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Hours-of-Service Regulations

Friday, February 1st, 2013

hours-of-service

In a letter issued last week, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) requested that the Federal Motor Carrier’s Safety Administration (FMCSA) “delay implementation of the new Hours of Service rule until three months after an appeals court renders a decision on requests by the ATA and safety advocacy groups to have the rule overturned.” 1

The ATA’s hearing against the FMCSA is scheduled for March 15th, in which the ATA plans on bringing up several issues including revision of the HOS to include a restart provision containing two consecutive breaks between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5.am., reducing a driver’s work week from 82 to 70 hours as well as a mandatory 30-minute break if 8 hours or less have passed since the driver’s last off-duty period.  Both of these becoming effective July 1, 2013.

Since a decision on the ruling is likely to take up to three months after the hearing, a decision is likely to be made as close as a month prior to the HOS ruling taking affect, therefore, the ATA is asking for an extension on the effective date of the HOS changes in order to prevent unnecessary training (or reversely, adequate changing).

As ATA President Bill Graves explains, “The requested delay will avoid potentially duplicative and unnecessary training, prevent confusion if the court’s decision alters in any manner the final rule, and, given the anticipated short length of the delay, will have no measureable impact on highway safety.  Much of the training for the rule already is under way, but the industry and the enforcement community still will need three months to finish the job once they know what the final rule says.” 1, 2

Besides the impact that the new ruling would have on drivers and carriers, the effect that the changes would have on shippers and manufactures are relevant as well.  As mentioned in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit:  American Trucking Associations Inc., Petitioner, v. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration; and United States of America, Respondent, “The FMCSA unjustifiably claimed that it need not measure the costs to shippers and receivers because ‘these entities are not subject to FMCSA regulations…’” 3

The amicus brief, which was filed by trade associations including the National Association of Manufacturers and National Retail Federation, mention the factors involved by those shippers who rely on night delivers stating, “The overall off-duty time for those drivers could be significantly more than 34 hours – in some cases over 60 hours.  This reduction in available workweek hours will force companies to hire additional drivers and add equipment. Some drivers will start work early in the morning – as opposed to making their deliveries at night as preferred by the shippers and receivers – adding trucks on the road at peak times, and leading to increased congestion and longer delivery lead times.” 3

“NGA noted that these changes would disproportionately impact its members…Grocery stores rely on deliveries early in the morning, especially for perishable goods that have a limited shelf life and must be on the shelves when stores open. With the changes to the rule, lead times for perishable goods will increase, leading wholesalers to increase inventory levels to maintain service. All of these changes would lead to increased costs throughout the supply chain.” 3

The FMCSA is currently reviewing the ATA’s request.

For a copy of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit:  American Trucking Associations Inc., Petitioner, v. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration; and United States of America, Respondent visit http://www.nam.org/~/media/CDAD402C67CB4E46A65227C89B235BE0/American_Trucking_Assns_v_Federal_Motor_Carrier_Safety_Admin_DC_Cir_07312012.pdf

What affects do you see the hours-of-service changes as having on your company?  Do you rely on late/early morning deliveries to stock your products?  Road Scholar offers expedited shipping to get your freight delivered safely on time because your point of sale is our point of service.  Learn more at www.roadscholar.com.

1http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2013/1/29/ATAasksFMCSAtodelaynewHOSuntilaftercourtdecision.aspx

2http://www.truckinginfo.com/news/news-detail.asp?news_id=79172

3http://logisticsviewpoints.com/2013/01/30/clock-ticking-on-hours-of-service-and-other-trucking-risks/

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Cybercrime and Climate Change Spell Danger for Supply Chain

Friday, January 25th, 2013

According to a report released earlier this week by World Economic Forum, 80% of companies across the globe place increased supply chain security a priority, expressing concerns evolving from cybercrime, natural disasters, and climate changes. 1

Cybercrime

The number of crimes occurring through the internet is expected to cybercrimeincrease this year and no one is safe.  Whether you are a shipper, manufacturer, carrier, or consumer, cybercrime affects everyone and it is becoming a larger issue in the trucking industry throughout the years.

More and more instances of fraudulent companies using online methods to develop and steal freight are erupting, posing a concern for those shippers utilizing brokers, since they do not know who exactly is handling their freight or if the company now entrusted with their goods is legit.

But how are thieves securing these loads in the first place?  Many times it is through brokers who post their loads online, and who do not always vet out drivers before handing them your shipment.  This can result in fraudulent companies stealing your freight or double brokerage schemes.

Where’s my freight?

Let’s look at a case in March 2011 where a fraudulent trucking company utilized a number of brokers to make away with several shipments.

