive after the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty, and time spent waiting at a dock does not pause that window (49 CFR 395.3). A four-hour wait at a Fort Worth DC can leave a driver legally unable to finish the run.
That's a compliance problem and a money problem at once. We teach owners and dispatchers to plan loads around realistic dock times, record waiting time accurately, and stop booking loads that only work if the driver breaks the rules. More on the limits is on our hours-of-service and ELD page.
Also available to Fort Worth carriers
CSA score review
What your inspection history shows the brokers who check you before giving you a load.
Back office support
Billing and paperwork help, so files and invoices don't compete for the same evening.
Startup guidance
If you haven't launched yet, start with the steps to set up a trucking company properly.
Backed by education
Our help with DOT compliance in Fort Worth is backed by the education we created at Freight University. We use education, data, technology and academics to stay on top of the newest FMCSA rules and regulations. You don't get one person. You get a team, a platform and a network with up-to-date information, making sure it's done the right and correct way. How we work.
- Current on the newest FMCSA rules
- A team, a platform and a network behind you
- Done the right and correct way
Remote service for Fort Worth carriers
We work with Fort Worth carriers remotely: secure file sharing, review on our side, and results walked through with you by phone or video. Call 901-205-9679 or send the form below.
Questions and answers
Can you meet me in Fort Worth?
Our compliance services are delivered remotely. If you need someone on-site, ask, and we'll tell you what we can arrange.
My safety audit letter already came. Is it too late for help?
Not necessarily. Call us right away with the date. We'll focus first on the items that fail an audit automatically, then on everything else we can fix in the time you have.
I'm also in Dallas. Is there a difference?
The federal rules are the same. Our Dallas page covers issues common to carriers working the Dallas rail yards and short-haul runs.
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Talk with us about compliance in Fort Worth
Tell us when you got your authority, how many trucks you run, and whether you have an audit date.
Prefer the phone? Call 901-205-9679.