We shifted from 90-day to 45-day PMs across vans and 26’ box trucks, and roadside calls dropped 32% in Q4 while near-miss events fell after we started mandatory pre-trip checks and dashcam coaching. The downside is more shop time; for those who’ve tightened maintenance like this, how are you scheduling without burning coverage and keeping drivers bought in?
We rotate ‘loaner’ vans and schedule ‘45-day’ PMs nights/weekends; can 26’ boxes go mobile?
Quick win: split the fleet into A/B weeks with a 5–7% dispatch float and run 20–30 min “pit-stop” PMs at shift change, pushing deeper items to a soft-demand day (think pit crew, not spa day). We kept drivers bought in by posting avoided-roadside-call counts and a small $20 “clean pre-trip streak” bonus; if float’s tight, geofence routes and only pull units when the spare is within 15 minutes. Do your 26’ boxes have a consistent low-volume window you can anchor to, @OpsKat?
Bundle ‘45-day PMs’ with dashcam coaching; pay a small stipend; watch overtime for nights.