Realizing the impact that freezing weather conditions would play on produce sales, E&A Transport Express quickly registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and began to search out brokers listing produce loads, posing as a Miami-based trucking company.  By taking loads that were given a few days for delivery due to distance, the company had enough time to pull of the theft before the goods were reported missing/undelivered.  They managed to secure eight loads of produce, a high target at the time due to their rising prices, making away with close to $300,000, not to mention creating a widespread concern over the reselling of potentially contaminated products.

On the other hand, if the shipper had transported their cargo with Road Scholar Transport, they would been able to track their shipment live as well as have their freight constantly monitored by Road Scholar employees so that if a driver goes off route, the driver and truck are immediately contacted and checked of any problems.

Double Brokerage Schemes

Another common cybercrime affecting the transportation industry are double brokerage schemes.

Last July, Pauline Robinson-Kirkland was charged with six counts of fraud after setting up over 15 trucking company names from January 2006 to December 2009, using these companies to bid on loads posted online. 2 Once a load was granted, Robinson-Kirkland would ask for payment to be sent to her company, while reposting the same load, never informing the carrier that it was being double-brokered. 2 Robinson-Kirkland received nearly 69 payments, never paying the carrier who actually transported the freight.

Natural Disasters/Climate Changes

Natural disasters can strike at any moment, affecting profits as businesses attempt to recover from damaging affects (as was the case in the recent Hurricane Sandy).

70% of companies, according to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and Accenture’s research which surveyed 2,415 companies composing of suppliers and purchasers, believe that climate change affects their revenue as well, with 678 of these companies investing in emission reduction initiatives. 3

Emissions

According to CDP’s research, “Suppliers are significantly less prepared than their clients to respond to climate change, potentially threatening customer relationships and heightening supply chain vulnerability,” with 38% of suppliers setting emission reduction initiatives verses 92% of purchasing companies.” 3

29% of suppliers have already reduced emissions, leading them to save nearly $13.7 bn. 3 As Accenture’s Gary Hanifan explains, “This report provides clear evidence that those who are most transparent about their climate change risks are more likely to achieve the greatest emissions reductions. And they are also more likely to enjoy monetary savings as a result of their responses to climate change risks. But the return on investment by the most proactive companies will not reach its full potential unless those companies can encourage their suppliers to follow their lead.” 3

Road Scholar, a SmartWay Company

smartway

Recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for committing to improve the environmental performance of our customer’s freight operations, Road Scholar is collaborating with the SmartWay Transport Partnership with a focus on reducing emissions and fuel consumption.

SmartWay, launched in 2004 by EPA and Charter Partners and has grown to include over 3000 partners since, works with carriers to track fuel consumption/improve performance, identifying equipment that helps save fuel and lower emissions.  Becoming a member of SafeWay, Road Scholar vows to contribute to the Partnership’s savings of 1.5 billion gallons of fuel, $3.6 billion in fuel costs, 14.7 MMT of carbon dioxide (CO2), 215,000 tons of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and 8,000 tons of particulate matter.

Road Scholar’s 2012 trucks are 40 times cleaner than 2007 engines.  In fact, newer equipment/engines “can improve their performance and reduce key emissions by up to 90 percent.” 4

Road Scholar has already gone eco-friendly and is offering the following advice on how you too can reduce your carbon footprint:

-As stated previously, newer trucks/equipment, fuel efficiency methods (such as eco-friendly fuel choices, reducing deadhead, and planning routes to make mileage more efficient), as well as  joining a program such as SmartWay can help reduce the amount of diesel your trucks emit.

-Speed control:  It goes without saying, the faster you go, the more fuel you burn.  For example, traveling at 60 mph would burn fuel at a rate of 6 mpg.  Traveling at 70 mph would burn fuel at a rate of 5 mpg…and so on.

-Skirting on trailers slipstreams the trailer and reduces drag created by rushing air.  In fact, those skirts that are verified by SmartWay are known to increase fuel efficiency by 4-7%. 5

-Cruise control typically has a .3% fuel efficiency gain by helping your driver maintain a steady speed instead of constantly stepping on the gas and then braking.

-Progressive shifting:  For example, shifting at lower revs in lower gears rather than tacking out the rev/minute in each gear.

-A good driver vs. a cowboy, who is constantly running fast.

With these tips, you too can become an eco-friendly carrier and help our environment.

For information about the SmartWay Transport Partnership visit www.epa.gov/smartway.

Do you prefer to ship with an eco-friendly carrier?

