The best moves for street safety in high traffic deliveries.
Couriers have a mission to accomplish. In addition to the mission, there is a ticking clock. The clock ticks away whether the courier moves, or not. This is one reason couriers watch the clock so closely. It has a tendency to skip ahead. In the blink of an eye. Furthermore, there is usually a delay of one kind or another, that triggers the time warp. Meanwhile, the clock ticks away. Merchant running behind? The clock continues to tick away the seconds. The clock doesn’t care. It keeps ticking away.
The courier keeps track of the clock. Likewise, the courier governs the pace of the delivery. The clock is a benchmark. A guide to help keep the delivery on track. Furthermore, it has a different effect depending on which side of the delivery one is on. For example, the courier that keeps one eye on the clock at all times, might sense a little stress. Likewise, the at home customer who consistently watches the courier on a delivery, senses the clock in a different way. It’s very likely a dragging clock. So to speak.
The Best Moves
This intense focus on the timing of everything in the delivery, can create more stress than it solves. Sometimes. Every courier has been there, or will be there, at least once. And this is how it goes: the courier is stuck in a traffic jam. The traffic in front, and behind, is at a stand still. Nothing is moving. Except the clock. Now it’s ticking away like an out of control leaky faucet. The courier is waiting for something, anything, to move. And that’s when the message comes in.
“Hey, everything okay? Are you lost?” Of course the courier is not lost. Unless lost in time counts. However, the at home customer does not see the traffic jam. From the perspective of the customer’s tracking map, the courier sits motionless. In the middle of somewhere. But definitely not moving closer. This is a situation that can only be communicated. Unfortunately, the courier can’t influence the traffic jam. Magneto from the X-men could move that traffic jam in a split second. However, most couriers do not know Magneto personally.
Fix what you can, and flip the rest. A stall is a stall. Stressing it after the fact is not going to magically clear the jam. This is one of the biggest reasons to research the route before leaving the pickup merchant. It takes a couple of minutes, but if it helps avoid a thirty minute traffic jam delay, it’s more than worth it. Furthermore, even if the jam is not foreseeable the delay is not the end of the world. Or the delivery. There’s plenty of time to loop the delivery customer in, while waiting.
Street Safety In High Traffic
One of the toughest deliveries to make is the two lane road, drop-off. It is further aggravated by mailboxes without numbers, and offset driveways that are far from the physical location of the house. Furthermore, there is usually traffic on the rear bumper. That isn’t meant to be an exaggeration. The traffic is almost literally on the back bumper. There is hardly time to scan the side of the road for the address. And forget about trying to figure out how to safely pull into the driveway. The tailgating traffic is too close for comfort.
This is typical and there’s little that can be done for it. There are just things about the road that won’t change. One of those is inconsiderate drivers. Especially at night. So what can the courier do to avoid the aggressive tactics of the tailgating follower? Once again research wins the day. While it may not be possible to slow down enough to safely examine the clues pointing to the drop-off location, it is possible to do a fly-by. The fly-by is a fail safe the courier sets up while researching the route to the drop-off location.
The fail safe keeps the courier close to the drop off, but in control of the street safety. For example, the courier can safely drive by the general location at a slower pace. Even with tailgating traffic, this still allows the courier to scan for the mailbox number, and the corresponding driveway. From there, the courier turns off on the next available road. By using a blinker, and a deliberate pace, the tailgating traffic is safely managed. Now the courier need only turn around while safely off the main road, and go directly to the driveway that is no longer a mystery.
The Best Street Safety Deliveries
Tailgating traffic is just one pressure that builds behind the wheel. There are other times when the pressure of getting to the delivery drop-off can create a sense of extreme urgency. Traffic jams and red lights. Slow merchants and a stalled drive through. These are all things that threaten that sense of urgency. Therefore the courier sometimes doubles down. Just a tad more speed to get through that light up ahead. Pedal to the floor because it just changed.
Hello blue lights. It’s a sure bet the delivery will be late now. Furthermore, the ten dollar tip on the delivery, will be a great down payment on the two hundred dollar speeding ticket. So much for street safety and timely delivery. It’s important to keep perspective on delivery runs. It’s seldom about the speed. Route selection and attention to street safety is a consistent way to complete deliveries. Similarly there are many areas where a courier can save time, without going to extremes.
This is an opinion article based on experience. It isn’t heavy on scientific fact because some of the best couriers, just get the job done. Science has little to do with it. It’s more about work ethic, professionalism, and attention to detail. It does take time to cultivate these traits and it’s one of the best ways to keep street safety front and center on every delivery. Stay safe out there.
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