After an investigation into a fatal truck-train accident that happened a year and a half ago, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended that federal regulators should create a mechanism to more effectively gather truck driver employment and driving history information to help carriers better screen applicants.
The driver that caused the truck-train collision did not fully disclose all of his prior violations and employers; his previous employers numbered 30 during the 10 years before the crash. The investigation revealed that the driver had been cited for more than a dozen moving violations, had at least three accidents, and had his drivers' license suspended or revoked at least four times.
The board concluded that despite some driver screening programs already in existence, there "is currently no means by which a company can verify the completedness of information provided by a driver applicant.
Deborah Hersman, NTSB chairwoman, said she was well aware of the challenges for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to establish a failsafe system of accurately tracking a driver's history. Even the agency's Pre-employment Screening Program does not offer complete information on a driver's past, she said. "At the end of the day, we don't have a system that works,", she said.
NTSB has issued 19 recommendations, including these three primary recommendations relating to trucking:
- Create a mechanism to gather and record commercial driving-related employment history about all drivers and make this information available to all prospective motor carrier employers.
- Require motor carriers to conduct and document investigations into the employment records of prospective drivers for the 10 years that precede the application date.
- Require motor carriers to retrieve records from the Commercial Driver's License Information System and the National Driver register for all driver applicants so that they can obtain a complete driving and license history of prospective drivers.
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
As you all know, Daylight Savings Time started on Sunday, March 10. While it’s easy to see the benefits to longer days and more time in the daylight, few drivers stop to ponder the added dangers.
The short-term dangers in the first few days after the time change involve an increase in drowsy driving caused by a reduction in sleep. The hour we lose when clocks are set forward every spring offers our already sleep-deprived country a glimpse into the dangers of operating vehicles while fatigued. Perhaps the most basic requirement for safely operating any vehicle is to be awake, and though necessary, just being awake is not sufficient. Safe travel requires every vehicle operator to have obtained optimal sleep and be wide-awake and maximally alert, every time.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, there is a 17% increase in crashes on our roadways on the Monday following the time change. “But fatigue safety risks are a life-threatening concern far beyond this annual clock change,” according to Mark R. Rosekind, Ph.D., Member of the National Transportation Safety Board and an internationally recognized expert in the field of sleep and fatigue science. “Every year, an estimated one million roadway crashes and near-misses are likely fatigue-related, with thousands of people losing their lives and being injured. Fatigue-related tragedies are played out across every hour of the day throughout our nation’s transportation system.”
Longer term, the dangers of the return of Daylight Savings Time involve the sun shining directly into your eyes, leaving many motorists driving with a glare caused by the sun. Driving into the sun just after sunrise and just before sunset can make it much harder to see ahead.
What can you do?
- Invest in polarized sunglasses. They can help reduce glare.
- Use your sun visor. It can help to block out the sun.
- Leave more following room. When the sun is in your eyes, you can struggle to see what the car ahead is doing. This is one more time when it pays to leave more room between you and the next vehicle.
- Drive with your headlights on to increase your visibility to other drivers.
Remember to get the sleep you need. Your life, and the lives of those around you on the nation’s highways, depends on it.
Click here to read another great article: Sleepless America: The Deadly Cost of Fatigue in Transportation.
Article courtesy of National Private Truck Council (NPTC).
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Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
With so much attention on the final rule to change truck drivers’ hours-of-service (HOS), a slightly less contentious issue is also in the hands of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB): the proposed rule to ban cell-phone use by commercial drivers.
Unlike HOS reform, the proposed cell-phone ban is expected to move through the OMB review process more swiftly.
According to the FMCSA’s submitted abstract, this rulemaking “would restrict the use of mobile telephones while operating a commercial motor vehicle.” In addition, the rulemaking addresses a safety recommendation on the National Transportation Safety Board’s “Most Wanted List”.