1http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-01-22/news/36484379_1_chains-natural-disasters-risks

2http://www.landlinemag.com/Story.aspx?StoryID=23924

3http://finchannel.com/Main_News/Business/122499_Major_Climate_Threat_to_Global_Supply_Chains_Identified_by_New_Research_/

4http://www.marketwatch.com/story/in-the-past-10-years-emissions-from-diesel-trucks-and-buses-have-been-reduced-by-99-for-nox-and-98-for-particulate-emissions-2012-02-21

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2013 Brings Increased Problems for Carriers

Friday, January 18th, 2013

Trucking companies will face a greater challenge this year as volumes, rates, and capacity issues are forecasted to grow, increasing difficulties among carriers.  As Transport Capital Partners (TCP)’s Richard Mikes notes, “Volume and rate outlook does not bode well for cash flows and profits in 2013 for an industry under costs and availability pressure for drivers.” 1

Freight Volumes

The TCP’s Fourth Quarter 2012 Business Expectations Survey, which evaluated trucking executives, forecasted for the first time since 2009’s 1st quarter that freight volumes will remain flat. 1

Last month, the DAT North American Freight Index noted that although freight volumes declined 18.4% from November to December, December volumes were up 5% compared to the same time last year and were at their highest December mark since 1996. 2

Capacity

Carriers are refusing to add capacity unless they are “tied to specific dedicated fleet contracts, as supply and demand is now roughly in balance despite weak U.S. economic growth,” stated Stifel Nicolaus senior transportation analyst John Larkin. 1

perfect storm for capacity shortage

Click to enlarge

Capacity shortage is the result of several factors (see The Perfect Storm for Capacity Shortage on the right) including new, stricter regulations in the trucking industry such as “speed limiters, revised drug testing procedures, and the medical certification process.” 1

One of the regulations causing great debate is changes to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s CSA, including the revision of the hours-of-service provision which becomes effective July 1st.  This revision is expected to reduce a driver’s work week from 82 to 70 hours (a 17% decrease).

Earlier this week, the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Transportation announced an audit of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s CSA, in particular concerns over its Safety Measurement System, stating, “Specifically, our audit will assess whether FMCSA has (1) established adequate controls to ensure the quality of the data used to evaluate carrier performance and risk, and (2) effectively implemented CSA enforcement interventions.” 3

Meanwhile, stricter regulations such as CSA are adding to the driver shortage, not only by reducing the number of unsafe drivers on the road, but the cost of training the younger generation and inexperienced drivers is acting as a barrier as well.

In order to attract drivers to their fleet, carriers are competing with wages, bonuses, and other incentives, but in order to increase driver pay, rates need to rise as well, another challenge carriers are facing.

Rates

Despite capacity shortages, nearly 46% of carriers expect rate trendrates to remain the same while 44% expect to see only a moderate increase (this percentage favorable among large carriers). 1 Only 21% of the carriers participating in TCP’s survey increased their rates within the last few months which is said to be “the lowest percentage since February 2010.” 1

Dedicated rates, according to Stifel Nicolaus, are expected to remain flat or increase by only 2% while contract rates may actually decrease 1% or increase by 2%.1

For more information regarding the Safety Measurement System and the new Hours of Service rule changes, contact us via the form below or by visiting www.roadscholar.com.

Do you feel that the trucking industry will face greater challenges in 2013?  What is your outlook for volume, rates, and capacity?

1http://fleetowner.com/fleet-management/challenges-continue-grow-carriers

2http://www.supplychaindigital.com/global_logistics/dat-freight-index-reports-record-december-volume

3http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2013/1/15/OIGinitiatesauditofCSA.aspx

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Only 12% of Active Carriers Contain Sufficient Data for Accurate CSA Rating

Thursday, December 13th, 2012

Shortly after the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) put into effect changes to the CSA’s Safety Measurement System last week, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) released a white paper explaining that “the CSA system lacks sufficient data on the majority of the industry to render meaningful scores for most motor carriers.” 1

According to the ATA, the FMCSA “has sufficient violation data to assess 40% of active carriers in at least one category but only enough to assign a percentile rank or score in at least one category to 12% of active carriers,” which the FMCSA claims is non-problematic since ‘those carriers are involved in 83% of the crashes.’” 1

But the ATA emphasizes that many accidents are not even reported to the FMCSA (less than 75% according to the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute), leading to inaccurate CSA ratings.

The FMCSA believes that their statistics are accurate due to utilization of their State Safety Data Quality (SSDQ) system, which estimates the number of non-fatal accidents by looking into the number of fatal crashes, comparing these estimates with the number of actual reported non-fatal crashes, giving those states a rating of “good,” “fair,” or “poor.” 2

Although the FMCSA’s findings note that the majority of states are classified as being “good” when indicating their crash numbers, the ATA points out three main flaws that lead these results to be considered inaccurate.

