Pre-Trip Planning Checklist

When to use this checklist

Use before accepting a tight appointment, leaving a terminal, or starting a multi-stop day.

Before the trip

Most problems that turn up at 8 PM were visible at noon — they just weren't addressed. These items are the ones most likely to produce a last-minute scramble if skipped.

• Confirm pickup and delivery windows, including check-in cutoff and staging rules.
• Review current HOS status, expected duty time, break timing, and end-of-day parking window.
• Mark first fuel, first break, primary parking, and two backups.
• Check weather, road, and customer notes before the truck is committed.

During the trip

The departure plan reflects what was known before the truck moved. These are the checkpoints that keep it current as loading times, traffic, and weather change what's actually achievable.

• Update the plan after loading, fuel, traffic, or detention changes.
• Move parking decisions earlier when the clock or weather gets worse.
• Keep dispatch informed before a missed appointment becomes likely.

If the plan changes

When the original plan stops working, the goal is a new plan — not a recovery of the old one. These steps apply any time a confirmed stop or timing window becomes uncertain.

• Rebuild the plan if the first parking choice is no longer reachable.
• Separate fuel from parking if one combined stop becomes uncertain.
• Document the new ETA, parking target, and next decision point.

Red flags

Any one of these means the plan has a gap likely to show up at the worst possible time. Two or more together is a rebuild situation before the truck moves further.

• No confirmed parking plan for the final hour.
• Unknown receiver staging rules.
• Fuel reserve depends on perfect traffic.
• Weather has changed since dispatch.

Trip snapshot worksheet

Fill this out before the truck is under time pressure. If one line is unknown, mark who will verify it and by what time.

Plan A / Plan B / Plan C worksheet

Write the backup plan before the first option fails. A useful backup has a decision time, not just a place name.

Decision log

Use this section when dispatch, the driver, weather, parking, fuel, or the customer changes the plan.

Escalation triggers

• Pickup or delivery timing changed enough to affect the parking window.
• Fuel, weather, or customer staging is still unknown before departure.
• The next stop depends on perfect traffic or a last-minute parking search.

Dispatch-to-driver handoff

Use this handoff when the load is accepted or when the driver is about to leave the first stop. The point is to make sure the driver and dispatcher are using the same plan, not two separate versions of the trip.

Stop trigger worksheet

Notes field

Print this page and write the current load, route, clock, fuel, weather, customer, and parking notes below. Leave enough room to rewrite the plan when one assumption changes.

How to use the completed sheet

After the worksheet is filled out, circle the first two times that can change the day: the parking switch time and the customer-delay rebuild time. Those two times matter more than a long list of possible stops because they tell the driver when to stop trying to save the original plan.

Keep the completed sheet with the trip paperwork or dispatch notes until delivery is complete. If the plan changes, write the new stop and the reason for the change. That gives the next dispatcher, relief driver, or carrier manager a clear record of how the trip was adjusted.

Last reviewed

2026-05-27. Review again when carrier policy, official guidance, or customer requirements change.