Many in the trucking industry have asked for the distinction between the use of handheld and hands-free mobile devices, arguing that hands-free use does not elevate crash risk, and perhaps even reduces it.
NTSB acknowledged that the recommendation to ban all cell phone use – including hands-free devices – may not be popular. According to NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman, “We’re not here to be popular. We’re here to do what needs to be done.”
This is another step in the Department of Transportation’s ongoing national effort to curb distracted driving. Late last year, a rule that bans the specific act of texting while operating a commercial motor vehicle was finalized and became law.
For more information on DOT’s efforts to reduce driver distraction, please visit www.distraction.gov.
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently called for a complete ban on cell phone use – both handheld and hands free - by all commercial truck and bus drivers.
Referring to distracted driving as “the new DUI”, NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said, “Distracted driving is becoming increasingly prevalent…it can be especially lethal when the distracted driver is at the wheel of a vehicle that weighs 40 tons and travels at highway speeds.”
The NTSB’s recommendation follows its investigation of a March 2010 crash that killed 11 people in Kentucky. Investigators determined that the tractor-trailer driver who caused the accident used his mobile phone for calls and text messages a total of 69 times while driving in the 24-hour period prior to the accident. The driver made four calls in the minutes leading up to the fatal collision. The last call coincided with the time that the truck departed the highway.
While the NTSB does not have any rulemaking power, it can advise other agencies. The safety board’s actions are often a catalyst for local, state and federal legislation.
Last year, the FMCSA banned truckers from text-messaging while driving, setting fines of up to $2,750. The FMCSA anticipates a rule banning truckers from using hand-held cell phones soon.
In response to the NTSB recommendation on the cell phone ban, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said, "Texting or talking on the phone while driving can turn deadly in a matter of seconds, particularly when a big rig or a bus is involved. That is why the U.S. Department of Transportation has already banned commercial drivers from texting while driving and has a rulemaking underway to ban hand-held cell phone use. There is no call or text message that is worth risking lives.”
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
At the first ever Sleep Apnea & Trucking Conference, held in Baltimore, MD, a sold out crowd of trucking industry leaders, sleep medicine professionals, regulators and vendors gathered to discuss solutions for the serious problem of sleep apnea in trucking. The two-day event was hosted by the American Sleep Apnea Association (ASAA) and co-sponsored by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and the FMCSA.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), the most common category of sleep-disordered breathing, is a condition where airways become obstructed while sleeping, typically resulting in "hypoxia" or low blood oxygen levels at night. The obstruction leads to interruptions in breathing lasting several seconds at a time, loud snoring, and non-restful sleep. OSA has been demonstrated to significantly increase safety and health risks, leading to extreme daytime sleepiness.
Medical research has shown that OSA is a significant cause of motor vehicle crashes (resulting in a two- to seven-fold increased risk). Studies also suggest that commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operators have a higher prevalence of OSA than the general population. According to FMCSA research, around 30 percent of drivers suffer from mild to severe sleep apnea.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) renewed its campaign to broaden the use of sleep disorder screening across all modes of transportation - air, rail, marine, and trucking - as part of a long-term effort to significantly reduce the negative effects of fatigue. According to NTSB Vice Chairman Christopher Hart, fatigue and sleep apnea are major problems of the trucking industry and regulators need better awareness and better treatments to address the problem properly.
Hart proposed that the FMCSA incorporate new sleep disorder suggestions in an online medical examiner book. He also said he believes FMCSA will complete a revised examination report form by September to include the assessment of sleep disorders and publish a best practices guide for examiners.
Currently, there are few rules in transportation addressing OSA. In trucking, FMCSA asks about sleep disorders, OSA, daytime sleepiness, and snoring on the questionnaire completed by commercial truck drivers undergoing examination for medical certification. Further, the FMCSA Medical Review Board in 2008 recommended that the adminstration require OSA screening for all drivers with a body mass index (BMI) over 30, but the FMCSA has yet to act on that recommendation.