*The FMCSA model of determining whether or not a state is doing an appropriate job in reporting non-fatal accidents is too broad, giving the state a wide threshold to report numbers in.  For instance, “Texas needed to transmit between 12,551 and 25,163 accidents, a range of 12,612 accidents,” a number that far exceeds accuracy. 3

*Although the number of reported non-fatal accidents may only slightly vary in small states year after year, the FMCSA’s threshold varies depending on the number of fatal accidents in that state.  As the ATA noted, “Alaska experienced an annualized fatal accident count of between 1 and 3 for each month in 2012.  When the annualized count was 3, the model expected between 58 and 136 non-fatal, reportable accidents, a range of 78. When the annualized count was 1, the model predicted between 17 and 47 accidents, a range of 30.” 2 The ATA concluded that the number of fatal accidents is not a reliable indicator in determining the number of non-fatal accidents in a state.

*Finally, although the FMCSA claims that most states do a “good” job in reporting crash statistics, which the agency considers as evidence that their ratings are accurate; the previous explanations explain these numbers as unreliable.

The ATA concluded by stating that “Thorough examination of state police accidents reports (PAR) remains the only way to accurately measure State accident reporting to MCMIS.” 2

Read the ATA’s White Paper: Underreporting of Commercial Motor Vehicle Crashes:  Assessment of FMCSA’s Crash Reporting Measurement Tool December 2102 at

http://www.trucking.org/Miscellaneous%20Documents/12%204%2014%20-%20Underreporting%20of%20Crashes%20December%202012%20Final.pdf.

Do you agree with the ATA that the FMCSA’s CSA system contains insufficient data?  What do you find to be the consequences of having this “inaccurate” in the system?

1http://www.supplychaindigital.com/global_logistics/ata-speak-out-about-csa-data-limitations

2http://www.trucking.org/Miscellaneous%20Documents/12%204%2014%20-%20Underreporting%20of%20Crashes%20December%202012%20Final.pdf

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Changes Go into Effect as ATRI Releases New Survey on CSA Implications

Friday, December 7th, 2012

Last Monday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) put into effect changes to the CSA’s Safety Measurement System (SMS 3.0).  These changes include changing the Cargo-Related BASIC to the HM Compliance BASIC and the Fatigued Driving BASIC to HOS Compliance BASIC, as well as including violations from the Cargo-Related BASIC category (such as cargo/load securement violations) in the Vehicle Maintenance category.  View changes here.

Last Tuesday, the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) published their recent survey “Compliance, Safety, Accountability: Evaluating a New Safety Measurement System and Its Implications,” which pulled input from over 7,000 individuals including drivers, carriers, and law enforcement officials.

Although in last year’s survey, ATRI explained that with stricter regulations, CSA is predicted to remove 10-20% of drivers from the industry, the recent findings demonstrate this number to actually be much lower.  According to the survey, “close to 90 percent of carriers have fired from 0 percent to just 5 percent of their workforce.” 1

Despite an increasing driver shortage, and thus, capacity restraints, employers have increased their standards in the hiring process.  “Employers report less leeway when evaluating driver applicants’ driving records compared to current employees,” the report said. “This makes sense since employers have more extensive knowledge of current drivers than of applicants, including insights into personality traits, behavioral patterns and home lives; therefore, employment decisions can often factor in information beyond a driver’s MCMIS or MVR data (not to mention, employers may be privy to explanations behind safety infractions or FMCSR violations).” 1 With that in mind, nearly two-thirds of those drivers currently employed are still concerned about losing their job due to stricter regulations. 2

83% of carriers are finding it difficult to find qualified drivers, this number increasing from 72% reported last year, according to ATRI’s survey.  This number is plausible given ATRI’s results regarding driver knowledge towards CSA.

According to the report:

  • “Large percentages of drivers still report receiving little to no training on CSA.” 2
  • “96.0% of drivers did not know that FMCSA enforcement staff are the only group of people who can access official driver scores.” 2
  • “92.4% of drivers could not correctly identify which 5 carrier BASIC scores are publicly available.” 2
  • “50.1% of drivers were unaware that past violations and crashes are weighted by both time and severity.” 2
  • “Nearly one quarter (23.2%) of driver respondents have no knowledge that DataQs exists, and only 7.8 percent have used it to contest negative information believed to be in error.” 2

In addition to driver knowledge, the survey analyzed carrier usage of CSA, finding that a whopping 96% of carriers have accessed CSA at some point.  According to results:

28.3% access their CSA scores daily

55.4% monthly

11.7% occasionally

3.3% have not yet accessed their CSA scores

1.2% have no interest

Would you ship with those companies not interested in their safety scores?  Do you think they are concerned about hiring safe, qualified drivers?

You can get your copy of ATRI’s “Compliance, Safety, Accountability: Evaluating a New Safety Measurement System and Its Implications” report at www.atri-online.org.

