Daily Trucking Complaint: Textile Suppliers & Freelancing

[Koko]

Suggestion template

Short description: Add cooldown on delivery suppliers + remove freelancing trucking.

Detailed description: See below

Commands to add: Possible changes to the startshipment script? Or reducing the number of supplies in key suppliers (Clothing)

Items to add: n/a

How would your suggestion improve the server? By discouraging further reckless driving by reducing incentives to swarm key delivery routes.

Additional information:

 

Hi everyone!

 

I know we've had our fair share of discussions on trucking over the past days, but today has proven a particularly frustrating morning in the server when it comes to trucking. The way I see it as a trucker RPer is that one of the main sources of reckless, non-RP delivery driving comes from one place: the Textile City Clothing Supplier. Every time there are orders from any Clothing/Mask shops, truckers swarm like locusts and mostly do no RP or token RP at best in order to maximize their deliveries.

 

Non-truckers might be wondering why. So why does this happen? Because Textile City has deliveries that are as close as literally driving around the corner, or take a 20 second drive at full speed. Speedos running over each other, parking on the sidewalk directly at the door of the business, unrealistically swarming to the same spot to deliver dozens of orders to the same small shop in a line... it looks ridiculous, and encourages this sort of behaviour.

 

If possible, I'd love to see some sort of cooldown before being able to resupply from the same spot again (but not if there's other changes that don't require work in scripting new things), but if anything, maybe the Textile Supplies can be reduced from 100 to say 50, so this delivery craze is at least reduced and RP spreads around. At the moment truckers seem to be doing the same routes over and over again (mostly vehicle parts and swarming to clothing deliveries when available), so maybe we could look into reorganizing some supply points to spread the workers and deliveries around. I don't know, this is just me spitballing about it. I just see which orders in my /startshipment screen stay pending for days and which ones are gone the moment they're up.

 

Both freelance drivers and those signed up with a company are guilty of these negative behaviours, don't get me wrong, but another change I'd like to propose is to make being hired by a company necessary to make deliveries. A company at least makes it so that someone has a vested interest in accountability and the performance of drivers, since it's easier to make the managers of the business invested in employing good drivers (since they'd potentially face the consequences of not policing their employees) than have any other stranger with a speedo drift into the Docks for vehicle parts.

Edited November 5, 2020 by Koko

[Vash Baldeus]

PLEASE CHECK THE STICKIES, THERES A FORMAT FOR SUGGESTION!

 

I had a run in with a person delivering his good, while PARKIN onto the sidewalk right at the drop off point of my business. Did a generic Roleplay and unloaded quickly. When I confronted him about parking on the Sidewalk he ignored me until I forced a reply, a reply that was quite HOSTILE when I asked him for why he's parked on the sidewalk.

 

A change has to be done, like the OP mentioned where people have to have them signed up with a Company, or contracted with a Company if they're freelance.  Moreover, admins need to take a bit more aggresive stance on trucking because at times it feels like the people who work the trucks are doing it to get money, not as an IC job for their character.

Edited November 5, 2020 by Vash Baldeus

[orca112]

4 hours ago, Koko said:

maybe the Textile Supplies can be reduced from 100 to say 50

Coming from peak hour trucking, I can tell you it will not solve the issue. Instead, people will fight over the fewer supplies at the supplier just to speed around as usual. I have witnessed this too many times when a lucrative business was open for deliveries and within half an hour, both (!) vehicle parts suppliers were empty. Whilst some may be using common sense and e.g. lined up at a supplier, there has always been someone cutting that line, throwing a one liner, quickly taking the few supplies as soon as they refilled and sped off just to rinse and repeat a few minutes later. The idea of a cooldown, however, seems more reasonable. It allows to take longer routes and take your time into your roleplay as, if you rush deliveries, you will be sitting around at the supplier and wait for the cooldown to go off.

 

I started the thread in general discussions regarding the issues on trucking roleplay, though, it is very hard to find a solution. You can restrict trucking as much, but as long as the individual player sees trucking as a means of grind to get rich fast and does not bother about the roleplay, it will not change plus most of the restrictions will punish not only the wrongdoer, but anyone else including those that put efforts into their roleplay along the way. A change has to happen on the individual player's mind. Heck, I do not exclude myself on that - I initially started trucking to make some cash I can use for other means and plans on new characters, not necessarily for the trucking roleplay. But the difference is that I somewhat care about the realism. I can do trucking and enjoy some time on busy routes or towards open businesses and do my roleplay (and eventually get in touch with others) or I can simulate ETS2 by taking the less favourited routes in which I barely get in touch with any other player.

 

As for the monitoring aspect - Yes, companies have to put more efforts into enforcing a common standard in both roleplay quality and realistic driving & parking. The issue however is, that both company and trucker want to make more money so enforcing less of a grind mentality is at the deficite of both parties. Plus a lot of times those that hold a supervisory position within the trucking companies do not set a proper example to new players / new truckers in the company - showing that speeding unrealistically and rushing deliveries is normal as they have been doing it themselves which - once again - leads back to the problem of engaging into roleplay and taking your time on deliveries, ride-alongs and supervision seen as punishing due to how the trucking script works. You get paid for deliveries, not for your roleplay.