Regulators say that sleep disorders are big problems of the trucking industry. FMCSA Administrator Anne Ferro, who spoke at the Conference, said that fatigue-related crashes need to be reduced in the trucking industry, and that more research, programs, events, and targeted outreach and intervention will reduce drowsy driving accidents. "We consider fatigue to be a high risk behavior, something we're addressing as part of our core mission to reduce severe and fatal crashes involving commercial motor vehicles," said Ferro. "We know sleep apnea contributes to fatigue, that it interferes with safe driving. Thus sleep apnea is a threat to safety."
Over twenty speakers spoke at the two-day conference. Among them was R. Clay Porter, partner, Dennis, Corry, Porter & Smith, LLP. Mr. Porter examined the potential legal ramifications of drivers with sleep apnea on the road. While sleep apnea has not become a major player in the realm of truck litigation, it is "going to be part of this legal landscape sooner rather than later." Recommendations have already been made placing drivers, employers, and physicians on notice about this problem, along with proposed specific steps that should be taken to reduce preventable accidents attributed to OSA. In addition, existing case law exists to frame an argument for punitive damages for employers, and criminal convictions for employees and employers if OSA problems are ignored or hidden. The word to the wise is "deficio gero vestrum periclitatus", which roughly translates to "fail to act at your peril."
Those unable to attend the sold-out conference can purchase the Resource Toolkit, a comprehensive manual with materials on sleep apnea and trucking, which will be available after the conference at http://www.satc2010.org/. You can also click here for a variety of sleep apnea treatment options from the ASAA.
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
The American Trucking Association (ATA) is co-sponsoring the first-ever national conference on sleep apnea and commercial motor vehicle drivers on Wednesday, May 12, 2010, at The Westin Baltimore Washington Airport - BWI in Baltimore. The conference will feature presentations and panel discussions that focus on providing a common understanding of sleep apnea diagnosis and treatment, clarifying current and proposed regulations, establishing an ongoing forum of experts to generate guidance for improvements, and providing trucking management with the resources to improve employee health and safety.
The illness afflicts at least 20 million Americans - equal to or more than asthma or diabetes - yet more than 85% remain undiagnosed, according to the American Sleep Apnea Association (ASAA), which is co-hosting the ATA's sleep apnea conference. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a condition in which an individual's airway is blocked while sleeping, typically resulting in frequent breathing interruptions lasting from 10 seconds to more than a minute at a time, loud snoring and non-restorative sleep. One controlled study found that people with OSA have a six times greater risk of being involved in a traffic crash and a seven times greater risk of having multiple crashes.
"Sleep apnea is a major problem in the truck driver community," said Dana Voien, President of SleepSafe Drivers. He said sleep apnea affects about 6% to 12% of the adult male population, but 28% to 30% of truck drivers - a factor he ties to the unusually high obesity rate among drivers. In addition to being a potential safety risk on the highway, drivers with sleep apnea face a long list of increased health risks, including hypertension, diabetes, memory loss, chronic fatigue, obesity, and a doubling of the chance of heart attack and stroke.
The one-day conference will be preceded by a reception and keynote address from NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman on May 11, 2010.
For more information, visit http://www.satc2010.org/.
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
Debbie Hersman, the new chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), recently spoke out on the Board's support for mandatory electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs) in all trucks. Outfitting all commercial trucks with EOBRs will allow for the monitoring of driver hours and fatigue, which contributes to many truck-involved accidents.
"Fatigue is actually one of the most insidious issues in the transportation industry. Transportation is a 24/7 operation and fatigue has been on our most-wanted list of transportation safety improvements," Hersman said.
In addition, she said, "We investigate accidents on a regular basis where we find two sets of logbooks. "We think that if you want to raise the standard for the industry and level the playing field for all drivers, that you've got to have an honest way of accounting the hours that people are working."
NTSB has no regulatory authority, so Hersman said the board relies on agencies adopting its safety recommendations.
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.