Do you find that employers are being tougher when hiring drivers due to CSA or more lenient due to driver shortage?

apply

1http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2012/12/4/NewATRIsurveyCSAdidnthurtdriveravailabilityasmuchasthought.aspx

2ATRI’s “Compliance, Safety, Accountability: Evaluating a New Safety Measurement System and Its Implications” report

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CSA Changes Expected to Take Effect Next Week

Friday, November 30th, 2012

CSALast August, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced changes to the CSA’s Safety Measurement System (SMS 3.0) that would take effect this December.

With no effective date announced as of yet, the changes, which are considered to be among the most drastic, are expected to go into effect as early as next week.

Vigillo, a data collection company offering CSA management products, has hosted three webinars earlier this week, preparing individuals on the CSA’s upcoming changes. According to Vigillo, “The changes stemmed from the concerns of flatdeck and open deck carriers that felt they faced increased scrutiny when compared to van operators, solely due to the visibility of the freight they haul. There was a huge bias against flatbed and open deck carriers under the old methodology. They were subjected to more maintenance inspections as opposed to dry van and tanker trucks. Industry stakeholders went to the FMSCA and lobbied for this change.” 1

Changes include the following:

-“Changing the Cargo-Related BASIC to the HM Compliance BASIC to better identify HM-related safety and compliance problems” 2

This change places greater emphasis on compliance rather than safety. This includes documentation and placarding. As Vigillo’s Drew Anderson states, “Be careful what you ask for, it just may happen. Indeed what we see is the bias shown against flatbed and open deck carriers is eliminated. As the Cargo BASIC fades into the sunset, all open deck and flatbed carriers with a Cargo BASIC alert, that alert goes away because the BASIC goes away.” 1

Vigillo’s Sloan Morris acknowledges that “Because of the thinning of the former Cargo BASIC, the new HazMat BASIC now becomes the thinnest of BASICs in terms of violations, and as such, the most sensitive to violations.” 1

This category will remain private (accessible only to carriers/law enforcement) for the next year until inconsistency concerns are addressed. 3

-“Changing the name of the Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service (HOS)) BASIC to the HOS Compliance BASIC” 2

In doing so, violations will be reported more accurately.

-Paper and electronic logs used to record a driver’s hours-of-service will be weighed equally. 3

-“Strengthening the Vehicle Maintenance Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category (BASIC) by incorporating cargo/load securement violations from today’s Cargo-Related BASIC” 2

This will both present those carriers that have a greater risk of future crashes as well as removes bias. 2 Over 100 violations previously located in the Cargo-Related BASIC category will now be incorporated into the Vehicle Maintenance category.

-SMS will include pre-trip inspection violations on intermodal equipment. 4

-“Aligning violations that are included in the SMS with Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance inspection levels by eliminating vehicle violations derived from driver-only inspections and driver violations from vehicle-only inspections.” 2

-“Removing 1 to 5 mph speeding violations to ensure citations are consistent with current speedometer regulations.” 3

Once these changes go into affect, carriers can see changes in their CSA scores due to violations being weighted differently.

What do you think of the upcoming CSA changes? How will they affect your company?

1http://www.trucknews.com/news/substantial-changes-to-csa-coming-as-early-as-next-week/1001889087/
2http://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/About/SMS_Changes.aspx
3http://www.truckinginfo.com/news/news-detail.asp?news_id=77837
4http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2012/8/24/CSAcargohazmatchangesfinalizedFatiguedDrivingrenamed.aspx

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Drivers Frustrated as FMCSA Enforces Validation of Medical Exams through Random Checks

Friday, November 16th, 2012

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is once again, cracking down on the number of unqualified/unsafe drivers operating on our nation’s roads with the recent announcement of random medical checks.

Rather than being an effort to evaluate a driver’s medical fitness, the purpose of these checks are to ensure that the driver’s medical examination/“information on the Medical Examination Certificate is accurate,” eliminating fraudulent MECs and unsafe drivers from the road. 1

According to the FMCSA, the following steps will be taken to validate MEC authenticity:

  1. Contact the Medical Examiner’s (ME) office at the telephone number indicated on the certificate;
  2. Explain the inquiry’s purpose and indicate that it is intended solely to confirm that the document presented by the driver matches the records maintained by the ME. Direct contact with the actual ME is not required – an authorized staff member may provide the requested information; and
  3. Provide the driver’s name and date of birth, the date of issuance of the MEC and any restrictions indicated thereon and request verbal confirmation of the information provided.

Additionally, doctors who provide commercial drivers medical examinations are now required to have a special certification in doing so, receiving specialized training regarding health issues that may lead to safety hazards on the road, preventing drivers from being passed by another doctor after failing the first time by placing responsibility upon the doctor. 2

Drivers are seeing these changes as yet another obstacle to the new rules they are already struggling to get used to/finding a hassle.  These include the following:

CSA:

The FMCSA’s CSA gained the number one spot for the first time as the top issue currently affecting the trucking industry.