 

Last, but not least - removing freelance trucking. Personally, I do not see it as a good idea. As already mentioned, a lot of restrictions punish the entiety of the playerbase, not only the wrongdoers. I can see a lot of potential lost as people might prefer roleplaying a freelance trucker, buy their own truck and go along opposed to joining a company and having to spare X% of their profits - not to mention the problem of a potential monopoly in trucking with a handful of companies around town that collectively decide a price as of 'You wish to do trucking? Oh well, you have to join us so eat it up.'. Surely it would prevent the freelance and random people in their everyday clothes being Speedo Zoomers, but from my personal experience - it is mostly company vans that speed around since people drive them for free in exchange for X% of their profits taken opposed to having to invest $60.000 or more in a van and then trucking on your own which is far less profitable and appealing for (new) players.

[Koko]

1 hour ago, orca112 said:

You can restrict trucking as much, but as long as the individual player sees trucking as a means of grind to get rich fast and does not bother about the roleplay, it will not change plus most of the restrictions will punish not only the wrongdoer, but anyone else including those that put efforts into their roleplay along the way. A change has to happen on the individual player's mind.

I agree with the sentiment, I just think that part of the problem right now is the position of trucking as an open, scripted job people can hop in and out of. If it's not part of the person's RP, people shouldn't be able to do deliveries, imho. If you make people have to take proper IC steps into the profession via a company, or to have to register somewhere officially, that'll at least create a more solid foundation than simply having a trucking vehicle and do it in your spare time when the server is quiet.

1 hour ago, orca112 said:

As for the monitoring aspect - Yes, companies have to put more efforts into enforcing a common standard in both roleplay quality and realistic driving & parking. The issue however is, that both company and trucker want to make more money so enforcing less of a grind mentality is at the deficite of both parties. Plus a lot of times those that hold a supervisory position within the trucking companies do not set a proper example to new players / new truckers in the company - showing that speeding unrealistically and rushing deliveries is normal as they have been doing it themselves which - once again - leads back to the problem of engaging into roleplay and taking your time on deliveries, ride-alongs and supervision seen as punishing due to how the trucking script works. You get paid for deliveries, not for your roleplay.

I can't speak for all companies, but in BlueWater Logistics (where I'm employed) I've been VERY vocal about this issue and I've been trying to help remedy it from my start there. Management has stepped in and does call out bad practice (even though it always will exist to some extent). It simply is leagues better than allowing any other person to come in and take the 20% hit to just do whatever they want as a freelancer without oversight other than reports from the public, because those reports tend to be loaded with salt towards the profession as a whole.

1 hour ago, orca112 said:

I can see a lot of potential lost as people might prefer roleplaying a freelance trucker, buy their own truck and go along opposed to joining a company and having to spare X% of their profits - not to mention the problem of a potential monopoly in trucking with a handful of companies around town that collectively decide a price as of 'You wish to do trucking? Oh well, you have to join us so eat it up.'.

To be honest, there's little reason I see right now to not join a trucking company if you want to do it full time in the current setup. Right now you freelance at 70% profit, whereas most companies pay 90-97% commision (90% being the standard). I have no hard data to back this, but I have yet to encounter someone in an unmarked vehicle that looked anything like a delivery man.

 

Ultimately for me, my biggest gripe is again, Clothing deliveries. They are too me the ones that bring all of the trucking problems up to eleven because the routes are too short, there is an incentive to grind them, and they don't last long because they make everyone swarm to the same business.

 

I don't want to be put as the example of anything because I'm at the extreme end of the Bell Curve of delivery work. Today I had people come and go 3 times by the time I finished 1 delivery. I just find it very distracting to see that every time Vespucci/Mirror Park Masks or the Mission Row Clothes shop have orders, suddenly there's 12 truckers bringing boxes like it was a Prince's wedding.

[Darcin]

Do not support removing freelancers. Owner operators make up a notable part of truckers IRL. Removing them from the game wouldn't really solve or improve anything.

[Trupiano]

Remove freelance trucking.

 

yeah sure there are irl owner operators but 95% of the people doing free lance trucking are doing it because they can grind whatever money they need. 

[Apa]

As someone who is relatively new to the server and who's first job has been trucking - I believe the system will be a nightmare to fix. You have enough demand from the stores to necessitate endless trucker bees swarming at all times of the day, but the profit you make from each delivery is nowhere near enough to sustain long RP. It almost forces people to try and get it done with as little RP as possible in the most efficient time. Yes, obviously we are all here to RP but let's take a step off our high horses for a second and realise that there's only so many ways you can open the back doors of a van. Your RP well will dry up extremely quickly when you're forced to try and squeeze as many deliveries into your hour as you can, to even come close to earning enough for it to be worthwhile. There is nothing, and I mean nothing I have encountered on this server, more monotonous than the trucking system. Yes, some people can make almost 2k per delivery, which is an incredible opportunity for sustainable RP. 2k per delivery means you can really try to be the best trucking RPer you can be, while still earning something close to what the other jobs on the server pay. The problem is, you have to do 500 deliveries before you start earning that amount of money, by which time you will have developed all the worst habits you can possibly imagine. Your soul will be broken. Blaming the truckers is a useless endeavour IMO, the system basically forces them in that direction. 

But then again, do I have anything close to an idea as to how it can be improved? No. The demand from the stores will still exist. 

[Darcin]

5 hours ago, Henning said:

Remove freelance trucking.

 

yeah sure there are irl owner operators but 95% of the people doing free lance trucking are doing it because they can grind whatever money they need. 

It's STUPIDLY easy to join any of the trucking companies in game. What exactly are you accomplishing by removing freelance trucking? Nothing. You're letting someone make 90% instead of 70%. That's the ONLY thing you're changing by removing owner operators.