In last year’s ATRI survey, drivers and owner-operators listed their concerns over CSA which included job security and safety concerns.

Hours-of-Service:

Whereas the FMCSA upheld a driver’s HOS at 11 hours, the group revised the hours-of-service provision to include two consecutive breaks between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5.am., reducing a driver’s work week from 82 to 70 hours,  which leads to lower wages since many drivers are paid by the mile.

The ATA, along with other groups continuing to oppose the ruling, are seeking changes to the following: 11-hour daily driving limit, 30-minute required breaks, and 34-hour restart provision. 3

EOBRs:

Electronic Onboard Recording Devices ranked a new high since its first appearance in the ATRI’s survey in 2007.  As the survey states, “Though FMCSA had been working towards a new EOBR/ELD final rule that addressed harassment concerns, the agency’s work was preempted by the inclusion of an EOBR/ELD mandate for HOS tracking in the MAP-21 transportation bill passed by Congress in 2012.  In MAP-21, Congress gave the agency until October 1, 2013 to issue a final rule.” 4

Random medical exam checks are just another one of the things drivers now have to face along with capacity issues and stricter regulations.

The trucking industry demonstrates its important role in freight transportation, comprising of “67 percent of tonnage and 81 percent of revenue in 2011,” according to the American Trucking Associations’ (ATA) U.S. Freight Transportation Forecast. 5 In fact, “the trucking industry adds about 5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product each year.” 6

As one driver states, “This is the last industry that America has to keep amerce running.  If they shut down this trucking industry, America is in trouble, so they need to leave the truck drivers alone.” 7

Do you agree with this driver in that if the FMCSA continues to create new laws/enforcements, the trucking industry, which is already experiencing difficulty recruiting drivers, will begin to suffer and the country would be in trouble?

Below are new medical certification requirements that took place earlier this year as listed on the FMCSA’s website.

medical certificate

Click to enlarge

1http://lmstrucking.infinit-i.net/articles/FMCSA_Initiative_11-13-2012_Driver_Medical_Card_Validation.htm

2http://www.melodika.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=467996&Itemid=55

3http://www.melodika.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=419974&Itemid=55

4ATRI’s Critical Issues in the Trucking Industry 2012 report

5http://www.todaystrucking.com/ata-forecast-2023-a-merry-year-for-trucking-industry

6http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trucking-industry-continues-to-show-signs-of-improvement-as-number-of-freight-shipments-increased-2012-07-10

7http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=22952756

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FMCSA Announces CSA Changes Effective December

Wednesday, August 29th, 2012

FMCSAAfter much debate, a four-month preview period, and comment submission process, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced on its site Friday the changes that will go into effect for the CSA’s Safety Measurement System this December.

Comment Period

Over 14,000 carriers and 1,700 law enforcement officials participated in the SMS preview, which was open to carriers on March 27th.   With an approaching deadline to comment on the changes originally scheduled for late June, the FMCSA extended its deadline to July 30th.

The FMCSA has been under pressure by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) to change the way crash accountability is recorded.  Last year, carriers complained about high CSA crash scores reflecting accidents in which their trucks were not at fault. In return, the FMCSA developed both a short-term and long-term goal for easing carrier complaints.  Under these goals, trucking companies would be able to appeal who’s accountable for an accident, with a long-term plan aiming to determine accountability before the accident is even registered and factored into the scoring process.

In short-term, crashes would continue to be documented into the CSA database, however, carriers would then be given the option of using a system developed by the FMCSA allowing them to challenge the accountability of an accident by submitting a police report through the CSA data correction system.  Although all accidents will still be recorded in the CSA system, those carriers at fault will be scored heavier then those held non-accountable for an accident.

But as the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Steve Keppler explains, this method poses problems when the “reviewer makes a determination on accountability that is different than the officer,” who was actually on the scene, or when their determination differs from the insurance company’s investigation.

Last month, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association announced that it had filed a suit against the FMCSA stating that the agency has been releasing inaccurate driver records to employers that ultimately lead to negative consequences for drivers.  The group had presented three case examples in which drivers had their violations dismissed in court, however, these violations still remained in the system even after they submitted appeals through the agency’s DataQ, violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act and affecting future business opportunities.

The Changes

As of December 2012, the following changes will take place:

-“Changing the Cargo-Related BASIC to the HM Compliance BASIC to better identify HM-related safety and compliance problems” 1

In response to concerns over inconsistency in the hazmat category, the FMCSA has decided to make this category private only to carriers and law enforcement until these concerns are addressed. 2

-“Changing the name of the Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service (HOS)) BASIC to the HOS Compliance BASIC” 1

In doing so, violations will be reported more accurately.

-Paper and electronic logs used to record a driver’s hours-of-service will be weighed equally. 2

-“Strengthening the Vehicle Maintenance Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category (BASIC) by incorporating cargo/load securement violations from today’s Cargo-Related BASIC” 1

Doing so provides two important benefits:  “It identifies motor carriers with a higher future crash risk for FMCSA interventions” and “removes the bias in the current Cargo-Related BASIC which has resulted in identifying a disproportionate large number of carriers that haul open trailers (e.g. flatbeds) for interventions.” 1


-SMS will include pre-trip inspection violations on intermodal equipment. 3

-“Aligning violations that are included in the SMS with Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance inspection levels by eliminating vehicle violations derived from driver-only inspections and driver violations from vehicle-only inspections.” 1
Roadside inspection violations will be reported, however, only specific inspection violations will be included in the SMS. 1

-“Removing 1 to 5 mph speeding violations to ensure citations are consistent with current speedometer regulations.” 2

In addition, “the severity weight for speeding violations that do not designate the mph range above the speed limit” will be lowered. 3
Responses

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, who had filed a suit against the FMCSA in July, responded to the changes stating, “We’ve known it’s been a work in progress, and today’s announcement shows that the agency is listening to what truckers have been saying and taking those things into consideration, however, impatience from truckers should not be unexpected when a program has real-life consequences on professionals that know of no other way to do business but safely,” and further emphasized that although it is “a step in the right direction,” it is still not far enough. 4

What do you think of the FMCSA’s changes to the SMS system?  Are they sufficient or do you agree with OOIDA that it is “still not far enough?”

1http://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/About/SMS_Changes.aspx

2http://www.truckinginfo.com/news/news-detail.asp?news_id=77837

3http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2012/8/24/CSAcargohazmatchangesfinalizedFatiguedDrivingrenamed.aspx

4http://www.landlinemag.com/Story.aspx?StoryID=24072

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Loss of Business and Vicarious Liability Risk Top List of Concerns Over CSA Data

Friday, August 17th, 2012

CSAConcerns over inaccurate data in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s CSA program (which measures a carrier’s and driver’s safety performance in seven BASIC categories including unsafe driving, fatigued driving, driver fitness, controlled substances/alcohol, vehicle maintenance, cargo-related, and crash indicator) has several trucking companies lashing out over loss of business and shipper vicarious liability concerns.

Last month, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association announced that it had filed a suit against the FMCSA stating that the agency has been releasing inaccurate driver records to employers that ultimately lead to negative consequences for drivers.

According to the suit, the FMCSA is accused of releasing driver data to employers conducting pre-employment screening before the driver’s accusation even reaches the court, resulting in sometimes inaccurate data where the driver was not at fault. 1 The group had presented three case examples in which drivers had their violations dismissed in court, however, these violations still remained in the system even after they submitted appeals through the agency’s DataQ, violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act and affecting future business opportunities.

As one carrier noted, “Crashes where the driver was not at fault impact the motor carrier’s score the same as crashes where the driver was at fault.  As a result, a safe motor carrier could have a high crash indicator score as a result of the misfortune of being involved in non-preventable crashes.” 2

OOIDA is urging that the FMCSA “immediately suspend the program so that it no longer damages the reputations and livelihoods of good, safe motor carriers and good, safe drivers.” 2

However, groups including Road Safe America insist that the FMCSA “resist any challenges to remove, limit, or subjectively classify violation or crash data that would result in diminishing the program’s effectiveness,” since “the agency cannot rely on police accident reports to determine ‘non-preventability’ due to there not being a section in the standard police accident report to address or spur an investigation into the question of ‘preventability.’” 2

Carriers acknowledged that more and more shippers are basing their carrier selection on a company’s CSA scores.  If a carrier has a high rating or any alerts, shippers are refusing to conduct business with them, which carriers find out of their control and unfair due to inaccurate/faulty data in the system.

More and more shippers are choosing to vet out their carriers using the CSA system in fear of being wrapped up in a vicarious liability lawsuit, which can lead to multi-million dollar claims.

According to vicarious liability, “Where a shipper acts as principal, and a carrier or broker acts as agent of the shipper, liability for the conduct of the carrier or broker may be imputed to the shipper,” since the shipper had “the right to control the conduct” of the carrier or broker. 3

Up until 2004, the carrier, and only the carrier, was held responsible for “any and all property damage or bodily injury it caused” while freight was in its possession. 3 In 2004, however, this changed in a court case known as Schramm v. Foster, in which a shipper hired a 3pl to transport their freight.  The carrier that was hired to do so by the 3pl had gotten into an accident, seriously injuring two people.  Instead of strictly the carrier being held accountable for the accident, the 3pl was found liable as well since, according to the ruling, the 3pl was responsible for vetting out a driver via the FMCSA’s Safestat database.

As QualifiedCarriers.com informs, “a carrier’s liability insurance will exclude indemnity for independent claims against the shipper,” for example, negligent hiring, so you, the shipper, can be sued as well for your carrier’s actions.

In further detail, shippers are now liable in cases where “the plaintiff can show (1) the carrier caused injury to the plaintiff’s property or person through negligence, recklessness or intentional misconduct and (2) the shipper did not exercise reasonable care or perform proper due diligence when it screened, vetted, and selected the carrier to move the shipper’s freight.” 3

The FMCSA will be reviewing comments on the CSA system and is expected to finalize any changes this month. 2

Has your CSA score had an impact on your business?  As a shipper, do check a carrier’s CSA score prior to doing business?

Check out the TIA’s strategy to reduce 3PL liability at http://www.tianet.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=7912.

1http://www.ttnews.com/articles/basetemplate.aspx?storyid=29742&t=OOIDA-Sues-FMCSA-Over-Driver-Database

2http://www.ttnews.com/articles/basetemplate.aspx?storyid=29962&t=CSA-Doesnt-Accurately-Reflect-Safety-Fleets-Tell-FMCSA-in-New-Comments

3www.qualifiedcarriers.com/why-risk-management.aspx

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Should Mexican Carrier be Granted Access into Program? FMCSA Wants Your Comments

Friday, August 10th, 2012

Last October, Transportes Olympic became the first Mexican carrier granted access into the U.S., ending Mexican tariffs placed on U.S. goods as part of the Mexico/U.S. Cross-border Agreement.

Since then, a total of four Mexican carriers have been granted this authority.  Now, Juarez, Colimia, Mexico’s GCC hopes to be next.

With GCC’s recent passage of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Pre-Authorization Safety Audit, the FMCSA will now seek comments (the final step in granting the carrier U.S. operating authority).

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has already expressed its concerns and disapproval of granting GCC access.

One issue, OOIDA President Jim Johnston explains in a letter addressed to the FMCSA’s Anne Ferro, lies in the fact that the GCC failed to properly disclose up to five affiliations on its application, a task in which carriers are required to “disclose affiliations or relationships with carriers registered with FMCSA in the past three years, noting that their affiliates were “not available.” 1

According to the rule, “Incomplete applications are to be rejected from the program, while any willful misstatements or omission of material facts are punishable by imprisonment,” OOIDA explained. 2

The FMCSA, on the other hand, reported that GCC’s affiliates were reviewed and found to be in good standing.

But this was not the only concern that OOIDA reasoned the company should be refused access.  According to the association, GCC’s CSA scores posed a risk to safety with a “Driver Fitness score which far exceeds the threshold for intervention at 87.9 percent.” 1

In looking at the companies CSA score (available at http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS/Data/carrier.aspx?enc=cNprkJWf/qe2Oh1vcIkU+Q= =), within the last year, GCC had numerous violations which included 53 violations of a Non-English speaking driver, along with violations for a driver not understanding English highway traffic signs/signals and not having a medical certificate.

Additionally, the carrier had a Vehicle Maintenance score of 66.3%, which included 66 different types of vehicle maintenance violations including:

-79 violations of “No/defective lighting devices/reflective devices/projected.” 3

-31 violations of “Axle positioning parts defective/missing.” 3

-71 violations of “Torsion bar cracked and/or broken.” 3

-94 violations of “Failing to secure brake hose/tubing against mechanical damage.” 3

-19 violations of “Tire — tread and/or sidewall separation.” 3

-16 violations of “Tire — flat and/or audible air leak.” 3

FMCSA rebutted OOIDA’s safety concerns, explaining that “the drivers proposed by the carrier for participation in the pilot program were tested for English language proficiency during the PASA and were found to be proficient,” while two of these drivers were required to obtain “additional training to improve their English language proficiency.” 1

gcc

GCC’s safety scores available at fmcsa.dot.gov.

GCC’s safety scores available at fmcsa.dot.gov.

Do you think that Mexican carriers should be allowed to operate in the United States?  Should GCC be granted access into the program?  List your comments below.

Learn how you can check a carrier’s safety scores in 7 easy steps by clicking the video below.

csa

1http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2012/8/8/FMCSAseekscommentsonGCCOOIDAprotestscarrierscrossborderapplication.aspx

2http://www.landlinemag.com/Story.aspx?StoryID=23987

3http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS/Data/carrier.aspx?enc=cNprkJWf/qe2Oh1vcIkU+Q= =

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